Ladies who are into gaming, what's the appeal (for you)?

I really wouldn’t expect the reasons to be any different.

It’s fun. I’m not sure what more you want.

I suppose the same reasons guys like it. I like solving problems, mapping out new worlds, beating the baddies, executing a really hard part of a game and doing it well (finally).

It’s fun.
It’s addicting.
You get to yell at the screen and not feel crazy.
You get to beat the boys.
Graphics are lovely even 8-bit.
You get to shoot people Counterstrike, anyone?.
Who doesn’t like the sound of a good PEW PEW PEW PEW in the morning?
NES and SEGA ruled my childhood, so the nostalgia is there.
You get to blow shit up.

I don’t see the big deal with girls who are gamers… what the hell is the difference between why we like them and why guys like them?

I don’t play any games on the computer.I like real games,damnit!Golf!Food fights!Trap shooting!Ping Pong!Ass Kicking!and croquet….fa la la!

I like the real world break it gives me and coming up with screen names.

@lucillelucillelucille “Real games”? Video games aren’t real?

I assume that ladies motivation would be similar to men’s motivations: They are fun!

Ditto @rangerr – Video games are real too!

But yeah. Video games are fun. They challenge your hand-eye coordination and let you get into a world different from your own. Plus, it’s fun to beat boys.

That being said, I’m too much of a wimp personally to play the scary games like Resident Evil or Silent Hill, and first-person shooters aren’t really my thing either. The one exception of this is playing Quake III Arena in a LAN party with my friends.

Um, I like to shoot things.

@ParaParaYukiko Silent Hill was FANTASTICLY amazing.

You didn’t expect answers like: “i like the colors on the box the game came in”, did you?

@rangerr Okay, maybe I’ll play it as long as I have the lights on and someone to play with me so I won’t have nightmares.

In the meantime I’ll stick with saving the world in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.

@rangerr -Yes,they are,but I like to see my competitor’s tears streaming down their cheeks as they comes to terms with getting their AK ;)
@trajiclikebowie-I love to shoot things,for real!...and I do ;)

For me, story lines are what used to count, and sometimes still do.

I first started playing RPG’s because I loved how there was a whole story that you were living, with defined characters who’s personalities grow as you play, as opposed to it just being an excuse to support gameplay.
The older Final Fantasy titles, Chrono Trigger, Breath of Fire II or Earthbound are some good examples, among many others. It was fascinating.

That said, I’ve played way too many role playing games in the past plus ten years, and while the formula usually defines it, I tire of prepubescent kids destined to save existence from some ancient god when they aren’t even the age to have sex yet. I’m sick and tired of amnesic farming village boys wearing goggles that never find any use in the game, and I’m tired of archetypal bag guys with flowing hair and trenchcoats.
And I’m not a particular fan of the anime design most of these games have, either.

Not saying it’s no good, that’s what RPG fans enjoy and if it works why change it, but it is reheated material, so today it takes something original to impress me. (Koudelka, Shadow Hearts, the Shin Megami series.)

I’ve turned my interest towards survival horror, because first off I’m a huge fan of anything horror related, and they often have great and elaborate stories. Besides fear factor and atmosphere, this is what survival horror relies on to define itself.
Even if it’s a failed and laughable attempt, (Night Trap lol.) I can usually forgive crap control and shoddy gameplay elements in lieux of a good story. (Silent Hill being one of my fave series. Anyone who played those will know that Konami knows how to weave a tale, and fuck you up while they’re at it.)

But I’m not in it just to have a bedtime story. I still play washed up JRPG’s because I love the gameplay and exploiting whatever technicalities I may find, and if not, I love treasure hunting. My main goal in most games these days is to collect every single item that the game has, even stuff I know I’ll never use. It’s like a fun challenge for me.

Which means I also love all the post Symphony of the Night Castlevania games (Including Symphony as my all time favourite video game ever.) where there’s always tons of cool shit to find.
That and they,re all pretty and Goth.

But I play most of anything…the exception is racing, wrestling and sports game.

I also love tactical RPG’s, (FF tactics, Kartia, Hoshigami, Stella Deus.) because of the immersion factor, as well as the over the top grandiose religious themed plots. And politics. epic.

I’m not adverse to fighting games either, street Fighter Alpha 3 and the Soul Calibur series being immense fun for me.

I’m not sure if my reasons and attraction to games is much different than anyone though, aside from perhaps a few bouts of being picky.

Honestly I think the reasons are the same as any guy around our age who plays; we were raised with it. I had my own computer as a toddler and started playing TMNT side-scrollers and some Looney Toons games. That evolved into the LucasArts games (Monkey Island, Loom, Maniac Mansion) as well as all of the old Sierra games (King’s Quest, Eco Quest, Mixed-Up Fairytales, Mixed Up Mother Goose, Willy Beamish, I could go on for days), which evolved into me getting a SNES and obsessively playing Super Mario Bros., Aladdin, Ghosts and Ghouls, Chess Master, etc. My dad would sometimes let me play his FPS (Doom, Duke Nukem), which my mom seriously protested. I’ve been mostly a PC gamer but there was a lull in that during the Playstation and PS2 era.

Even going over my friends house as a kid, I had a ton of friends who had Atari, Sega, Sega Saturn, NES, SNES, etc. We played a lot outside, but we also would play video games. I think every kid I knew had at least one console. Not all of them continued to play into adulthood but we all played as kids. Some of us just kept playing.

@Symbeline I pity the fool that brings up SRPGs but doesn’t include Disgaea or Jeanne D’Arc

@Grisaille—No you don’t understand. I’ve played way too many to name every single game.

Jeanne D’Arc is one of my favourite games for the PSP. Ever. I had a blast with it.
(We’ll just have to attack before they can percieve anything! Classic.)
However I really don’t consider it a tactical game at all. It’s more of a turn based traditional RPG hidden under a tactical scheme. It’s way too simple to be called an SRPG. (Like Rhapsody A Musical Adventure haha.)
So that’s a reason I didn’t name it…but I sure as hell recognize how awesome it is. Dun worries.
But yeah, Disgaea, I’ve played those, and they’re charming and addicting, but I sorta resent that the designers seem to think that it’s the only game I’ll be playing for the next two years.

Worst thread to have a discussion about this, but oh well

I can most certainly understand you considering it a turn-based RPG, but it is a strategy RPG. It’s shallow as hell, but it really can’t escape the confines of its genre. Calling it otherwise is relatively dishonest; someone of your understanding should see that.

Re: Disgaea: that’s because Nippon are insane and still put out DLC regularly. Regardless, they’re quite the small studio; expecting grandiose releases in rapid succession is quite unrealistic. In fact, aside from Disgaea – which took off out of nowhere – their titles are all really, really niche. Can’t blame them, really.

Oh I know it’s defined as SRPG, but nobody can fault me for considering it otherwise. As I said in my first post, I’m picky and dishonest haha. But I’m not the only one. I think the only thing reminiscent of tactic in that game is how far you’re allowed to walk in one turn.

And for Disgaea, I’m not talking about the game releases not coming out fast enough…what I meant is, those games are way too lengthy for my taste.

No, I agree with regards to the shallowness of the title. Just… it is what it is.

And, because I can’t let it slide, the transformation does add a bit of strategy, considering the “Godspeed” innate ability. But I get what you’re saying and back you 100%.

Disgaea titles are really long, yeah.

—I was going to mention the transformations actually. I was pleased with these in the beginning because they did add an element of strategy…but eventually it gets so easy that I just called it “Slaughtermode”. It’s like Sailormoon on steroids or something.
I will have to say though, beating the optional Colosseum fights WAS a challenge, especially that old dude, forgot his name, at the end. Man…—

I guess that I should have asked you all what you enjoy about gaming (both guys and gals). Thanks for the answers.

I like to kill zombies.

Because WoW is that fucking awesome.

I think that a more interesting question would be, concidering that the reasons and motivational aspects that make girls want to play games are the same as the ones for guys, why is it that girl gamers are such a minority in terms of the gaming world?

@LeotCol yep. That’s a better question.

My brain was fried this aft.

@LeotCol They most certainly aren’t. They are just way less vocal.

@Grisaille ‘Cept for me. I’m oh so vocal about my obsession.

@chels which is exactly why the entire WoW userbase vies for you

WoW is boring now

@tragiclikebowie WoW isn’t boring. You are.

@chels I’ve played for 4½ years and raided/pvped since the beginning. I am pretty bored by it.

A CHALLENGER APPEARS

TOASTY!

been playin games fureverz

I grew up gaming. I don’t know a world without it.

Started on 8-bit video games. Played Zelda for 18 hours straight at five years old.

Now I play tabletop RPGs, particularly first edition AD&D.

It’s an escape from reality, where I can exercise my imagination freely, while still gaining the benefits of social interaction.

Beats the hell out of video games.

@Seek_Kolinahr 1st Ed. AD&D is old school!

The same reasons guys like it.

the reason its considered odd for girls to play games is most likely due to social society like how 60 yrs ago it was odd to see girls wearing pants.