To be Male, or not to be...

[SableShadow]

I would rather look at a female ass than a male.

Ding ding ding! A winnah!

Add to that, if you're a RPer or lite RPer, some characters call to you to be played regardless of their gender...sorry, can't explain it any better than that.

[bandyman1]

My original 2 characters ( Shaylandra and Selendra ) were named after my daughters ( Shay and Selene ).

After that, I find I just can't create a male avatar that's pleasing to look at . I make it to character creation, and then just end up going back and selecting female.

BUT, since we're asking questions, I have to ask the OP; What bothers you about it? Is it because;

A) You are upset to find out the female avatar you've been flirting with and making adult comments to since she joined group is in fact a man ( And as someone who plays female toons, believe me, it happens )?

B) You wish to engage in the activities discussed above, but you can't be sure that you'd be hitting on a female if they haven't used voice ( which begs the question of why you'd want to to begin with? )?

C) Or you're way too insecure about your own closet situation to ever feel comfortable playing a female toon yourself?

[Delt]

It's a character...it's not me. It's not an extension of me. I'm not a Drow in real life nor a warforged either. I have 3 female toons, I picked em for various reasons - mainly just to mix it up and they look cooler (drow males look idiotic). My personal opinion is that if you care that some guy is playing a pixel female MMO character or even find it "odd", you are playing videogames far too much and probably spend too much time in that particular e-social setting. It's a fantasy videogame for crying out load...

I will make a few notes:

- I just noticed it's only my casters that are female...my melee's are all male. Maybe that says something about my view on sexes /shrug
- People are nicer to female toons, especially since I almost never use voice unless I have to lead

[Luther_Antiax]

My daughters were here when I was rolling up Jeyes and they told me to may her look like my fiance'. So I did. Thats all.

Beulla and Broofa - I just set out to make the ugliest toons possible....Dwarven Female was the way to go Anyone that has seen them will agree I am sure! And that was the birth of the Bawlbricker sisters.

[Rowanheal]

- I just noticed it's only my casters that are female...my melee's are all male. Maybe that says something about my view on sexes /shrug
- People are nicer to female toons, especially since I almost never use voice unless I have to lead

I just don't know what to say on this subject.

Yes, male/female roles are different I suppose.

But back on subject, I do not make male characters. I am not male, therefore, I do not play male.

I keep hearing that everyone is nicer to Female Characters... I am not sure I believe it though since I spend many many hours a week with you all in Stormreach!

Of course we could just face the facts.

GIRL GAMERS RULE... and PINK FTW!

See ya in Stormreach,

-R

[TommyBoy]

For me it harks back to my comic book days and story building which was renforced somewhat by playing CoH. In CoH I would have a concept and look that I wanted the character to have. if the toon was a girl with robot arms I had a story that went with it. the Same with the male toons I made. Even though I dont really do any of that now I still get the concepts going in my head.

Different prospective I did have a friend in CoH that only played female toons. His reasoning was that
A. it was easier to get a group, because a lot of people would assume him a girl.
B. teenboy who would just assume he was a girl without asking him would often give him things trying to buy his effection.
C. he thought it was funny watching said teenboys fall over themselves flirting with him and he'd just ignore them

[twix]

Who gives a **** its a game :P But in a serious note i dont get when someone says id rather look at a girl toon running then a man.Hmmm a little deprived in rl?Not sure but either way if someone wants to make a toon thats the opposite sex who cares? I never question it unless all their toons are the opposite sex then maybe theres a little question in my mind but one or two or even three toons of the opposite sex doesnt seem to be that weird.At least to me.

[Sigmoid]

I consider my characters as people in a story. Should a male only write about male characters or vice versa? In my two accounts, I think I'm about 50% male and 50% female. Some are female because of the image I had of them as a character, others because I already had a male of that race.

[Talon_Moonshadow]

Female Warforged looks awesome.

What's the point to roll a male wf if the female wf looks the exactly the same?

Mine wears a pink docent.

Official response to OP: Beacause if I'm going to spend hours a day looking at a toons butt, I want it to be a cute one.
Also to do something different.....I have many toons and they are a mix of male/female. But I prefer the female ones.
Fantasy game.......I also like to fantasize about women....
Why is Tomb Raider so popular?
And the huge trend in modern movies toward a female heroine.

All those reasons....

My daughter actually made a male toon.....now that is what I have a hard time with.

[Galapas]

Surely everyone knows that all Drow clerics are female...unless you go by those new-fangled post 1982 rules.

[Shamguard]

I have two reasons for having both male and female characters.

In my early days of PnP I had a DM who, among other things, made us roll our charaters gender. Kind of a "Well when your have kids you don't get to pick the gender." This actualy was something that, I found, made the game more interesting to me because not only did I have to role play a character, but also I had to try to think like a woman.

This lead to me having several PnP female characters that I enjoyed playing and developed personalities for; so when I started playing DDO I want to bring some of these characters into this world as well.

My second reason I just like the female elf/drow backside.

[Cayrie]

My second reason I just like the female elf/drow backside.

Heaven knows they're pretty realistic representations of real female behinds.

[Syrbryce]

but don't use that excuse of "i'd rather look at a female's butt than a male's butt," because i'm not buying it.

Dangit! I've been found out! I'm secretly a female drow elf trapped in a fat gamer's body!

Wow! That was so cathartic! Thanks GH, you just saved my thousands in therapy!

[arminius]

The number one reason many of my characters are female (while I am male) is that I play mostly paladins, and when I played PnP I always saw paladins' virtues as especially congruous with feminine virtues. Charismatic protector of the poor, sick, and defenseless, etc.

So I guess you could say, for character reasons. In DDO, there are 2 more good reasons:

1. Screen Real Estate. Females take up less space and are easier to see around. I'd find it hard to play a warforged for specifically this reason.

2. Especially in the beginning, the design look for the males as well as their movement was just plain uglier and more awkward. I think the devs just put more thought into the female designs. They've made some fixes and additions but males are still behind.

_

[GuitarHero]

Dangit! I've been found out! I'm secretly a female drow elf trapped in a fat gamer's body!

Wow! That was so cathartic! Thanks GH, you just saved my thousands in therapy!

hush you! I didn't name any names, now, lol. Didn't say you couldn't play your characters, and you haven't seen me delete Songbreese have you? Just sayin' that whole butt thing is a poor excuse. Heck, the "female characters take up less screen space" or the "female tanks cleave faster" things are more believable.

[Beherit_Baphomar]

Thing that gets me more than a male playing a female is the person upset at the male playing a female.

Were you hoping it was a real female? Did you think you could flirt? Are you upset to hear a male voice?

And whats up with all those humans playing dwarves and elves?
Sicko's.

And no, I do not have any female characters...had one, relegated to mule.

[Puke]

I don't get it either. I don't look down on any male who plays the opposite gender, but I also do not get the appeal. I mean, unless there is some hidden desire to put on women's clothing maybe. Or, as some state, it's for "role playing" but then if this was a play I doubt many of these people would really go after the female roles. It's just odd to me. But to each his (or his/her....transgendered, you know) own. I can't do it. I did once roll a female character and got to two action points before I felt creeped out and deleted her. I really felt as though I was playing female.

[Aspenor]

Maybe just because you decided to do something different, and you clicked on the female instead of the male? I mean, it's not like there needs to be some hidden desire. It's just that maybe you're comfortable with doing it. It's a digital land, anyway, and if it were all males, how boring is that?

[unionyes]

Unlike the OP, I never really thought about it. Most of my toons are female, while I am a male (and a quite well adjusted heterosexual male with a beautiful wife and five wonderful children, thank you). Perhaps it is because I am confident in my gender assignment and in my orientation (as well as having absolutely no problem with anyone who has a different orientation or gender from my own) that I have never viewed it as an issue. Frankly, I don't care if someone in my guild or PUG is hetero, gay, transgendered, or whatever. I mostly care that they don't zerg too much and stay between my caster and the mobs while I kill them, and/or that they can pick that lock on the chest or find that trap or door.

Maybe the OP's question is a call for some sort of group affirmation? If so, then dude, its totally OK to play a female toon. It won't make you gay or transgendered, honestly. I swear, if you liked girls before you made a female toon, you will like girls after just as much. Or if you are female, same same for making a male toon. Unless the very fact that it makes you feel all 'funny' inside means something........ Why would you be weirded out by it?

The only drawback I have ever had with a female toon was once when a level 1 toon in the guild 'Totally Respects Girls' kept trying to chat me up. I finally joined his party (just the two of us, how cozy) and he bailed as soon as I spoke. I can't for the life of me figure out how someone expects me to be female if I have a female toon. They don't figure I am a dwarf if I have a dwarf toon, do they? Maybe I will start naming my toons with my age, sex, and location in the name. It may cost me 8 bucks or whatever for a rename, but watch for the (female) Drow Sorc 14 Kittinn35/M/Canada coming soon to Sarlona.

[Shamguard]

And whats up with all those humans playing dwarves and elves?
Sicko's.

I guess this is what makes this whole "issue" seem funny to me.

How many Halflings, Dwarves, Elves, Warforged, and Drow play this game.

My main is a Halfling Rogue and in RL I'm 6'2" tall and no one has ever confused me for a Halfling.