Women's representation in surf video games: A stereotyped, objectified and romanticized portrayal

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between the video game industry and sports. These two disciplines traditionally contribute to the perpetuation of stereotypes that create a reality around women based on inappropriate assumptions, which are generally interpreted from a masculinized perspective. Taking surfing as an example, a sport associated with a markedly masculine environment, this paper aims to investigate how women surfers are portrayed in order to show how the representations of women’s identity as surfers are represented in the video game. A mixed method is proposed which aims to gather information from two distinct perspectives: that of the participant and the communicative aspect. The analyzed video game highlights a masculinized, sexualized and romanticized stereotype of women. It is emphasized that a specific style of women surfers is characterized by an objectified character stripped of any discernable sports related attributes, thereby establishing a potential relationship between the representation of women in the video game and its influence on women’s identity as sports subjects. The gender gap between men and women extends beyond the field of sports, causing a substantial impact on both industries.