Ben-DutkaThere are no playable female characters in Aliens: Colonial Marines . But an online petition is trying to change that.
As reported by various sources, the poll in question has surpassed 2,000 signatures; the original goal was only half that.
Obviously, a great many think it's only right that we have the option of playing as a female in the game. After all, you're talking about a franchise that has always starred strong women; I think we all remember Sigourney Weaver as Ripley. But there were a few others, too, and petition creator Melissa K. had this to say in the game's forums :
"We believe Aliens is the perfect starting point for developers to start including playable females in more multiplayer shooters… There are many females that enjoy playing video games and are fans of the films who are tired of playing as a male all the time. Let's let Gearbox Software see how important this is to the Aliens franchise!
What we want is the ability to create a custom female to represent ourselves just like the men can, in multiplayer/co-op in order for us to 'become a Colonial Marine' as well as accurately represent the other half of the United States Colonial Marine Corps!"
Maybe Sega just thinks that very few women play shooters. And while there's no doubt that the majority of FPS fans are indeed male, that doesn't necessarily mean the number of female players is "few." In fact, we're willing to bet it's quite a bit more than "few."
Related Game(s): Aliens: Colonial Marines
They're at it again… This is the cause of the Mass Effect 3 revolt… While I am not opposed to the idea – Even the Aliens film had great female characters in the team. I still am getting sick of fans thinking they have the right to take over the industry by bullying developers over the internet.
I think it's hilarious you think this request is "bullying".
Well, he's not completely wrong. The artist in me wants to tell these kids to shut it. It's not their piece of work so they really should stop with the demands and the petitions as if telling developers how to make their games is some kind of cause worth wasting this much time and energy on.
If this is the cause of the ME3 revolt then thank for those folks.
Jawknee these companies wouldn't exist without us thats just a fact. If people buying the game to keep you in business want something from the product your selling you should probably listen. Its better business than sticking your nose up and saying no I'm an artist its my game I'll do it how I want.
Besides its not even that huge of a thing they're asking for. Coding in female parts wouldn't be that hard. Heck they could got the ME3 route and just skin over the male characters so that the animations look really awkward 😉 Honestly they probably didn't have female marines because they didn't think it mattered. How in any way it could be against their artistic vision is beyond me. In fact it works well with the aliens fiction anyway.
Artists or not, they are selling a product first and foremost. Gearbox is a pretty stellar company and I'm sure they will listen and at the very least incorporate it in post launch.
@Xenris,
Nicely said
Capcom/SE come to mind when you describe companies that turn their noses up and dismiss the gamers wants.
I'm sorry xenris, I wasn't aware you were there with the creative minds that took all the risk and started these companies. Oh you weren't?
As a musician the audience is appreciated but that doesn't mean they get to dictate how our songs are written.
And relax your entitlement mentality. Makes you sound silly.
@crusader, thats apples and oranges. Capcom and Square peaked. These compaines are fresh and upcoming and seem to be doing just fine without the busy body petitioners demanding a seat at the table.
Last edited by Jawknee on 7/6/2012 2:39:55 PM
"Entitlement" is very vogue right now as an insult.
Melissa K. and the petitioners have every right to have their opinion heard. It is totally in Gearbox's hands to make what they will of it. It's silly to be upset that the fans are "demanding a seat at the table" because the artistic decisions remain completely up to the artists.
If the artists want to make a decision that is commercial suicide and lets them crash and burn with their vision, that's up to them. If they want to try to create by democracy and put out homogenized fan-pandering crap, THAT is up to them. If they want to take a middle road and keep their audience's desires in mind while also staying true to their vision, then THAT is up to them.
But it's still up to the artists, not the fans (well… and the publishers/studios, but that's another conversation).
What creative vision would possibly warrant a world without female soldiers? When in fact the fiction they are basing it off of has just that in it? Its either "lazy" which I don't believe because Gearbox is one of my favourite devs ever. Or they just didn't think people cared that much. But now that people voice that they do, they can say hey lets add this in and add more value to our game.
Only one who sounds silly is you. You can't directly relate all games as art it just can't be done. Is angry birds art? Farmville? There is a fine line, and honestly in this case there is nothing entitled about asking that they put in female soldiers.
In the end we are allowed to ask for things. Its not bullying or forcing the devs to do anything as shaman said. Its entirely up to them. The devs having fan input is only going to help them.
Its not like the fans are asking them to implement customizable wookies into the multiplayer and have cloud strife as the main character for the single player. And if someone did want that SO WHAT the devs don't have to listen to anyone.
Last edited by xenris on 7/6/2012 4:11:24 PM
Xenris, you need to back off and reflect on yourself for a moment and ask if trying to start a fight on the internet over something as small as his is worth it. You're getting butthurt because I find gamers petitioning developers with their demands a bit petty and a waste of time.
Now again, relax. Your self righteous attitude does nothing to further the discussion.
Last edited by Jawknee on 7/6/2012 5:09:13 PM
A waste of time that seems to be getting results? Dark souls came to PC because of a petition. Virtua Fighter 5 FS wasn't even going to be released but fan demand was there so they did it. ME3 got the ending it should have had in the first place and by that I mean one that was closer to what they said the ending was going to be.
Anyway your one of the worst people to discuss stuff with so I'm done. Your whole last post didn't further the discussion when I had several points as to why petitions were fine. If anyone isn't furthering the discussion its you pal.
Just stop.
I'm done but I will just say that, when you tell someone that they're not furthering the conversation, and then you don't further it either, and you're calling people who aren't furthering conversation jerks/butthurt or whatever, then you're a jerk/butthurt too. That, or you're a hypocrite with a double standard, and only you get to waste time judging other people.
Xenris out… oh wait gotta further the conversation hmmmmm…..I like this petition annnnd… gearbox is awesome because they care about their fans…and I will probably get this game.
Now I'm done.
It's one thing if you have a standard created character set in stone. But if it's a customizable character you make from scratch, why shouldn't you be able to make them female? Makes perfect sense to me. It's not like someone is saying we should have the ability to make an established character like Ezio a female.
I think it's a perfectly valid request.
Lol, I find this funny after having read this this morning.
http://www.mca-marines.org/gazette/article/get-over-it-we-are-not-all-created-equal
Woman(no offense to the ladies, we still love ya)tend to suffer more injury and deterioration to a greater degree when under certains kinds of stress. That said, I would have absolutely no problem having a female character in this game. I love some of the lead roles(and supporting) that woman have played I games and movies. (Lt. Ripley…:)
They want to be able to customize a female character. They don't want some random female added in. It's really not asking for much. Especially considering how easy it would be to incorporate, even if it was launched post release in a patch.
Relax friendo.
I'm soooooo tranquil.
… And even if you *are* a male, what's wrong with creating a female character? I'd say that Aliens, of all titles, most definitely should have that option.
Last edited by Beamboom on 7/6/2012 11:56:02 AM
Nothing of course. I just think it's funny that some peoples predictions about the "fans" demanding more and more after the ME3 fiasco is coming true.
I see your point Jawk, but I'm not so sure if they are related… Might be, might not. Personally I suspect these reactions would happen regardless of the ME3 issue.
It's a pretty weird decision to not include female heroes in a game based on "Aliens" – probably *the* female hero movie of the 80s. I can understand the fans reactions in this particular case.
Last edited by Beamboom on 7/6/2012 3:40:14 PM
Just because the movies featured a woman lead in every installmet doesn't mean this game must feature female character or female options. That said, I'm not suggesting the game shouldn't feature this option, or that these people don't have a "right" to make their demands heard. I just think it reflects badly on the community. It's one thing to send suggestions or constructive criticism via email or other forms of communications. It's another thing entirety to organize demands and pretend as if these developers owe us something.
I think this feeds into the negative stereotypes of gamers as being a group immature, entitlement brats who have their priorities out of whack.
Yeah, I'm not seeing how a politely worded petition requesting a very reasonable addition to a game is really causing all that much harm to the reputation of gamers as a whole.
Just check out the link. Melissa K. even softened up the language… probably based on hearing the kind of reaction that you've had, Jawk. Nice to see someone offering their feedback is also open to listening to feedback themselves.
The fact is it's pure laziness in a title like this that they usually don't put in female 3d models. It's easier to have all male to render as they don't need to have more variation in the frameworks. It's a cold, silly reason. Goes for Killzone, everything. So many more games should have female marines and not just this, disregarding the history of the Alien series giving life to strong female characters.
I saw this yesterday & have absolutely no problem with it.
It's certainly not like how a few of those whiny entitlement camps have done, and they are only asking(and very nicely I might add too), that women can also included in the options, just as they've been so in the Alien movies.
"I signed"
I signed it too once I found out about it =)
Great idea, whenever more options are presented to a multiplayer gamer it's a good idea. It isn't just for female gamers either, I prefer using a female in games like Mass Effect and Dragon Age.
Sadly for Killzone 3 the most interesting character they had was Jammer (Seen in real life sometimes as Michelle Rodriguez).
And really it doesn't make any damn sense not to have females in the Alien universe.
I agree. Why they would have the game have customizable characters in multiplayer yet no female options is beyond me.
Metal Gear Online added female models eventually due to people asking for it. Females are soldiers and can pull a trigger just as well as a man. Maybe they thought blowing off a females head might offend people?
I doubt it, severing women's heads with a shotgun was par for the course in Fallout 3 🙂
Ohhhhh I forgot about that. Carry on then 😉
What!!! How was this overlooked? Vasquez!!!!! Are you kidding me is one of the most bad ass marines in movies! 🙂 Hopefully they put in a woman because that would be great for the ALIENS immersion factor.
"Hey Vasquez have you ever been mistaken for a man?"
"No, have you?"
Great quote! 🙂
Also, if you haven't seen Prometheus, I highly recommend it. There is a lot of unanswered questions, but you'll find yourself thinking/talking about Prometheus weeks after you have seen the film.
I don't really know what to think of Prometheus unless they do the sequels. It's very incomplete.
I too loved Prometheus. Had lots of great discussions with people about it.
I'd prefer to play as a female.
You mean in real life?
Judging by your avatar, I thought you wanted to play as a female Alien.
Which would be pretty bad-ass. That queen was a real beast.
World,
I prefer to wait till post-op for that.
Shaman,
My avatar is most certainly NOT a queen or a "female" alien. JC chose to screw over Alien fans with his Queen and the idea of a "female" alien.
>blinks<
Haven't heard that perspective before.
And I withdraw the comment! Clearly, your avatar is a genderless killing horror, and should absolutely stay that way.
>phew<
It was well known among fans of Alien that the intended reproduction process created and filmed (later shown to the masses AFTER Aliens) involves the Alien using existing lifeforms to create an egg and host.
This process is both, more interesting, and full of horror.
My picture if a bunch of yummy veggies made to resemble the alien.
Scary indeed. Just think of the acidity of those alien tomatoes. In space, nobody can hear your reflux.
I didn't know that, it makes Prometheus make a tad more sense.
im not a girl, but i would like to try a vagina one time.
That's one way of looking at it LimitedVertigo but I've heard it mostly talked about by Ridley and others as only one option due to only one Alien being on the ship. They thought of it like that even at the time. It's such a complex creature I don't think James Cameron's life cycle in anyway takes away from that.
If given the choice, I's usually rather play as a female, especially if they let me make her a hot looking Redhead.
(Should've seen the hot, but dangerous, Redhead I had made while messing around in that free Saint's Row 3 animator,LOL)
I almost always make redheads 🙂
Its funny how theres some pre oder incentive that lets you play as that chick from aliens 2. She was female despite her badass exterior. Ahh the internet, where trolls come together and teach people with problems to create more problems and end up with online petitions. Very soon a new movie will come out and people will demand a new ending because it was different in their mind. Call me whatever, im a damn writer (despite my ver improper grammar here) and if someone ever told me "Change your ending it sucks" Id put up my middle finger and say "Go #### yourself"
seriously?
is it just me, or do some people have WAY too much time on their hands!
i mean come on if you really are this emotional about something so pointless you seriously need to get your priorities in order!
who gives a flying f*ck what gender is and is not in a game?
one thing that really pisses me off about society these days!
were all a bunch of drama queens!
everyone has to take a grain of dirt and turn it into a mountain!
ok theres no women in aliens colonial marines.
if that is the biggest problem facing the world, than consider yourself lucky!
christ id hate to see how they would react if we had a REAL problem!
its the backlash bioware got after not including gays in their games all over again!
than all the backlash when they did.
sigh, as the saying goes damned if you do, damned if you dont!
might as well pick one side and stick with it!
Wow, I opened this article initially thinking this is a nice gesture, good on them to scroll down to comments and find loads of overreaction to outright hostility. This site is losing the moderate voice it had and going down the rabbit hole of the net of overpowering negativity.
Woah. Totally agree. I wanted to post something but didn't know what to say.
I'll be honest… when I get the option to make a dude or chick, I almost always go with a female. (Depends on game, but usually a girl)
I mean, come on lads… for those of us fellas that are straight as an arrow into ladies, doesn't it make more sense to make a female character if you have to watch your character run around from behind?
Just look at me in White Knight Chronicles (for all the friends of PSXE that are with the Nekomimis FTW). Fetch is one fine lady!