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Are "Rescue the Princess" stories always sexist?
So, a few friends and I are working on a 2-D platform game, where I'm mainly working on the character design and artwork.
It has a medieval/fantasy setting, where the Princess has been kidnapped by an evil wizard.
Everything descends into chaos because there's nobody to lead the kingdom, so they call upon the player character (another wizard) to save the Princess because he's the only one who has the magic to defeat the evil wizard. The wizard kills the villain, the Princess restores order to the land, the end.
Now, I've been thinking about the damsel in distress trope, and I'm wondering- is the story sexist? It's a simple excuse plot to fit into the medieval setting and as a nod to old Mario Bros-type games, but I don't want to come across as sexist.
Am I putting too much thought into a very basic story? Should we change it? And if so, any ideas for what we should change it to?
4 Answers
- ?Lv 76 years agoFavorite Answer
Well, there weren't really magical wizards in medieval times, so how realistic to you have to be? You could make your rescuer wizard a female, as well. We're talking magical powers here, not physical strength.
- WhateversLv 76 years ago
You could deal with the sexist part, with a few bits of activity on the Princess's part.
It's certainly a bit...hackneyed, and not very original.
There are a few options, you can look at the subversions here and see if they trigger anything, or if you get different ideas.
(And if you really want trouble, try BRAID. Really goes the other way.)
Source(s): http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DamselI... http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DamselO... - Anonymous6 years ago
'Sexist' God, as somebody who reviews video games for a living I'm tired of that phrase.
Genders should be what they are, a Female character shouldn't be a dominate Bad... simply because Anita Sarkeesian claims 'Sexism'; Just like a character shouldn't simply be Black because it's 'Out of the Norm'.
Source(s): I'm a video game critic, it's kinda; my job. - SquidmasterLv 76 years ago
Medieval life was very male dominated, so you can't really do it any other way. Its not exactly sexist, but historical accuracy can be seen that way.
If I were you I wouldn't change it. It is a trope you're playing to after all, not an intentional act of sexism.
