By now, most 1UP readers probably feel the debate about “girl gamers” and “regular gamers” is pretty much dead and buried. Moreover, most of us probably believe the qualities that make a good “girl game” are the very same qualities that makes a good game, period — things like engaging and compelling play mechanics, high-quality art and music and an interesting story or innovative puzzle concept. In 2007, we have at last moved beyond the point where people are talking about crafting pink-colored princesses and prancing ponies as a canny stratagem for enticing “girl gamers” into the fold. Right?
Wrong. At least according to Ubisoft, who has spent more money than you have recently conducting an exhaustive study on the likes and tastes of game-playing girls. Now it should be mentioned at this point that the girls Ubisoft was researching were specifically “pre-teens” and not necessary representative of the entire XX chromosome game playing spectrum as a whole. Nonetheless, this demographic represents 1 in every 4 DS units worldwide, a huge sales block. Moreover, Ubisoft’s research seems to imply these preteen girls are currently being under serviced by the modern landscape of DS games: the company claims less than 10% of available titles are aimed specifically at these girls.
Enter something called the “Imagine” line of DS games, a new initiative being developed over Ubi to address the problem. “Imagine” games are the first specifically non-licensed games developed from a major publisher targeted specifically at the demographic of “girls 6-14.” As such, you’d better believe that the business rationale and subject material inside them comes from exhaustive research on the part of Ubisoft. Hardcore female gamers should prepare to roll their eyes derisively at the announcement of such scintillating titles as Fashion Designer, Animal Doctor, Master Chef (not to be confused with Master Chief) and Babyz.
The multiplayer blog over at MTV has a pretty good rundown of what these games are about, but they’re probably exactly what you’re already thinking. Taking care of sick puppies and kittens, adorning various dress-up fashionistas with makeup and accessories, playing at being Rachel Ray in a customizable kitchen and simulating the life of a babysitter — complete with virtual toddler. Each of the titles in question is being built by a different developer, but published under the single “Imagine” umbrella license.
“We did research, and we are studying the market…” says Imagine Line Brand Manager Shara Hashemi. “[T]hat’s what the girls actually like, so we should try to fulfill their needs.” When questioned about whether Ubisoft had any plans to roll out less gender-stereotypical Imagine games such as “Doctor” or “Police Officer”, Hasemi replied: “Those games were really designed for young girls who are just looking for fun games and ways to explore their favorite hobbies. From what we’ve seen, [the girls] didn’t mention anything about being a police officer. We really wanted to create something for girls specifically because there are so many boys’ games out there, and that’s where the market was really lacking. [...] I don’t know many boys that would go for example into fashion design, but it’s possible; some boys play with Barbies. But [Imagine] is specifically targeted for girls.”
Hashemi also mentioned the Imagine line would “probably extend to the Wii” at some point in the future, though at the moment the next game under development is the DS-bound Figure Skater — a sort of social-life management, going-to-school, figure skating training sim — due in March 2008.
The emergence of this “Imagine” series is a novel thing on the gaming scene, and an event which clearly illustrates the growing divide between the perception and the reality of who is actually playing videogames. If it makes you annoyed, consider that every concern its existence raises can just as easily be applied right back to the hundreds of testosterone-soaked first-person shooters out there. Where there is a market, there will be publishers standing by with ready cash in hand to finance it. Judging by the feedback popping up on the ‘net, there seems to be a pretty even split between people who feel Imagine is set to give the world of female-centric gaming exactly what it wants and those who feel that it’s giving the same demographic exactly what they don’t need.
However you feel about the issue, there’s no denying that the enormity of the pre-teen demographic is big business. Nintendogs is still #1 on the bestseller list (with a bullet) while games like Hannah Montanna: Music Jam and High School Musical: Makin’ the Cut sporting confirmed sales figures that games like Heavenly Sword can only look towards and sigh wistfully about. Disney knows this. It’s why they opened up that Nintendo-only studio last year specifically for the purpose of creating licensed and co-branded games.
With the Wii’s success and the incresingly-important casual market cutting a mile-wide swath across the landscape of game development, there can be no doubt that the times (and the business models) are a-changin’. How you feel about this seismic shakeup probably depends in large part about how much the idea of dressing up a delightful living doll appeals to your inner pre-teen.
