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When Jenny is John – Gender Swapping in Online GamesCyberspace veterans know better than trusting that the cute, flirty, feminine avatar actually has female genitals. Newbies may still try to establish a non-virtual relationship with their MMORPG opposite sex opponent, just to find out that sweet Jane is actually John, a 7th grade computer prodigy with way too many Gilmore Girls hours. A recent study shows that women avatars are not the only usual suspect. Apparently, even more than men, women gamers tend to bend their gender in online games. Or in the survey words: "68% of women who played computer games online have chosen male characters". A woman gamer may prefer to mark "male" when creating her virtual character for variety of reasons. The most common motivation for gender swapping among women, as stated in the mentioned survey, is to avoid indecent proposals from their fellow male gamers and to stay away from the discouraging looks often given to women in the masculine and competitive environment such as the massive multi player online gaming world. (At this stage I can't help but wonder: do women who impose as men harass other women?) Men also have their bunch of reasons for gender switching in online games. Some men feel freer to explore a different identity without the emotional restraint and other boundaries imposed on them. Some others prefer to explore the different approaches used by members of their sex to seduce women in the virtual surrounding of online video games. Others simply want to look at an attractive fictional character as they play. In a virtual world of gender swappers, how can you tell who wears what? Rule of thumb, the sluttier a woman avatar is, the greater the chances that she is activated by a man.
 Pic taken from Felony Fabre Flickr
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