Revisiting Princess Peach

On August of 2013, I wrote a blog entry on Princess Peach, where I made the argument that she isn't so much an object for Mario to rescue as much as she is a fairly realistic depiction of a brave woman in a hostage situation. A link here: http://vidgameanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/08/princess-peach-versus-feminism-is.html. However, when I shared that blog with a Facebook group I've long since abandoned, I was accused of being sexist, idiotic, and cherry picking. In hindsight, I should have really known better than to share a blog entry with a Facebook group that had become little more than an echo chamber for Third Wave feminism, atheism, and champagne socialism, but hindsight is 20/20. However, a mod from that group said something that had stuck in me ever since: "I didn't find much argument." And I asked myself, did I really make an argument? Since then, I've taken many moments to read and re-read my entry, and I said to myself "I can do better." And that's what today's blog is all about: a second analysis of Princess Peach and her role in the Mario games.

A Quick Word: Plans for the Summer

So all through May I've been dealing with final exams, projects, and other things, and for that reason I've not been updating as often as I'd like. But I want you all to know, there are plans for the months of June and July.

In June, as I'll be attending summer classes, I won't be updating nearly as often as I'd like, so expect two or three blogs. One of those, however, will be a retread to an earlier blog I wrote 2 years ago, in regards to Princess Peach and feminism. I want to take a second look into who Peach is, her role in the Nintendo universe, and explore if she really is as lacking in agency as her critics claim.

In July, a month where I'll have more free time, I intend to make a countdown of the top 11 video game villains. What you'll see is 11 blogs, each dedicated to exploring what makes a particular villain tic, and just what earns them the spot I give them. This 11 blog series will be a collection of analyses and opinion pieces, so please don't take it as gospel. As always, you are welcome to disagree with me.

Another blog entry I hope to make either in June or August is a short piece in regards to feminist critique in gaming. If I make it, you'll most likely see it published on August.

Art that Offends: Kill the Fa---t

Author's Note: The title of the video game to be discussed in this blog entry has been censored by my own choice. I did it because I want at least the titles of my blog entries to be Safe for Work.

If you've been paying attention to games media lately, you may have heard of a game seemingly designed to offend. This game, a first person shooter in the style of old arcade games like Boot Hill, is called Kill the Faggot. (I'd like to take this moment to apologize to my LGBT readers who have just read that word.) The title of the game may be offensive to sexual minorities, including homosexuals and bisexuals. However, the existence of the game raises a few powerful questions: what does it mean to be offended, and does being offended have any meaning?