Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition
For this critical play I played Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition, which is the most recent Tomb Raider game in a series of games that goes back to the 1990s. While this game has a lot of positive feminist theories and themes of strong women woven into the game, there are still some critiques and things that they could be doing better. To play this game as a feminist is to think critically and recognize how the game portrays a female protagonist through the representation of the character, the narrative, and the mechanics of the game. In this game, Lara Croft is portrayed as a strong female protagonist, but I have some critiques about the sexualization, combat style, and narrative tropes that perpetuate stereotypes. The game uses these elements to cater the game towards a primarily male audience, despite the main character being portrayed as a strong woman.
The character design of Lara croft is very sexualized and cater to the male gaze. After doing research I found out that the character actually used to be much more sexualized, with shorter pants and more exaggerated features. This has been toned down in the recent versions of the game, but it’s clear that they haven’t totally abandoned the sexualized portrayal of the character, as she still has the low-cut tank top and somewhat exaggerated features that would still cater to the male gaze.
The combat style of Tomb Raider is another part of the game that I was able to think about differently. Chess talks about the idea of feminist ludology, and how gameplay and mechanics can either reinforce or challengeWhile Lara is showed to be highly skilled and resourceful, which empowers her as a character, the combat mechanics still serve to appeal to a male audience. There is a big emphasis on the use of violence to solve problems, which caters to men and puts emphasis on the idea that power is associated with physical strength.
The narrative tropes in the game also have positives and negatives, as they go against some stereotypes, however there are some aspects that have already been mentioned about the story that could be seen as problematic. There is not a lot of intersectionality in her character, and the story doesn’t explore other aspects of her character. The other part of the story that I would critique is the depictions of exotic countries, and how those portrayals can be critiqued by postcolonial feminism as Chess describes it. These countries are not really portrayed as complex societies, but rather just foreign settings where she is doing her next adventure. This threatens accurate representation of non-western people. There are other critiques with the narrative tropes, however they contain critiques that I have already talked about, such as appealing to the male gaze and performative gender with the combat style of the game.
While Tomb Raider does a good job of portraying Lara Croft as a strong female protagonist, the things that are seen as strong in her character relate to masculine ideals of strength, which combine with the narrative tropes used and sexualization of Lara Croft to make the game appeal to a mostly male audience, and limits the representation of the female protagonist.
