Desires at play:queering World of Warcraft
Jenny Sundén KTH

Part reading, part lecture, this is an exploration in the intersections of queer theory, queer lives and the study of online games. How do corporeal desires and belongings map onto games? Could certain game spaces or moments of play be termed 'queer'? The feminist critique of representations of femininity in games often engages with how female avatars tend to be designed along the lines of a hyped-up, 'stereotypical' sexuality. This argument presumes that excessive female sexuality is a problem, since it turns women's bodies into objects of a (straight) male gaze. It also presumes an understanding of play primarily passed on identification. How would an analysis with queer sensibilities make the picture shift?