S4E01 Monsters are People, Too with Dr. Sarah Stang

Witches, harpies, succubi, brood mothers--video games are known for some pretty grotesque female monsters. What do these depictions of monsters in games say about how we view and treat people with bodies that society considers "non standard"? Why do these depictions of monstrous women matter?

Assistant Professor with the Department of Digital Humanities Sarah Stang, spoke with us earlier this fall about the state of feminist scholarship in video game studies and the importance of thinking critically about the monsters on our screen. We talk about fan communities, the need for more diverse games telling different types of stories, and the responsibilities of fans and developers in creating a safe and welcoming gaming culture. Sarah also gives us a sneak peek into the new Game Studies MA program which has just started with its first student cohort this fall.

 

Links

Dr. Sarah Stang faculty profile

Department of Digital Humanities (Formerly Centre for Digital Humanities)

Game Studies MA

New prof's research takes on video game monsters (Brock News, July 22, 2022)

Game students hit play on MA studies (Brock News, Nov. 2, 2022)

 

Related Episodes

S1E05 Games with Dr. Jason Hawreliak

S2E09 Identity and Trauma with Dr. Cristina Santos

S3E05 Breaking Into the Game Industry

 

Credits

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Foreword is hosted and produced by Alison Innes for the Faculty of Humanities at Brock University. 

Series four sound editing is by Serena Atallah. Theme music is by Khalid Imam. 

This podcast is financially supported by the Faculty of Humanities at Brock University.