Are the female player character designs becoming more girly?

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Cybersai

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Here are all the female trainer designs from start to present:

Kris:

Game_character_kris.png


May:

160px-Ruby_Sapphire_May.png


Leaf:

140px-FireRed_LeafGreen_Leaf.png


Dawn:

250px-Platinum_Dawn.png


Kotone:

HGSSSoul.png



Is there a natural progression to these designs? What are your thoughts?
 
It's obvious. :/ They appeal to the loli crowd for sure. Just look at the Pt heroine's outfit! Dear god, could they blatantly sexualize a 10-12 year old any more than that? And I thought FRLG and Emerald heroine's outfit was bad.

One thing I also noticed is that the girl designs are always showing just a little more skin than the boy trainer designs. It makes me mad! When when Pokemon appeal to their female audience?
 
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I've notices that, and how much more skin their showing...... apperently, they are trying to make it appeal to their current society, hmm... maybe a bit too much?
 
hmm, they do appear to becoming more girly, to be honest with you, I was just grateful nintendo introduced a playable girl character, ( I played through red and silver, and i'm a girl)
 
I find it hard to agree pt dawn is really "sexually" charged I mean she is wearing a snow coat and boots.. But then again in a cold climage the bare legs is confusing. But as for May and Leaf they are in warm climates traveling around for a living. Leaf to me just looks like a typical girl with a badass hat. But on topic they are getting more girly.. Or dumb looking in Kotones case.
 
Well, I'm a female and I like all the female characters, so I'd say Nintendo has done their part appealing to the female crowd, or at least to me.

As for becoming more girly, the HGSS female trainer isn't the most girly in the world. In fact, I'd say she and Crystal trainer are the least so. Either way, it doesn't matter to me. I'm glad they have female trainers now and I like them all ^^ I think LGFR trainer and Crystal trainer are my favs, though.
 
The most obvious pattern to me is that the hats are getting bigger. The Gen V female character will be nothing more than a pair of legs sticking out of a gigantic hat.

They've all been pretty girly, to be honest. I'd love to see a tomboyish character for once, along the lines of the anime's Zoey or even Angie, but there's probably a good reason why we haven't seen one yet. When a character has to be reduced down to a tiny overworld sprite, they have to have very obvious, distinctive features. Hence the long hair and all the silly hats...
 
hmmm, With the exception of Kris I think they're about as equally girly. I do notice that the girls chests are getting smaller in their official art (smaller starting gen IV), probably because parents complained or something xD yeah, go and facepalm, but you see it too xD

Because they scarf blocks the platinum art:
Diamond_Pearl_Dawn.png
 
I don't think they've really gotten anymore girly, just in different ways. I wasn't really a big fan of Kris, and I think Kotone looks... Just silly. I like Leaf, but May is even better, and Dawn is my absolute favorite!

Also, I don't think any of them has been sexualized... None of them is showing anything more than thighs and arms, and honestly if you look at children's clothes these days, these girls are rather covered!
 
I think its funny because Pokemon was made for guys. Its fighting isn't it? They should make a Tomboy girl if its a game where you train creatures that can breath fire and Zap each other to kill eachother isn't it? that's not too feminine, not to be sexist or anything, but it's not. The girls should definitely be tomboys and get rid of the darn hats.
 
When I look at Kris and May, I don't really see anything wrong with the way they're dressed. Sure, their clothes are a little tight, especially May's, but they're clothes that look appropriate for someone who's going to be spending alot of time crawling through woods or climbing mountains and stuff. But when I look at Leaf, Dawn (in either outfit), and Kotone, I can't help but think "WTF?" They all look like they're going to the mall or something, not embarking on an adventure. :/ So in that regard, yes, I definitely think that they're making them "more girly." Though I do find the fact that these Dawn and Leaf are wearing skirts that don't even make it halfway down their knees and that Kotone is essentually wearing Daisy-Duke's and a GoGo Girl hat, even though they're all supposed to be like, 10 or something, really creepy.
 
I think that they all look girly in their own way. The only thing that I think is different is how Sugimori-san is giving the girls such long knee high socks nowadays. Just look at Scott85’s original post at the top to see what I mean.
 
I think its more the style has changed since before, plus they want to appeal to the current generation of girls, and some are more girly than others. Before it seemed pokemon was aimed more that boys and tom boys rather than true girls. Its clear with Gen IV contests and girl NPC designs that they are trting harder to appeal to everyone, boys and girls and are using the current fashon trends in japan as a basis for clothing design for female characters.
 
I don't see anything different, they don't seem feminine or anything.

They just have their own fashion senses, which have to do with their region.
Johto is farmy, so Kotone and Kris's styles make sense. Sinnoh is a bit cold. Hoenn is tropical.
 
Their chests are getting smaller, and they're getting more childish outfits. Hell, I don't actually know Dawn survived in the way through Snowpoint. Even with her Platinum outfit. I don't know how Lucas did either, with his D/P outfit, or Red, with his FR/LG outfit, on the top of Mt. Silver.
 
magpiejay12 said:
Their chests are getting smaller, and they're getting more childish outfits.
Click to expand...

o_O You really think those outfits are "childish"? I've got teenage cousins that'd be grounded 'till they moved out if their parents ever cought them wearing skirts as short as the ones Dawn and Leaf are wearing...
 
Depends on your opinion. In mine, Kotone is less girly than Dawn, or even Leaf in a sense, cuz' she's actually wearing SHORTS for one.... despite the fact they are part of overalls. On the other hand she's wearing a rather girly hat, but let's just say this. Who can you see doing dirty work more easily in terms of appearance?(as in, doing stuff that invovled getting sweaty or muddy and needs elbow grease) Someone like Dawn, or someone like Kotone? I personally say Kotone. She's wearing a hoodie and denim, Dawn's in a pink skirt with no indication she's wearing bike shorts underneath, with a white undershirt that looks rather lacey.

While Kotone isn't my favorite DESIGN, she's definitely one of my more favorite female characters in general. My favorite design actually goes to Kris, followed by Emerald!May, but Kris's anime counterpart's personality kind of deters me from liking her too much.

as for the childish......

are you kidding? the early characters were WAAYYYYYY shorter than they are now (though that's mostly due to Sugimori's style) and up until Kotone, ALL had rather large chests for how old they're supposed to be. In fact, I was quite glad that HGSS had player characters that looked more the age they were meant to be.
 
I wouldn't let my 10-year-old dress the way Dawn dresses if she was going out in cold weather. I guess I forget that Kanto and Hoenn are warmer than Shinnoh, but still...a skirt? Skirts are hardly what I'd call "adventure wear". At least May has biker shorts on underneath...

Plus with what one of the Game Freak employees say at the Lilyclove Hotel in Hoenn...

I wish we could get another male lead who shows some leg. Gold is the only brave guy to do so so far.
 
magpiejay12 said:
Their chests are getting smaller, and they're getting more childish outfits.
Click to expand...

I agree with the first part, not the second.

Anyone notice Kris, May and Leaf have boobs, but Dawn and Kotone are more flat in appearance?

Some people don't realize how curvy Kris is, especially when you look at anime!Marina in the Raikou special.
 
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