In recent years, there has been controversy over who the attractive female characters in games, movies and animations are designed for. Some believe this is purely to please a male audience, while others point out that aesthetic appeal per se is not gender specific - beautiful characters are just likable. Now, the argument has new support—support from scientific research.
Scholars from the Institute of Empirical Aesthetics of the Max Planck Society in Germany conducted a systematic analysis of 52 research data from 76 countries and evaluated nearly 1.5 million faces. Research has found that female faces are generally rated higher than men in attractiveness ratings, and female raters tend to be more harsh in their evaluations than men. That is, they have higher standards for "beauty", but they also show strong positive feedback to truly good-looking faces.
The study authors stress that this evaluation has nothing to do with sexual attractiveness. The human perception of beauty exists independently and is not limited to romantic or sexual interests. This conclusion is also consistent with other research in the field of psychology - people generally prefer images that are harmonious, symmetrical, and aesthetically appealing.
Within the gaming community, this research has reignited a long-standing discussion about female character design. It goes to show that a character's beautiful appearance doesn't mean she's designed solely for a male audience. Regardless of gender, people like to look at beautiful things. The same logic applies to movies, animation and other areas of popular culture - the aesthetic design of characters has always been an important part of artistic expression.
What do you think about this? Do you agree with the research results? Welcome to discuss in the comment area.