Category Archives: Virtual Worlds

In Medias Res

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Samantha Allen

[Author's note: This is a follow-up to my first post on The Border House. There are many ways to transition and not all of them involve hormones.  While I want to share my journey, I don't want my transition to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Console Games, Handheld Games, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

“That girl is kicking our asses!”: Tomb Raider’s (Lack of) Gendered Power Plays

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Jillian Scharr

The firefights in Tomb Raider are intense and brutal. There are many scenes where Lara is pinned down behind a splintered barrel or crate, shooting and ducking and shooting again at upwards of ten armed enemies, half of whom are … Continue reading →

Posted in Console Games, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

TransMovement: Freedom and Constraint in Queer and Open World Games

Posted on February 4, 2013 by Guest

Samantha Allen is a transgender woman, an ex-Mormon and a PhD student in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Emory University writing a dissertation on sexual fetishism. She is also an erstwhile singer-songwriter. You can find her on the web … Continue reading →

Posted in Casual Games, General Gaming, PC Games, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Seeds: A ‘serious game’ connecting U.S. smartphone users to Kenyan businesswomen

Posted on October 16, 2012 by Jillian Scharr

The average U.S. social gamer is a 43 year old woman. And in Kenya 2 million monetary transactions, usually small amounts, are made daily via mobile phone. These two statistics may seem unrelated, but combined they’re what gave entrepreneur Rachel … Continue reading →

Posted in Casual Games, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

What is the social class of an adventurer?

Posted on September 5, 2012 by Zoya

A while back, Mattie Brice tweeted a very interesting observation about her play style. She said, “For some reason, I really dislike using items. I usually just sell them.” Adam Flynn then responded with a link to this article, asking “I … Continue reading →

Posted in General Gaming, MMORPGs, Social Media, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

The Do It Yourself RPG: An Interview with Game Designer Filamena Young

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Quinnae

Filamena Young is a game’s writer with several years of experience in the industry. She’s written for a variety of RPG properties, including White Wolf (she is a co-author of the Vampire the Requiem supplement Strange, Dead Love) Margret Weis … Continue reading →

Posted in Casual Games, General Gaming, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

I Don’t Exist in EVE

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Guest

guest post by Tsumei I have been a gamer since I snuck down the stairs to the basement as a young child to watch my dad play Doom and Return to castle wolfenstein on an old computer. I’m bisexual, I’m … Continue reading →

Posted in MMORPGs, PC Games, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

A labor organizer’s review of Cory Doctorow’s For the Win

Posted on January 6, 2011 by Lake Desire

The following is a repost of a book review I wrote of Cory Doctorow’s novel For the Win that I posted on the Feminist Science Fiction Blog.  I am sharing my book review here because Border House readers may find … Continue reading →

Posted in MMORPGs, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

The Mistress of the Lash Wears Chains

Posted on November 29, 2010 by Quinnae

In a conversation I was having with a date recently I told her when describing my video gaming habits that the “analysis never stops.”  This was largely to explain the cubic litres of geekiness I effervesce whenever I get going … Continue reading →

Posted in General Gaming, MMORPGs, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , , | 38 Comments

Two recent gaming related deaths [trigger warnings]

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Lake Desire

Every so often, a gaming-related death makes the news and there is a public outcry vs. gamers defending their hobby.  There were two in the news this week. A 22-year-old woman from Jacksonville, Florida, recently pleaded guilty to killing her … Continue reading →

Posted in Casual Games, MMORPGs, Virtual Worlds | Tagged , , , , | 18 Comments