The newest title in the "God of War" series has sparked a lot of backlash – and the reason for it is dumb, yet familiar.
“The Last of Us Part II”, “Silent Hill f”, and “God of War: Laufey” all have one thing in common. Apparently, the female main characters aren’t “sexy” enough – at least according to random men on the internet (who, let’s be honest, probably don’t talk to women very often in real life).
Too “Haggard” And Too “Woke”
“God of War” is a video game franchise with a huge fanbase. So you might think that the announcement of a new title in the series would make people very excited. Surprisingly, that wasn’t the case and the preview received a lot of backlash. The reason? The story doesn’t follow its previous protagonist, Kratos, but instead tells the story of his wife, Faye, in the afterlife.
If you take a look at its predecessors, maybe the backlash wasn’t surprising after all. We have seen the same thing happen to other popular games that switched the gender of their main character. “The Last of Us Part II” was considered “too woke” because it featured a lesbian relationship and an “ugly”, muscular woman, as if these things didn’t exist in real life. Complaints and conversations about “Silent Hill f” mostly revolved around its feminist themes and its main character. Hinako did not please part of the male fanbase because the game didn't allow players to look under her skirt – mind you, Hinako is a teenage girl around 15 years old.
It seems like “Laufey” will follow in the footsteps of these two games. While it’s somewhat understandable that fans miss Kratos’ presence, a lot of the so-called “criticism” revolves around Faye’s gender and appearance. Deborah Ann Woll, who plays Faye, looks too old and too “haggard”. She’s too much of a “girlboss” for men to identify with, which apparently is a valid reason to humiliate her. Haters have started generating AI videos of Faye doing laundry, giving birth, and even being degraded by Kratos.
Games Like These Still Exist
If you feel threatened by realistic women with personalities, there are still games that you can play, including newer ones. Because, believe it or not, the video game industry itself is still a male-dominated space and many games have one major target audience – heterosexual men. So if you just want to “goon” (internet slang for uhm ... doing things to yourself), there are still plenty of female characters who were specifically designed for that purpose.
During my Game Design studies, I did a lot of research on gender representation in video games. And let’s just say that it’s very obvious who the main target audience of video games was in the past. Just take a look at the original Lara Croft. A slim body, a large bust, and a “sexy” attitude – hardly the most appropriate representation for young girls.
But this type of character design is still very present in newer video games. “Stellar Blade” became one of the most popular releases of the past few years and one of the reasons for its success was the main character’s “backside”, which the developers took “special care” to create.
At Summer Game Fest 2026, the developers of “Stellar Blade” announced the second installment in the series, titled “Blood Rain”, featuring a new protagonist called Evie. Both characters are some kind of “android soldier”, but there is one major difference. Evie was specifically designed to look younger than the heroine of the first game, apparently because it fits her combat style.
Making a character appear younger so that their combat style feels unique sounds like a valid argument – until you realize that one of the game’s main aspects is the sexualization of its female characters. Allegedly, the creator’s focus wasn’t her appearance but her personality. However, the game’s previews paint a different picture.
When you look at releases like these, one thing becomes very obvious: “sexy” women have never been absent from the gaming scene. It’s just that some titles are now trying to appeal to a broader audience, including women. But how dare a game cater to roughly half of all gamers? What do you think about it? Let uns know in the comments.
