Samus Aran: from Role Model to Sex Object

Samus has traditionally been an almost genderless character, but is sexualized by her new re-design.

Screenshot from an official trailer of upcoming title "Metroid Other M" released by the developers of the game.

Women in video games will often fall into one of two categories; either she is a buxom babe whose beauty and sexual appeal are used to market the game, or she is intelligent, confident, and just as capable as any male character. There have been times when a female character eluded either of these classifications, and there have also been instances when a female character fell into both categories, but the divide remains.

There are two main reasons for a game developer to design a female character; either for their sex appeal, or to defy their gender role. A female who is sexually attractive has strong appeal, and will increase interest in - and sales of - the game she stars in. A female who is not feminine will also draw attention, simply for not being a "traditional" female.

While barely-dressed seductive temptresses will always appeal to a male's basic primal instincts, there is a far greater charm to be found in women who are beautiful on the inside. There is no crime in appreciating and admiring the beauty of the female form, but a character who is more than just a pretty face will always be far more stimulating.

Madison Paige, one of the protagonists of Heavy Rain, is a brave, smart, competent go-getter who isn't afraid to get her hands dirty. Depending on how many clues the player is able to discover, Madison is instrumental in solving the mysteries of the game. There are three scene during the game which feature this character with some frontal nudity: a shower scene in her apartment, a scene where she strips to seduce a sleazy club owner, and a potential sex scene with a different protagonist. While the shower scene is unnecessary and gratuitous, Madison is shown as being comfortable with her body without being a highly idealized or "perfect" woman. When Madison must increase her sex appeal to gain the attention of the sleazy club owner, she remarks that his idea of attractive is "dumb" and seduces him only begrudgingly. During the scene where Madison makes love with the game's main protagonist, the characters are shown as being emotionally involved in one another, rather than just physically attracted.

Alyx Vance, a supporting protagonist of Half-Life 2, assists and saves the main character several times. She frequently makes witty wisecracks, speaks her mind, and openly expresses distaste for those whom she does not trust. Over the course of the game, Alyx bonds with the player several times. For example, she introduces a new item by inviting the main character to play games with it. Many players have reported feeling a close bond to Alyx, despite the fact that the character never makes a single sexual remark. Jade, the protagonist of Beyond Good and Evil, is another example of a strong and confident female character lacking any overt sexuality, who is beautiful without being eye candy.

Previously, a wonderful addition to this list of respectable females would have been Samus Aran, protagonist of the Metroid series, a franchise that has spanned more than two decades. For the majority of her tenure in the gaming world, Samus had always been one of the very few female video game characters whose gender was not exploited for sexual appeal. From the very first Metroid game until the most recent, Nintendo had never chosen to promote the games using Samus' figure as a selling point. Even within the games, the only times when Samus was portrayed as having sexual appeal were during the hard-to-obtain bonus endings, where she appeared in a swimsuit or in her undergarments for a few brief moments. But even then, she was not an exaggerated caricature of idealism; she was simply a woman. Not an oversexed woman, not an unrealistically attractive woman; just a woman.

Under these circumstances, Samus Aran was a perfect example of a heroine whose gender was never exploited for gratuity. However, this has changed in recent years.

Upon completing the GameBoy Advance Metroid games under certain conditions, the player is rewarded with provocative imagery of Samus, sometimes wearing revealing clothing. Additionally, is it not unreasonable to argue that one of the game's only cinematic sequences was intentionally designed to highlight Samus' more feminine assets:

A look at Samus throughout the years takes a sharp change upon reaching Super Smash Brothers Brawl. At the least, Samus has always been a robotic suit of armor that allegedly has a female inside. At the most, Samus has been a woman that you only glimpse for a few mere seconds before she vanishes. However, in Super Smash Brothers Brawl, Samus - outside of her robotic armor - is a playable character, carrying just as much importance as any other character. Previously, to see Samus Aran outside of her suit was a rare sight, but now it is par for the course. She was once fleeting and mysterious, but has now emerged unabashedly into daylight.

It is difficult to argue that the "Zero Suit" design of Samus was not intended to be sexually appealing. In the launch trailer for Super Smash Brothers Brawl, this is the first camera shot that introduces the new playable "Zero Suit" Samus:

For so long, Samus had always been the exact opposite of the most common female archetype in video games - the stereotypical sexy babe wearing minimal clothing while striking provocative poses at every chance. And now, Samus herself, once the very poster child for respectable female leads, has joined the ranks of such bimbos.

As of the introduction of the Zero Suit, Samus Aran has lost all mystique. Her face, once a closely-guarded secret, is now bared freely, and she wears a form-fitting skintight suit that tightly hugs the curves of her shapely body. She is perfectly ideal, highly attractive, and the most sexually appealing Nintendo character in years - a drastic change from whom she once was.

While you will hear no complaints from enthusiasts of the female form, Samus Aran's previous character has been vandalized. She is no longer a woman, but a sexualized woman. It is disrespectful towards Samus to exploit her gender by adding sexuality to what was once an almost genderless character. While fans of the series hoped that this trend would not continue, the trailer for the upcoming Metroid Other M reveals that Samus will be once again be making frequent appearances out of her robotic armor for all to see.

It is worth noting that the developers of the upcoming Metroid Other M are none other than Team Ninja, the developers of the Dead or Alive Xtreme series, which specializes in revealing swimwear and pole dancing.

To date, there has only been one trailer for Other M which features Samus Aran clad in the now-famous Zero Suit, but its presence confirms that this design is here to stay, and is officially the new image of Samus.

Only time will tell if Samus Aran will be portrayed with dignity in upcoming titles.