“It Girl” Proves that With Video Games, Looks Can Be Deceiving

If you’ve ever worried over what kinds of video games your kiddos are playing, then unfortunately, you’ve got one more reason to fret. It Girl seems harmless enough on the surface. It’s not one of those violent games where blood and gore abound. It’s not a first-person shooter game, and it even features cartoon-like characters. So, what’s the big deal?

Well, the premise of the Facebook game that Ashley Perez of Buzzfeed says is destroying feminism is indeed problematic for girls on so many levels. Just take the premise of the game, for instance. The object is to become “the hottest girl in town.” How do you do this? Well, there are many ways to win virtual hotness. You can shop for cool clothes, but only if you’re popular. To become popular, you can buy friends. Yes, you read that right—buy friends. You’ll also need a boyfriend because as the game says, “he’ll give you SO many nice gifts.” To prove how hot you really are, you’ll need to strut around town attending parties so that you can have a “showdown” with hosts who must admit that you’re the hottest girl at the party.

Really? What lessons does this game have to teach young girls? Let’s see. Looks are ultra- important. So is shopping. You need friends in life, but only because they make you look popular. It’s vital that everyone around you acknowledge that you’re better than them. Oh, and if you want to have nice things in life, you need a man to give them to you.

This might be the most sexist game ever, yet over 1.7 million people “like” it on Facebook. The stats say that the game is played primarily by 18-24 year olds, but without parental controls in place, there’s nothing stopping any child with a Facebook account from playing the game. Make sure yours is not one of them.