Is Lara Croft a good role model/representation?

So one thing that I've always wondered is do women consider Lara Croft a good role model or representation of women in gaming? I never really played any tomb raider games so all I know about her is from what I can tell from trailer and such but she seems capable and is always a hero(or at least I assume). And she was never the damsel in distress type(once again, at least I assume). Compared to some of the other outfits Lara's clothing is not that bad, I mean if I went into the jungle I'd wear shorts and a t shirt. Then again I'm a dude so I might be missing something in my opinion of Lara. What do you think. And because this is the internet I expect only the most respectful, thoughtful, totally not spell checked responses people.

For the record when I say Lara croft I mean the 90's ps1-ps3 "Boobs so big she can use them as a reloading bench" Lara, not the rebooted one(not to say those don't count though). Also one last time, I have never really played a tomb raider game.

The last TR had a very hot Lara and her breast was correct. I admit that in the first TR I've play on Playstation, her breast was maybe too big and not normal.

I doubt Lara Croft can represent the women in general because she is supernatural. Which is pretty rare...

Not being that perfect, but that's okay, video game characters don't have to be role models or realistic representations.

I don't think anyone should view a video game character as a role model to be quite honest.

@BattleSpectre if you don't mind me asking why?

Keep video game role models a little more then her and you will be ok.

your 'not normal' could take out a blimp bro

I don't care what kind of role model any video game character is... It's not the job of video games to provide positive role models to anyone. A role model should be an actual human, not a fictional character regardless of the type of media they are pulled from.

I Loved Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft.I'd give her a bath with my tongue.

I always thought of her as an adventure girl and thus a good role model as good as Indiana Jones.

@BiancaDK said:

@gmak2442 said:

I admit that in the first TR I've play on Playstation, her breast was maybe too big and not normal.

your 'not normal' could take out a blimp bro

Nice screenshot. You pretend this is normal? I'm not agree, imo it look 15% bigger.

Good question, and hopefully I didn't offend anyone with my answer. I have no problems with people looking towards video game characters as their role models, but they're just that - a video game character. They don't have their own emotions or choose to make difficult decisions with their own will, so it doesn't make much sense to me to view one as a role model. But then again that's just my opinion.

I always saw her as a girl version of Indiana Jones. Indiana Jones is badass and all, but nobody can live like him and few people would really want to so not really.

I agree that that's not the JOB of video game creators. However, pop culture at large does play the ROLE of creating role models and reinforcing positive values. There's nothing wrong with NOT doing that, but it is worth mentioning what segments of pop culture do that and what segments don't. Like it or not, fictional stories are actually about things, they promote certain messages and values, and they teach people how to behave. Sure, that's not their JOB, but they do it anyway. So it's actually entirely valid for people to actually care about what those stories are teaching.

Role model yes (she is better than some of the 'celebrities' out there!!!) but representation, no.

Why does she have to be a role model? Is Marcus Fenix a good role model? How about Kratos?

Edit: But yeah, I always saw her as female Indy, think most people did.

If you want a badass female role model, you should look to someone like Michelle Rodriguez IMO. Or Angelina Jolie, the real Lara Croft ;)

@gmak2442 said:

@BiancaDK said:

@gmak2442 said:

I admit that in the first TR I've play on Playstation, her breast was maybe too big and not normal.

your 'not normal' could take out a blimp bro

Nice screenshot. You pretend this is normal? I'm not agree, imo it look 15% bigger.

i dunno if its so much the size, or just the fact that her tits are shaped like imperial destroyers

Should we look to video game characters for role models?.......

Let me know if I misunderstood, but it sounds like to me that you are saying role models need to be a real person faced with real challenges. I disagree. Role model is someone you aspire up to. They are essentially embodiment of ideals, so I don't believe being "real" is necessarily a requirement. Plus real people will invariably let you down at some point because they are flawed.

Any decent fictional character will also be flawed.

@BattleSpectre: I disagree(respectfully). Adding onto what @bmanva said it sounds (to me at least)) your saying video game characters wouldn't make a good role model because they don't have choices, but if you extrapolate that then it would apply to any fictional character(dose superman really want to save metropolis or is he just doing so because the writers penned the story like that). And I agree with Bmanva that role models don't have to be real. I think role models are like art, where everyone has their own opinion on what it is or should be and there's really no general conciseness. As long as you aspire to what they represent I think they count as a role model(I for one wanted to be spider-man growing up) Also the same stuff I said could also be applied to emotions.

Sure, wish more women were like her.

She's rich and British. What more can one aspire to be?

@gmak2442 said:

@BiancaDK said:

@gmak2442 said:

I admit that in the first TR I've play on Playstation, her breast was maybe too big and not normal.

your 'not normal' could take out a blimp bro

Nice screenshot. You pretend this is normal? I'm not agree, imo it look 15% bigger.

To your regular triangular prism breasts?

Wait, talking about a video game character. Hmmm, guess so far this thread was actually viewed as acceptable of remaining here. Guess this thread's only borderline of belonging in SW or Game Discussions forum instead.

Anyway, I also have yet to play TR games, if I was to get one though, I'm more interested in the more updated recent one that got released, like a few years ago, or something like that.

A great way to look at it, the both of you helped me look at it from a different perspective and I can't argue or disagree with that.

PS: I always wanted to be Batman... still do.

@chaoscougar1: lol that shit threw me off as well x)

Picard and Optimus Prime were leadership role models for me growing up.

Picard and Optimus Prime. I think I read some fanfic with them. TNG rules.

and @Toph_Girl250 ya, one of my biggest problems with forums is getting the right post int he correct topic. Off topic seemed like the best choice cause Im not talking about a specific game.

I agree. Real people should be role models.

On a side note, rampant political correctness and pseudo-feminism should stay out of gaming. Real feminists don't care about trivial shit like this, considering there are real women out there in the world living under oppressive conditions.

"But her boobs are too big! It's unrealistic and demeaning to women!"

Since when are video games supposed to be realistic? And its supposedly demeaning nature to women is purely subjective (Read: It's a matter of opinion, not fact). Yet people like this blabber on and act as if their opinions are fact and damn everyone to hell who doesn't agree.

Someone call the Whaaaaaambulance. Who fucking cares? If it offends you, avoid it! People run around trying to find things that offend them and then act like it's a constitutional right for them to not be offended. Are peoples' lives this dull? People really are addicted to problems, and many trivial ones at that.

/rant

I've only played the latest TR, will get started on the rest once I have time. Her writing in that game was decent by video game standards, which is to say she's still not a very good female character and definitely shouldn't serve as a "role model" for women. This isn't surprising given that she was basically conceived as a sex symbol for dudes anyway.