‘How about a C cup?’ on Making a Crucial Change to Uncharted That Stood Up Against the Likes of Tomb Raider

Amy Hennig is considered to be a pioneer figure in the world of gaming as she has completely redefined the way people perceived women in video games and changed the narrative of the industry.

In the 20th century, video games were mostly made by men that catered to a limited audience comprised of just teenage boys. But things slowly began to change once Hennig picked up a pen and redefined people’s outlook towards the gaming industry.

Amy Hennig Had To Endure A Lot During The Development of Uncharted

Amy Hennig was a film and literature student who had a keen interest in the audio-visual medium. She wanted to make films at the time but was forced to work on one of Atari’s games as a designer to pay off her bills; that is where the world of video games first opened up to her. However, sadly, that game could not see the light of day, but it still began the journey of one of the pioneer figures in the video game industry.

Hennig’s breakthrough project was the Legacy of Kain games. She was the lead designer for the project and introduced an episodic narrative that spanned 3 games. This established her as a visionary and turned her into a star.

While she was engaged with the Legacy of Kain series, she stumbled upon another very interesting IP that had a female protagonist who was not a damsel in distress but was a strong and powerful woman; the game came to be known as Tomb Raider. She was denied to work on it and was asked to focus on the current project instead.

She later joined Naughty Dog, where she came up with Uncharted, which not only redefined narrative-driven games but also saved the sinking ship of Sony’s latest console, PS3. Uncharted was released as a PS3 exclusive and did extremely well in the market.

However, not everything was smooth during the development process. In the earlier games, developers had the tendency to overs*xualize women or turn her into a damsel in distress waiting to be saved. Hennig’s approach changed that narrative. To save her female characters in Uncharted 2: Among Thieves from being overly s*xualized, she said:

Let’s take it down. How about a C cup?”

This approach proved to be a little controversial since it was something that had never been done before, but it later proved to be beneficial in the end.

The Representation of Women In Video Games Is Improving

In today’s time, things have started to change. The winds have shifted, and the video game industry is not run by men catering to teenage boys. The audience of games has expanded, and female representation is treated with respect and dignity.

There has also been a rapid increase in women playing games. Back in 2010, there were only 40% women playing games. The number has now increased to almost 48%, although not much, but there is still a gradual increase, which can be seen as good news.

Hennig had a huge role to play in establishing an environment where women are treated fairly and equally. She improved female representation and paved the way for female protagonists in games to flourish. What do you think about it? Let us know in the comments below.