Miss MaxGames

Oh here, they come! I see them on the horizon, set to swoop in with boobs and misplaced enthusiasm, all in the name of outshining their fellow gamers in the pageant arena.

Remember Miss Video Game? I sure do. I saw this little competition months ago and dismissed it as piffle, which is exactly what it’s turned out to be according to TheGirlGamer, whose initial support and entry into the pageant imploded into a righteous (rightly so) tirade when she began to do some digging into the hosts of the event and the tack that it seemed to be taking.

As if that wasn’t enough of an insult, I see today that my bitterness at not having taken part in the Miss Video Game Pageant can be assuaged by claiming my crown as Miss MaxGames. And hey, if I don’t quite make Miss MaxGames, then I can still land one of her sidekick’s roles as a MaxGirl.

Organized by Ozura Mobile and Maxis Communication Berhad, one of Malaysia’s top telecom companies, the Miss MaxGame competition seems to be taking a more gaming oriented approach, stating that

In the search for Miss MaxGames, we’re not only promoting the MaxGames community but simultaneously boosting interest and appeal among female gamers to participate and reveal their talents.

Interested girl gamers can send in their application until early March, including a portrait and a brief gaming biography. If they squeeze into the next rounds, women can expect to be interviewed to access personality and whether or not they’ve ever held a controller in their entire life. Finalists will duke it out over Ozura’s latest mobile game for the honour of being a MaxGames ambassador and participate in promotional activities.

It’s kind of like getting to be an E3 booth babe. Sign me up!

While the requirement of gaming knowledge (unlike Miss Video Game) is heartening, I don’t quite understand why there is this insane need amongst marketers to make a pageant out of womens gaming. I don’t have to be Miss This, or Miss That, or hell, Miss Thang while we’re at it…I want to be in a tournament, I want to compete in game, not in front of the camera, and I want to be heralded as the best in my craft, not the hottest chick on the 360. My prize doesn’t have to involve public appearances where people can admire my glory (I’d actually prefer money), nor does anything need to be froofy, frilly, or pink; including the name of the event. A good old fragfest, that’s all I ask, and not even a segregated one.

Sheesh.