In Elena Bertozzi’s “You Play Like a Girl!” Cross- Gender Competition and the Uneven Playing Field, she addresses how there is a lack of female engagement in digital gaming and how gender stereotypes affect how males and females play the games.  The gender differences in digital play are a consequence of the genders inability to cross traditional, culturally gendered routines.  Most digital games have aggressive and heroic looking male avatars while the female avatars are not as common in the games with slender, blond, and beautiful characteristics.  Women tend to stay away from the playing field with men because of the men’s aggressive and violent behaviors.  Bertozzi suggests that the difficulties within the playing fields can be overcome if the concept of play eliminates any discrimination, bias, or advantage outside of the playing field.  She also suggests that the digital game designers should increase the number of female players and female avatars, reinforce the idea that strong, competitive, aggressive females can be sexually desirable, and normalize cross-gender play by making it common and fun. 

            Bertozzi also addresses how males and females interact toward each other during sporting activities.   The women during the games are not only concerned with how well they are playing the game but also how attractive they look while playing.  Men are more overtly competitive and their competitiveness is rewarded by status.  Women tend to show their aggression by verbal harassments and social shunning.  Women achieve status by beauty and attractiveness to males while men achieve status by their strength and physical abilities.

            In conclusion, our society today should focus more on what is in the inside of a person and not his or her physical appearances.  Women deserve to be treated equally and should not have to fear when coming in contact with a male during a competitive event.  I agree with the author that more female avatars should be placed in the digital gaming world and that the female characters should not have the stereotypical attributes of a “female.”  Moreover, females should be able to equally compete with all males whether it is a contact sport or a board game.