True Independence or Fake Freedom: Deconstructing Media Representations of Women in Chinese Otome Games

The rise of women gamers has driven demand for emotional virtual experiences, particularly in otome games with romantic narratives. Offering a hybrid methodology, this study analyzes character portrayals in three popular Chinese otome mobile games—Mr. Love: Queen’s Choice, Light and Night, and Tears of Themis—while also exploring the responses of women players through semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal that women protagonists in otome games are often young, dependent on men characters, and hold subordinate roles, thus underscoring the presence of traditional gender norms. This aligns with media studies scholarship that suggests media representations of women often reinforce societal gender roles. Players express dissatisfaction with the lack of diversity in character backgrounds, traits, and appearances, calling for more complex representations. This study recommends that game developers create more inclusive and empowering women characters and storylines to better align with contemporary women’s evolving identities.