I only saw a small post about it so I thought I’d ask for a longer one: What do ya’ll think of Jack from Mass Effect. Compared to MOST of the females in that game is it right to say she isn’t sexualized?
Yes. No. I mean yes. Maybe.
Jack certainly is an example of a character where the core reason behind her exposure is largely explained by her desire to express non-conformity and brazen confidence. She’s consistently portrayed as someone who has a grudge against society and it’s one of many ways she expresses contempt for it. (gif source)
Ironically the more sexualizing aspect is the straps that seem to have been added after the initial design, presumably because we need to protect people from the terror of nipples (by drawing more attention to their existence and further fetishizing them, isn’t society great?).
Unfortunately, when it came time for Mass Effect 3 – her costume seems to have been re-invented with similar focus on sexuality that Ashley’s was.
Overall, Jack in Mass Effect 2 was a fairly good use of non-sexual exposure, Jack in Mass Effect 3 less so. How sexualized each was would be a complex discussion involving things like her looks, structure of Bioware’s romance system, camera angles, etc.
Not really something we can summarize in a blog post.
In comparison to other Mass Effect ladies – well she’s certainly better off (costume wise) than Samara!
– wincenworks