The Renaissance of Female Superheroes

In modern popular culture, there is a strong link between comic book literature and the heroes that we see in gaming and on the silver screen. Iconic characters that become popularised on the pages of comic books tend to have a huge impact in the world of entertainment, which means that they must be conceived with targeted demographics in mind. It is this thinking that has triggered a renaissance among female superheroes, as this taps into the fact that 52% of gamers are now women.

This drive is certainly proving successful, with women-led series’ striking a chord among readers around the world. This is also translating into the video game market, highlighting the close connection that exists between various aspects of popular culture. The burgeoning success of these series’ has certainly come as a surprise to some, with female comic strips having struggled to achieve the success of their male counterparts (and console game successes such as Lara Croft: Tomb Raider few and far between).

The changing demographics around comic book fans and gamers has shifted the landscape, however, meaning that studios such as Marvel are now able to engage a wider and more diverse audience. This includes a large number of women, who have responded well to Marvel’s recent efforts and ensured that an entire army of female characters are ready to prove more than a match for iconic male figures. From Spider-Gwen (which mirrors the narrative of Spiderman) to Ms. Marvel, female leads are beginning to achieve notoriety while even fringe characters are stealing the show in male-dominated strips.

Of course, the trends in the inter-connected worlds of comic strips and gaming are reflective of those prevalent throughout technology, where an increasingly diverse customer base creates the need for more advanced and unisex products. To understand this in greater detail, you need only look at prominent gambling apps such as Sky Vegas casino, where you will see a number of colourful, themed slot games that include a female lead character.

This would have been unthinkable years ago, simply because female gamers and gamblers were considered to be a distinct minority. This is no longer the case, however, as women finally superseded men as the dominant gaming demographic in 2014. If this trend continues, there will soon an equal split and even market share across both the gaming and comic book sectors.