You say that "male players prefer PvP servers," but that doesn't match your graph. Leaving out "No Preference," 78.7% of women and 54.9% of men prefer PvE servers. Only 34% of men prefer PvP servers. So it would be more accurate to say that PvE servers are more popular to both genders, but PvP servers are much more popular to men than to women.

Based on my PvP experience in WoW, this isn't all that surprising. I always figured the asshats who gank me even though they're 20 levels above me were most likely young and high on adolescent testosterone, or just immature older men with inferiority complexes and small weiners.

Thanks Slayve - I've now rephrased that line to better reflect the graph.

I think your survey/graph is flawed in that it doesnt really answer what is often a raging debate, it should really have a section for strongly oppose any PvP what so ever.
Reason being it can be interpreted to show that nearly everyone likes atleast some pvp.
Strongly prefer PvE (so they like pvp a little bit?)
Slightly prefer PvE (so they still really like pvp just not as much as PvE?)
No Preferance - 50/50 ?
So by interpreting the graph the way i have it demonstrates that the bulk of people prefer to have access to PvP (females being 20pc of those polled and males 80pc out of approx 2500)

Your suggestion would make the survey flawed. If you have a only like PvE option, you need a only like PvP option as well. It would have been better with those two options, but I am fairly certain you'd get nearly the same results with the numbers of Strong prefer Pv* shifted over to only like Pv*

Of course, the survey doesn't take into account someone creating a game with good PvP mechanics and just shows that the current crop of PvP enabled games lack the right mechanics to draw people into a superior game. It is impossible to argue fighting against a computer and winning is anywhere near as fun as fighting against a person and winning.

What would be interesting is to find a correlation between the other genres of games played for those who like PvE and those who like PvP. I am fairly sure you'll find the PvP players will be playing games that require a lot more tactics and higher levels of competition (fighting games, fps, rts). On the other hand, I bet you'll find PvE players tend to require less such as rpgs and adventure games.

"It is impossible to argue fighting against a computer and winning is anywhere near as fun as fighting against a person and winning."

It's not impossible. Don't confuse your preference with objective fact. It's not just the PVP mechanics that are a problem. The players can be (often are) a factor, as well.

Frankly, given the number of leet-speaking, over-competitive idiots out there in the gaming world, I usually find fighting the computer and losing more fun that fighting a player and winning.

What would be interesting is to pose the same question to korean/chineese gamers.

The games that people in the west play are completely different from those played in those markets, market penetration from either side into the other market is very poor...

The games that are popular in the east are usually more PvP based than those that are popular in the west.

As I said, it would be interesting to see.

I prefer PVP servers, I am a female, and I play with male characters (as well as a female priest) because male characters get more invitations to groups and less hassle. my female priest is always in demand tho, but thats just because she's a priest. How can you tell if the person at the screen is male or female?

Zoe... I've played both male and female characters on both alliance and horde, and I have to say I get groups with either just as easily. I actually have one male and one female druid... both can get a group in 30 minutes or less.

Honestly, the last thing people think about when they're building a group is "What gender is this character?" You get your tank, your get your healer, you get your dps, and you go.

I honestly don't understand where you're comming from.

Jonathan, I think I understand what Zoe said. Priests in general are so important that gender is irrelevant, but depending on who you are interacting with, the younger and more immature the crowd, the more likely they are to discount you for being female.

I think if you can spend your time with older men, they'll be more mature in their approach.

It's more of an attitude, if anything -- how people talk to you, what they talk about, what role they assume you will play on the team, how well they believe you can do it.

My guild leader created a female-only guild simply because she was tired of dealing with the attitude.

Yahoo! Now I can prove once and for all to my girlfriend that PvE isin fact (generally) more popular than PVP! =D

Pretty sure there's a skew with PvP players and willingness to gender bend.

Also these two responses cracked me up,

"Frankly, given the number of leet-speaking, over-competitive idiots out there in the gaming world, I usually find fighting the computer and losing more fun that fighting a player and winning."

"Based on my PvP experience in WoW, this isn't all that surprising. I always figured the asshats who gank me even though they're 20 levels above me were most likely young and high on adolescent testosterone, or just immature older men with inferiority complexes and small weiners."

Really now, is that necessary!

Tyler, it's only the truth. PvP brings out the worst in people, win or lose. If it weren't for that element, I'd play on my RP-PVP server more. As it stands now, I love the RP-people, but detest the PVP-asshats.

It's not just the opposite faction's PVP addicts, but admittedly the ones on my own faction. Most of them talk as though they have never passed 5th-grade English or been in a human social situation in their lives. I can understand this kind of interaction in a battleground, but in the Trade and General channels in cities?

As Dr. Yee has shown, PvP players are typically younger folk who enjoy griefing others.

Battlegrounds is just one big e-peenz competition unless you're in the 60-69 or 70 bracket. Players with level 70 characters spend thousands upon thousands of gold to make "twink" (Funny how a term for a young gay man got turned into a term for a...well...young gay character) characters for 10-19, 20-29, 30-39 and 40-49 that simply cannot be beaten by conventional gear. They are usually Rogues with as many ranks as possible in Engineering as well as maximum ranks in First Aid.

Arena sounds nice, but unless you're 70 it's just a waste of time. The World PvP objectives are rather poorly thought out. Basically, if you can sit at a tower that no one really cares about for a few minutes, it's yours.

As a 17 male, what draws me into random PvP is the tension. I play a Tauren Shaman, with no real way to CC somebody to escape from a PvP situation (Those of you who just shouted "Earthbind Totem!", think about it. That lasts for 10 yards around the totem, hardly enough to get enough headway to discourage pursuit even fleeing with Ghost Wolf). As a result, I am constantly looking around my shoulder in contested areas, particularly ones like Hillsbrad Foothills, where the Alliance players there are either 30+ doing quests for Southshore or are purposefully looking for 20+ Tarren Mill-questing Horde to gank. It can really spice up a droll night of grinding to know that you have two-thirds the server population (half of them playing a class that can sneak up on you invisibly) as well as mobs to worry about, I tell you.

I know it's irrelevant
But you do have snares... FROST SHOCK!!

Anyways, I would like to see which WoW classes and races prefer which server type.

Weeeee, what a quick and easy soltiuon.