It's an interesting read but I don't think the article actually reveals anything new compared to what has already been talked about.
About the first point: games are for boys and the "games" that girls play are not games at all. The games for boys feel comes from the culture and can come from people with a lot of influence including family, friends, peers, teachers etc. My personal observation is that games are considered to be for children. It something to be put away once a person grows up. This is especially true among older generations. (My parents and their generation for sure. I'm in my thirties btw) I am in the industry myself and I am sad to see young people, even young men turned away from the industry because it's for children. I had a friend asked me to talk to someone she know that was interested in taking post secondary studies hoping to end up in the industry only to hear later on he was nagged into abandoning his dream by his parents. For girls, though, the social pressure is even more so than boys. According to society, teen girls are suppose to be into looks, fashion, make-up. They are suppose to talk about boys and dating. Video game is not part of the norm. I've had peers who snobbed at me for liking video games at high school. In a sense, it is true that a girl decides whether or not to give up video games but it takes a lot of pride, self-confidence to overcome peer pressure not to abandon video games at that age. It's hard to go against peer pressure to conform. Also there's the perception about what is video game and what is not. Whether mobile games are counted as video games. Whether <insert whatever game that should not fit the definition> is video game is still debated. Seriously, solitaire, minesweeper, and tetris are video games and so on. But there will be people both that do and do not consider themselves video game enthusiasts that will argue what counts as games and what does not. The perception needs to change from both within and outside the community which is hard to do. Unfortunately, even something like story vs gameplay divides people. People arguing whether turn based or action based game are more "progressive" etc do exist. I don't see this problem going away until people recognize, games are interactive entertainment that people use to relax and have fun, whether the game be candy crush, angry bird, halo, final fantasy, solitaire or tetris.
The second point about gaming objectify women, and more so, male gamers objectify women. I feel this perception is very very sad. It's a stereotype of male gamers. It is a disservice to both men and women for anyone to hold such stereotype. Yes, I've met male gamers who will hit on everything and anything that moves but I've also met a lot of male gamers that are respectful and helpful even before they find out I'm a girl. They remain that way even after finding out I'm a girl. They treat me no different than other males online. Of course, online communities vary from game to game. I tend to stay away from online communities that are known to be more toxic. Yes, it is up to the community to present itself better but at same time, if a girl holds such view and don't bother playing games is missing out. There are single player games. As for boys that are around and judging, that part ties into the first point. So I don't feel the need to say much more on it. As for objectifying women in games, yes that is true. It is a hotly contested topic even among women. However, many games are not made that way. Games like Kirby, Yoshi's Island, Animal Crossing, Pokemon, Harvest Moon etc do exist. I suppose the visibility of such games does tie into the third point.
Third point: games are marketed at boys. This is quite true. I have nothing to add. I have heard stories from coworkers about marketing where female characters are pushed to the side or removed from game cover art. It is unfortunate. This is definitely something the industry can improve on.
However, to the conclusion of the articles though: The games that is desired by the author and her sister: She wants to play games where women make the world beautiful, save the day, make friends, or romance boys. She wants to play games without killing, without rape, without weaponry... If someone truly wants to play video games, they will look for them. Of course, I suppose that ties into the third point, marketing.
Personal thoughts here. It definitely is not always rosy being a girl who loves games. It does take self confidence to not worry about what the world says. As I mentioned I did get snobbed by peers. I do also remember playing Breath of Fire in comp class (after my work was all done) and the boys telling me what I should or should not do. Perhaps, video game parents can help teach their sons that games are not just for boys and teach their daughters it's ok to love games. Don't worry about what the world tells them. Play the games they like. Indeed the industry can help by making more diverse games visible to the general public and really perhaps stop and really think about why certain arguments are even there trying to define what's a video game and what's not.
Welcoming non gaming females into the community is not something that has easy solution. There are many females who want female protagonist that they can identify with. There are females who love cute stuff. There are females who love good love story with hot male protagonist. (I have had a girl who never play video game come to my place and wanted to try ff8 because Squall looked cool.) It's a matter about finding a game that they might like. Many probably will need help and advice and someone willing to be patient enough to teach them. Breaking down the social conceptions they might have about gaming. That's really probably a start.
Sorry for the long blurb. I really feel like getting all this off my chest after reading so many such threads.
Normative ideals = arbitrary standards + social pressure.