I've never done it. But I've seen others create a character and play as the opposite gender. What motivates you to do that.  I've thought about doing it just to try something different but I think I'd be terrible at it.

What are your thoughts? Have you done it before?

I'd encourage it for the following reasons:

1) The first time I did, I largely did so as a writing challenge. I'd never written from the female perspective previously, and I thought it was important (if I ever wanted to try to write something larger) that I would be able to do so.

2) When I RP male characters, I often find myself RPing the same character: largely, an idealized version of myself + mafia skills. RPing a female character was a way to hammer in the fact that the character was not me- and it therefore allowed me a lot more growth in the types of characters that I played.

3) I think that if you write from a position of openness and empathy, RPing the opposing gender can actually be a beneficial experience that increases your own understanding.

+1 Everything GavinAndTaraByrne has said.  While I haven't done it on MR yet, I've done it in other games and agree with everything said. 

As for doing it here... to be perfectly honest, I've considered doing it here under an incog name just to see if I'm treated differently.  Do players who are thought to be men have a different game experience than those who are thought to be female?  And if there are differences, what are they and why?  I'm guessing there are differences in how they are received by the community, but I can't say for sure.  Would be an interesting experiment.

I'd encourage you to look up mafia history and play the character that most interests you. Or you can be a relative from of a mafia family who is not known....Getting into your character is the fun.   

Hmmm I'am not sure... I've seen a few do it but for me... Maybe its beyond my reach.. I cant even guess what a woman's thinking.. so for me to act as one.. Id probably fail dramatically.

Cant understand why a person will fool  all and not letting people know what gender you are, arent both men and women equal? I think so so never be afraid to stand as you are where ever you are on internet.

LilllisMolly, what gender are you? Taking a look at your pic on your profile you could be either male or female. And while I am on the subject, did you join the mafiareturns while having Jurassic Park in mind? And yes gender is a key issue and has been for years on online mafia games. But this bitch conquered that problem. 

Isabella I completely agree with you!  It would indeed be a fun experiment.  I've also played both genders on different games.  People are people whether they be male or female, but I do find that it is definitely much more challenging for me to play as a man.  I may have to engage in such an experiment myself at some point!  We'll see <3  

While I've never done it before myself, I can definitely understand the appeal for it, whether it be due to plain curiosity or in the hopes of developing a potential understanding of character building for future larger projects.

So if the primary reason you want to attempt it is to see what it is like, I'd advise you to give it a shot. Regarding the fear of being terrible, the counter-argument is the same given to anyone who wishes to give Roleplaying in general a shot. You'll learn with time and experience. Besides nothing here is permanent, so if you don't appreciate the insight you gain or deem it something you don't wish to pursue further, you can always revert back to the original character in the next run.