I'm curious as to when given a gender option, how many men choose to play as a women and women play as men. I played ME as both and depending on the game I will decide based on theme or who is more pleasant to look at or has the better outfits(my inner Bellybama).
I don't know any data on that. I'd be curious, too.
I have sometimes played as a woman, both for the reason Hedon mentioned (more pleasant to look at) and also because part of what appeals to me about games is the chance to experience something different than my normal life. But lately, I've become more aware of how feminized our culture is and how badly men have been faring, in part because of feminist/SJW dogma. Choosing to play as a woman reminds me of that now, and so I'm not feeling like it anymore.
Another reason is just realism. In a game like AC Odyssey, which is supposed to be somewhat historically accurate, I can't get into the idea of a female Spartan warrior. Doesn't seem realistic to me.