You're forgetting one vital thing. Men and Women have different anatomy. Those "lady lumps" need to be accounted for. Yes they CAN be squished down, but from what I hear, that's none too comfortable either...
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Yes, they can very often be an inconvinience. But instead of sporting two protrusions that deflect damage into one area, it would be more practical to have a single surface over the desired area that will more evenly distrbute harmul forces, just like the male armor but with more volume.
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They do need to be accounted for with some cup sizes (maybe C or D and bigger) and it depends on the individual body type. But if they're contained enough, I think they'd be about the size of some ripped guy's moobs.
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I know that my wife (who is well endowed) has trouble when she wears her chain (as seen above). Wearing flat plate for her is possible, but she finds it uncomfortable.
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Hrm, interesting. My main experience with boob-flattening are corsets and bulletproof vests. Both are quite uncomfortable, don't get me wrong. My main issue is making super exaggerated shapes in the armor to accommodate breasts or to just say, "hey, look. boobies." Keep in mind, male armor isn't just flat. There is some sort of curve for certain kinds of chest armor, so it's convex instead of concave, for reasons stated in the OP about protection.
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I wear armor myself, and I agree with you to a certain extent. However to be recognized as female by your silhouette is important (for games and theatre) Some decent looking armor was actually in Alice and Wonderland. Obviously fantasy, but still feminine. One thing I hope they do is allow for the recognition of the figure as feminine, but at the same time, not make it impractically exaggerated
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In games, I like having my character recognizably female. But that can be how weight is carried or how someone stands, or even a subtle bust is acceptable. [i]Subtle[/i] and functional.