Women make up about 45% of the country's videogame players.
As a videogame player myself, that number surprises me. Since I was a kid, I've enjoyed playing games but often felt alone in it. The story for me was always the supporting character to a man's protagonist. But 45%?! I had no idea there were literal millions of women out there playing videogames! Are other women feeling the way I am about the gaming community? Are women getting to create, write, and develop games on a large scale? If so, who and where are they? Because, yes, please!
To get my answers, I headed to E3.
The Electronic Entertainment Expo—E3 for short—is an annual, industry event that highlights what's up and coming in the world of tech and videogames. I was able to explore booths from some of the largest developers in the industry, and also sit down with some incredible developers and gamers to learn about the rising tide of women in videogames.
On The Gaming Community
The reputation of the gaming community is rough and often, one note. With scandals like Gamergate, from the outside, the community can feel aggressive, to anyone who is "other" than "the mostly young, mostly nerdy and most definitely male" stereotype. This isn't just on the player's end either. While there have been some big mainstream releases that feature female protagonists (just look at The Last of Us, it ruled!), if you take a peek into the companies creating these strong female characters, you'll notice that there is a huge lack of diversity.
"Women are underrepresented in core creation and development roles, such as coders, designers and artists" Some of this is due to a lack of job stability and shotty benefits, but also a staggering 47% of developers say there is not equal treatment and opportunity in the industry.
Things are starting to shift, only slowly. Initiatives like We Are use their platform to highlight the work being done by women in the industry and also offer scholarships to individuals looking to pursue degrees that lead to careers in videogames. And large organizations use events like E3 to crank out a bevy of hashtags and slogans to help encourage women to look at the industry as a viable career path.
On Building Your Own Narratives
Erica Merchant is the founder and developer of Tough Cookie Games. Her first release, Save The Date! was featured in the Indie section of E3 and immediately piqued my interest. It is a videogame invitation, where your wedding guests get to play to save the day.
Not only is this an incredibly unique idea, but walking up to her booth was an equally unique experience. She clad the table in sweetly colored table cloths, had a mini photo-booth, and was conducting a cookie jar giveaway! (I was ALL about it.)
She shares that leaning into the feminine of it all attracts both her immediate consumer demographic and people who are open and willing to see something new. While she is excited about providing this unique perspective to the industry she notes that there are challenges.
Merchant spoke to me about feelings of imposter syndrome and a nervousness in reaching out to larger developers for feedback. However, she sites that being a part of communities like Seattle Indies has helped her squash that inner critic by connecting to like-minded individuals, creating feedback systems, and receiving advice like "If you're not embarrassed about your first prototype, you're releasing too late."
While chatting with Merchant we spoke about working within an environment that can feel exclusive. "It's important for women to not give up, but also, find a place where you're comfortable. You have to go there every day." This theme of pushing yourself was carried across a lot of my interviews.
Heather Gallagher, VP of Product at Enklu, is leading by example by not asking for permission to share her perspective. "I have the education in this, I have the experience in this, I have the skills. That's my narrative." She continues to push herself by leaning into the fun of it all.
"Find something that's fun for you and when you get in your zone, run!...but getting out of your comfort zone is a muscle you have to work on. You have to push through that membrane of 'Phew, OK, I'm doing it.'...Listen to the inner voice that allows you to expand. That's the check mark. That's where you want to find yourself."
On Capitalizing On The Unexpected
With more and more women looking to push past that comfort zone within the videogame industry, we're starting to see different types of experiences entering the arena. These new and unexpected games are finally being built and promoted, and people are loving it!
Gallagher and the Enklu team brought an AR (augmented reality) experience to the expo titled "Unreal Garden." The title alone stands as a polar opposite to the other popular experiences of this E3. Unlike the shoot-em-ups brought to Los Angeles, "Unreal Garden" offered the opportunity for up to 40 people to wander together through a garden and interact with objects both IRL and virtually.
Leila Amirsadeghi is the Strategic Advisor of Growth and Marketing for Enklu. On my way in, I saw her enthusiastically receiving feedback from folks who had just completed the experience. "There's this feeling of welcomed relief...It's both a return and unexpected. We're seeing a transition of content from shoot-em-ups to connections. We're bringing people closer to the magic of reality."
Both Amirsadeghi and Gallagher are clear that their aim is to create a conscious company. They want to see people connecting to nature, engaging with other people, and checking-in with themselves. Gallagher notes "It's ironic really, we're using new technology to better get back to our humanity."
On Hope For The Future
Amirsadeghi relays "I'm seeing more and more women in leadership positions." But again, this is slow going. Merchant of Tough Cookie Games encourages a three-pronged approach to seeing growth in both numbers and representation.
- Send out job requests to as many platforms as possible. Diversify not just your recruiting efforts, but your hiring process as well. For this, she sites the antiquated nature of certain interview questions in tech. Especially in regards to questions designed to test your memorization versus real-world problem-solving. "If you don't want me for what I know and what I can learn, then you're not interested in me as a candidate."
- Retain your talent by recognizing different life experiences. Understand the rule of three. This is where people don't feel as alone when there are three people in the room like them.
- Create allyship programs. She shouts out Instagram as a great resource for ally inspo.
Merchant is also sending the elevator back down for future generation. She participates in Technovation, a non-profit designed to teach girls technical problem-solving through competing in different challenges. Seeing the younger generation more excited and prepared than she felt gives her hope.
And that's how this E3 experience left me feeling. Hopeful.
I'm hopeful that the rampant misogyny being called out now leads to less harassment and real change. I'm hopeful that the industry recognizes diversity and inclusion as more than just buzzwords, so talented people can create stories that are authentic and fun as hell. And I'm hopeful that more people are able to access video games so the community can expand to something where everyone feels safe and heard.
"Those dinosaurs are falling by the wayside...Things are blending a lot more. Women are supporting women through sharing their own narratives."-Gallagher
