#1reasonwhy

[Rick_D]

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Kotaku

Is this even a problem in Europe, or is this solely the USA/UK? I can't say I've ever seen women treated badly at Crytek or DICE - or even in the UK really.

I personally have been guilty of thinking that maybe some women in the industry might not be as qualified as men but when I think about it I apply that same thought process to guys that aren't as qualified so it's quite an equal amount of contempt. Equality!

Check out the Kotaku comments; I know it's Kotaku, but how butthurt can some people get.

Mr.Truth333 and 72 more

Are women actually expecting respect in an industry where they are NOT THE MAJORITY CONSUMER/PRODUCER. My goodness this is hilarious. Most women back then never cared for this industry and dismissed it in every way possible. Now that they see it's a money maker, they want their piece, but can't handle the fact that it's a male driven industry. So they complain about it because that's the only thing they know how to do properly and the know it will get them what they want while devaluing the product.

I hope you like feminism and PC groups forcing their ideas on the gaming industry even more now guys, because this is where it's headed.

Really? The ignorance is astonishing, and the leap to conclusions is evident of a pretty damaged mind.

[marks]

Welcome to the internet rick, lol

[Puddy]

Wow, Sweden's feminism works fast. Even on Rick.

[Skjalg]

I think Mr.Truth333 has a point ;D hahaha

[PogoP]

Women should not be even seen near games, let alone making them. What is this, 2012?!

[Skacky]

My favorite game of all time had quite a lot of women working on it, and I don't think it would have been as powerful and amazing if they didn't. This article is pretty good too: http://effingarcade.tumblr.com/post/36679466743/theres-a-frightening-hashtag-on-twitter-right

[2d-chris]

My favorite game of all time had quite a lot of women working on it, and I don't think it would have been as powerful and amazing if they didn't. This article is pretty good too: http://effingarcade....n-twitter-right

yeah defo, I know for a fact some of my fav games had women working on them in writing/design/production roles - anyway like rick said I've never seen anything happen in my experience.

[Warby]

at none of my inhouse-jobs (all none US ... the one US job i had, had no female co-workers) did i feel that the females got treated poorly or as lesser than the men. of course they might perceive this differently than me

i will say however that i felt that a lot of the girls handed in less high quality work on average than the guys (probably purely experience based rather than gender) which always made me think that their "looks" and the wish to "diversifie" and be "progressive" might have clouded human resources decision making process a bit.

[Sentura]

i don't see why women should be treated any different from men in any industry. that being said, i have already had the dubious pleasure of meeting some that got into the industry based less on their work and more on their physical appearance... which is a thing you don't really see with males.

oh well, in a 100 years or so this will balance itself out. until then i think i have better things to do.

Edited November 28, 2012 by Sentura

[Taylor]

I also have never seen anything close to the stories cherry picked from twitter. From my own experience I would say the gender ratio is off not because of discrimination or creeps, but simply because of a range of other factors that have made games and required skills a nerdy male aspiration. This is changing naturally and guilt tripping everyone is possibly counter-productive. This is not to detract from the reported problems, of course.

Personally I’ve never seen a female developer in a position I thought they were undeserving of and two of the best designers I’ve worked with have both been female. And I’ve got a black friend.

Oh, and I’ve been insulted for opposing this before so I’ll do it again for kicks.

“Because 'It's too technical' or 'We ran out of time' to make a rig for a playable female character," Ivansmith wrote.

[Note: Ivansmith has contacted us to clarify that the origin of his tweet "was in regards to excuses made by publishers in the last few years as to their lack of inclusion of female playable characters (which I find to be a ridiculous excuse, as I pointed out in the comments of your website)."]

Gender Inclusive Game Design: Expanding the Market was full of arguments like this as well, “It’s just changing a model and it makes games more accessible, why don’t all games do this?!”

This is disingenuous. Even if your game isn’t particularly story orientated you’re still going to have to reanimate your most animation-heavy asset and rerecord every gasp and grunt. If your game is story orientated then there is no end to the ramifications from the voice over to your supporting cast. These are workable problems for sure, but they are actual problems.

These arguments are also made with no supporting evidence. While I will agree it does sound advantageous I can think of several things that run counterpoint to it. As far as I’m aware no existing game, film, book, play, etc. has been remade with a gender swapped main character because people cannot relate, in games where people can chose their own gender often players don’t pick their own, and so on. The point is these are not just shot down because the bean counters are sexist.

Edited November 29, 2012 by Taylor

[Chimeray]

If it doesn't support the current business model then I don't think we should have a 50-50 ratio just for the sake of it... Hire people that do the job the best. If that means more females, good for them. If it means less males, so be it. Positive discrimination is bad imo but that's probably because I'm quite naive to the evils of the world Perhaps they do need to get a push. If they would actually be a good fit to work on these games but are discriminated somehow, then that's bad of course. I still think there'd be less females just because the games we make are catered to a different public.

And that's a whole different discussion altogether... Do our games need fixing so they can be liked by everyone? Or is there discrimination against females in the development teams.

I already explained the latter, everyone should be given the same opportunities and chances. About the games, well... I definitely think we could fix some games but I don't think we should just shoot off the kind of game that can only be enjoyed by a certain public either... variation is key. I'm not gonna tell what other people should like.

Personal experience on the subject of dev teams... I see no difference working with men or women, wtf... o.O Personally it's a non-issue for me as long as they're good at what they do. I can't speak for others though.

Edited November 29, 2012 by Chimeray

[Taylor]

I agree that is separate, but they’re both part of the recent bi-weekly media outrage that tars the games industry as bigoted pig-dogs. #1reasonwhy is important because, while I don’t think it reflects my experiences in the industry, it does highlight several specific incidents of genuine abuse and appalling behaviour. However, there is no mystery to how individuals like Mr. Truth333 get made when you have shit like the Tomb Raider and girlfriend mode “controversies” firing off constantly as part of the larger "story" of an apparently sexist culture.

Edited November 29, 2012 by Taylor

[Vilham]

I agree that is separate, but they’re both part of the recent bi-weekly media outrage that tars the games industry as bigoted pig-dogs. #1reasonwhy is important because, while I don’t think it reflects my experiences in the industry, it does highlight several specific incidents of genuine abuse and appalling behaviour. However, there is no mystery to how individuals like Mr. Truth333 get made when you have shit like the Tomb Raider and girlfriend mode “controversies” firing off constantly as part of the larger "story" of an apparently sexist culture.

These incidents are what discrimination law/sexual harassment law is for. If you are being genuinely discriminated take the company to court or if you are being sexually harassed take it to HR. Personally have yet to see any case of sexual discrimination amongst the 500 or so people I have worked with, heard a few anecdotes.

[Steppenwolf]

I never noticed any of this. But of course i'm not a women so might be less aware of subtle things. All the women that i've worked with in this industry were super cool and i respect them like i respect male coworkers. There are also some pretty good female players in the games that i like (Trackmania for instance). Never felt my manly feelings hurt losing against them.

[Vilham]

haha, I was saying all this until the latest email I just read....