Friday, May 23, 2008
Women in the Industry: They Exist, Donchaknow
Gamasutra has started a new feature on their website called the Gamasutra 20, a twenty-item list concerning any gaming-related subject they'd like to spotlight. They're starting out with an unranked list of twenty women in the gaming industry today. No, Jade Raymond isn't the only one out there, in spite of what the news might tell you.
This list is not some thrown-together nod to women in gaming, either. It's a twenty-one-paged article that features each woman in wonderful detail, including their job title, a career overview, major accomplishments, innovation (what new twist they've injected into the industry), and a few words about them from their peers. There are younger women and older women, those newer to the industry as well as veterans, and women working in a spectrum of gaming genres. The list features women who are currently making a significant impact on the face of gaming today.
The article also notes how difficult it was to compile the list--not for lack of candidates, but because there were so many women to choose from. The gaming community today would have one believe that gaming is a Boyz Only club, but the stereotype just isn't true. It's a little known fact that there are many women working in the gaming industry, and many of those women hold very important positions in their companies. What I really love about this article is that it does help dispel this Boyz Only myth; it presents a list of role models that other women and girls aspiring to enter the gaming industry can look up to and know they're not going in alone.
My only quibble is that, while the list is quite diverse, it seems awfully whitewashed; what a great opportunity this could have been to spotlight some women of color working in the gaming industry.
I encourage all of our readers to check out the article; it really is top-notch.Labels: Getting it Right, PlasmaRit, The Industry
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