Gamergate and How Far We've Come
Jen Ortiz, the deputy editor of Marie Claire, which is an international monthly magazine, says that it's "about time the [gaming] industry levels up--and women are here to play." Ortiz makes wonderful use of the double entendre. Women are, indeed, here to play--play video games. But women are also ready to play the business; they want more inclusion, diversity, representation, and, most importantly, jobs.
I am a hardcore, lifetime gamer and I've never heard of such a thing: Gamergate. It started in 2014. The Washington Post (TWP for short) covered it in great detail. At the core of Gamergate is misogyny and this misogyny is more focused on female gamers than any other kind of female-ness. It is termed as an "Internet culture war" by Caitlin Dewey, a journalist for TWP. From her article, I was able to gather enough information to make a long story short: a game designer, Zoe Quinn released a free game that was considered a non-gamer's-game by many online. An ex-boyfriend of hers released blog posts about how Quinn cheated on him with several men in the gaming industry in order to get further in her career. Later on, hackers cruelly posted Quinn's address, some nudes, and other personal information. Some hackers sent Quinn death and rape threats that were so detailed she left her house and reported to local Police. A male reporter who was at the center of a lot of the mess maintained his job. Seems odd to me.
Either way, Gamergate extended past Zoe Quinn and onto other women in the business of gaming so much so that a few women stepped down from their positions amidst the harassment Gamergate became harassment toward women, essentially.
Anna Kipnis, an AI and game-play programmer at Double Fine Productions in San Francisco thought all those young women that we've been trying to encourage to join us are going to see this, and they'll be like, "Oh, God. What am I signing up for? It turns out, this huge public harassment didn't just cause women to quit their positions in the gaming field, it also inspired a lot more to grasp the determination to be successful or to join the gaming sphere, whether in the business and creative sector, or in the actual gaming. Naomi Clark, a game designer at professor at New Yor University's Game Center says that "Today, about half of applications are from women, in both our master's and undergraduate programs."
There is legitimate growth in the amount of women getting into the business of gaming. Ortiz says that "Today's games feature more female protagonists, diverse characters, and narrative-driven action than ever before." There have been serious steps toward improvement. In her article, she highlights six famous games since 1986 that show this improvement.
A great example is the Tomb Raider's series. The games are essentially the movies that most people have seen come to life, with the gamer playing as Lara Croft, a cliff-jumping, bad-guy-kicking adventurer. In the early games, with the first coming out in 1996, had, as Ortiz puts it, "Barbie-esque proportions" And she isn't wrong. The image shows the transformation from 1996-2017, with the earliest version being on the right. Not only is the most recent Lara Croft more normally proportioned, but she is also wearing and wielding more action-appropriate clothing and gear. This woman jumps between cliffs and explores tombs. It doesn't sound like something you would want to do with a loose ponytail, with hair down, or in short-shorts. The game has become less about being sexy while kicking butt, and more about how impressive Lara and her physical prowess is; Lara is finally more identifiable as strong rather than as an object.
The entire gaming community is finally creating more games like this. For so long women in games were either non-existent, or clad in unreasonably sexy clothing. Gaming is finally evolving into something greater.
Image credit: https://www.google.com/search?q=1996+tomb+raider&safe=active&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiQwdzlrf3gAhWUvJ4KHZ4kBPIQ_AUIDygC&biw=1440&bih=713#imgrc=-1tB45eCrIqAsM:
I am a hardcore, lifetime gamer and I've never heard of such a thing: Gamergate. It started in 2014. The Washington Post (TWP for short) covered it in great detail. At the core of Gamergate is misogyny and this misogyny is more focused on female gamers than any other kind of female-ness. It is termed as an "Internet culture war" by Caitlin Dewey, a journalist for TWP. From her article, I was able to gather enough information to make a long story short: a game designer, Zoe Quinn released a free game that was considered a non-gamer's-game by many online. An ex-boyfriend of hers released blog posts about how Quinn cheated on him with several men in the gaming industry in order to get further in her career. Later on, hackers cruelly posted Quinn's address, some nudes, and other personal information. Some hackers sent Quinn death and rape threats that were so detailed she left her house and reported to local Police. A male reporter who was at the center of a lot of the mess maintained his job. Seems odd to me.
Either way, Gamergate extended past Zoe Quinn and onto other women in the business of gaming so much so that a few women stepped down from their positions amidst the harassment Gamergate became harassment toward women, essentially.
Anna Kipnis, an AI and game-play programmer at Double Fine Productions in San Francisco thought all those young women that we've been trying to encourage to join us are going to see this, and they'll be like, "Oh, God. What am I signing up for? It turns out, this huge public harassment didn't just cause women to quit their positions in the gaming field, it also inspired a lot more to grasp the determination to be successful or to join the gaming sphere, whether in the business and creative sector, or in the actual gaming. Naomi Clark, a game designer at professor at New Yor University's Game Center says that "Today, about half of applications are from women, in both our master's and undergraduate programs."
There is legitimate growth in the amount of women getting into the business of gaming. Ortiz says that "Today's games feature more female protagonists, diverse characters, and narrative-driven action than ever before." There have been serious steps toward improvement. In her article, she highlights six famous games since 1986 that show this improvement.
A great example is the Tomb Raider's series. The games are essentially the movies that most people have seen come to life, with the gamer playing as Lara Croft, a cliff-jumping, bad-guy-kicking adventurer. In the early games, with the first coming out in 1996, had, as Ortiz puts it, "Barbie-esque proportions" And she isn't wrong. The image shows the transformation from 1996-2017, with the earliest version being on the right. Not only is the most recent Lara Croft more normally proportioned, but she is also wearing and wielding more action-appropriate clothing and gear. This woman jumps between cliffs and explores tombs. It doesn't sound like something you would want to do with a loose ponytail, with hair down, or in short-shorts. The game has become less about being sexy while kicking butt, and more about how impressive Lara and her physical prowess is; Lara is finally more identifiable as strong rather than as an object.The entire gaming community is finally creating more games like this. For so long women in games were either non-existent, or clad in unreasonably sexy clothing. Gaming is finally evolving into something greater.
Image credit: https://www.google.com/search?q=1996+tomb+raider&safe=active&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiQwdzlrf3gAhWUvJ4KHZ4kBPIQ_AUIDygC&biw=1440&bih=713#imgrc=-1tB45eCrIqAsM:
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