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| A '''girl gamer''' is a ] who: | |||
| A '''girl gamer''' is a ] who regularly engages in the practice of playing ] (colloquially referred to as "gaming"). This can be from the most casual interest to the most serious professional gaming. While being female may not seem particularly special to the casual observer, in the field, and indeed ] of gaming, it can mean a world of difference. The gaming world, while diverse, is composed mostly of males aged twelve to twenty-five years. Most video games are concentrated to appeal to that demographic as well, making it even more unlikely for a female to become interested in them. Despite the target audience, however, many females do find gaming to be an enjoyable hobby. | |||
| * Works in the ] industry, or | |||
| Many girl gamers are given special consideration and treatment, not necessarily because they are in any way handicapped or less skilled at video games, but usually because in a male dominated field they are often objectified and even coveted. It is not uncommon at large gaming events to see a large group of males attempting to attend to a girl gamer's need in hopes of winning her favor. Because of the inherent sexual attraction involved (amplified by the males' general societal awkwardness), girl gamers sometimes become small celebrities in their own right, often becoming very popular and even having large groups of fans. ] and Kornelia Tactacs are good illustrations of this point. | |||
| * Regularly engages in the practice of playing ] (colloquially referred to as "gaming"). This can be from the most casual interest to the most serious professional gaming, where female players often draw extra attention due to their rarity. | |||
| The role of women in the games industry -- as professionals and as consumers -- has received extensive academic and business attention because women represent approximately half the population but buy a small share of all video games. Finding the reasons for (and potentially changing) this ] drives most of the research and professional initiatives in this field. | |||
| == References == | |||
| The great majority of the people who work on game development teams are men, particularly in the technical fields such as ]. Various reasons for this have been debated (see external references below), but some companies have made a concerted effort to recruit more women to create more balanced teams. The motivation behind these efforts is sometimes ethical, sometimes culture-based, and sometimes based on the desire to create games that will appeal more broadly to both men and women. | |||
| As noted above, far more boys and men play games than girls and women, and females are viewed as a major untapped market. The average age of game buyers has moved from the late teens to the late twenties from 1995 to 2005 and household penetration of game systems has grown dramatically. All of these factors have increased the financial stakes in video game sales, and focused even more attention on the remaining untapped female gaming market. | |||
| In recognition of the importance of this issue, the ] (an association of companies and individuals in the games industry) has formed a ] on Women in Game Development (link below). | |||
| This is a very active field of discussion and the topic of dedicated conferences. A browser search on the words ''women games conference'' will produce a list of recent and upcoming events. | |||
| == External references == | |||
| * Bryce, J. and J. Ruttner, "''The Gendering of Computer Gaming: Experience and Space''", in S. Fleming & I. Jones, Leisure Cultures: Investigations in Sport, Media and Technology, Leisure Studies Association, 2003, pp. 3-22. | * Bryce, J. and J. Ruttner, "''The Gendering of Computer Gaming: Experience and Space''", in S. Fleming & I. Jones, Leisure Cultures: Investigations in Sport, Media and Technology, Leisure Studies Association, 2003, pp. 3-22. | ||
| * Bryce, J. and J. Rutter, ''‘Killing Like a Girl: Gendered Gaming and Girl Gamers’Visibility’'', in F. Mayra (ed.) Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference Proceedings, pp. 243–55. Tampere: Tampere University Press, 2002. | * Bryce, J. and J. Rutter, ''‘Killing Like a Girl: Gendered Gaming and Girl Gamers’Visibility’'', in F. Mayra (ed.) Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference Proceedings, pp. 243–55. Tampere: Tampere University Press, 2002. | ||
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| == External links == | == External links == | ||
| * | * | ||
| * | |||
| *] 2005 panel on Women in Games] | |||
| {{culture-stub}} | {{culture-stub}} | ||
Revision as of 18:50, 11 January 2006
A girl gamer is a female who:
- Works in the game development industry, or
- Regularly engages in the practice of playing video games (colloquially referred to as "gaming"). This can be from the most casual interest to the most serious professional gaming, where female players often draw extra attention due to their rarity.
The role of women in the games industry -- as professionals and as consumers -- has received extensive academic and business attention because women represent approximately half the population but buy a small share of all video games. Finding the reasons for (and potentially changing) this demographic drives most of the research and professional initiatives in this field.
The great majority of the people who work on game development teams are men, particularly in the technical fields such as programming. Various reasons for this have been debated (see external references below), but some companies have made a concerted effort to recruit more women to create more balanced teams. The motivation behind these efforts is sometimes ethical, sometimes culture-based, and sometimes based on the desire to create games that will appeal more broadly to both men and women.
As noted above, far more boys and men play games than girls and women, and females are viewed as a major untapped market. The average age of game buyers has moved from the late teens to the late twenties from 1995 to 2005 and household penetration of game systems has grown dramatically. All of these factors have increased the financial stakes in video game sales, and focused even more attention on the remaining untapped female gaming market.
In recognition of the importance of this issue, the IGDA (an association of companies and individuals in the games industry) has formed a SIG on Women in Game Development (link below).
This is a very active field of discussion and the topic of dedicated conferences. A browser search on the words women games conference will produce a list of recent and upcoming events.
External references
- Bryce, J. and J. Ruttner, "The Gendering of Computer Gaming: Experience and Space", in S. Fleming & I. Jones, Leisure Cultures: Investigations in Sport, Media and Technology, Leisure Studies Association, 2003, pp. 3-22.
- Bryce, J. and J. Rutter, ‘Killing Like a Girl: Gendered Gaming and Girl Gamers’Visibility’, in F. Mayra (ed.) Computer Games and Digital Cultures Conference Proceedings, pp. 243–55. Tampere: Tampere University Press, 2002.
External links
- BBC News Girl gamers strike at the boys
- IGDA SIG on women in game development
- Article on Game Developers Conference 2005 panel on Women in Games
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