The Growing Presence of Women in Gaming

It’s international women’s day, which means that today of all days, we’re all for female empowerment. Around the world, industries are embracing sisterly achievements and at Venatus, it’s got us thinking about the growing influence of women in gaming.

The gaming landscape and the perception of women within the industry has had a dramatic shift in recent years.

As the number of female game developers and professional eSports athletes increase, it could suggest that women are breaking down historically common gaming misconceptions.

However, it is believed that women are still struggling to increase equality within core gaming as only 30% of core gamers are women according to Newzoo.

Astonishingly, that same report discovered 9% of core female gamers typically watch eSports for more than 15 hours per week, versus just 6% of men.

Perhaps surprisingly, as eSports itself evolves, so does the demographic of its players and in particular, the growing engagement from the female gaming audience.

With over half of the game titles shown at the E3 conference in 2017 allowing players to choose their characters with an array of multi-gender options, it’s clear gender-specific characters are on the decline and the representation of gender equality in gaming is evolving.

Whilst it is still expected to be a somewhat challenging period ahead for women in gaming, the ongoing developments are not expected to subside anytime soon.

In recent times, grassroots European tournament Skylla, opened up a series of tournaments that invite pro-female teams to compete alongside their male counterparts. On reflection, it is clear that women are beginning to be viewed as a significant demographic in gaming.

At Venatus, we are proud supporters of Diversi, who aim to encourage equality and diversity in gaming culture. We continue to support the development of equal opportunities in the entertainment market and hope to encourage the ongoing female movement in gaming.