VIdeo game design girls

Males dominate 80% of the video game design industry. Although more and more girls play and enjoy video games a myth persists that girls are not a market for the industry. This myth is perpetuated by the near absence of females in the design industry. Susannah Skerl (above), a producer at Hothead Games, says, "I'm still meeting with media people who say, Really? Do girls play games? And I think, This is such old data."

Vancouver Courier
Lisa Smedman

With the announcement of a $30,000 scholarship from Vancouver Film School, it is hoped that women in Canada will increasingly consider a career in game design. The scholarship is open to women aged 19 and up and will cover the full cost of the one-year VFS Game Design program. Deadline for applications is March 31.

The vast majority of VFS Game Design students are male, said Dave Warfield, who heads the program. Out of the 70 students currently enrolled, just one is female. "I think there's a little bit of a fear [that] game development is for guys," said Warfield. "That's why I think it's important for girls to realize that, hey, this is an actual opportunity for us."

Tara Mustapha, a game designer with Electronic Arts, was in the first grad class turned out by the VFS Game Design program. She recalled the thrill of seeing a customer in EB Games purchase a video game she'd helped design. "That's a rush," she said. "I would really love to encourage more young girls to not be afraid of playing video games, not be afraid of technology. There's nothing wrong if you want to pick up a [video game] controller [instead of] a Barbie."

Game design, Mustapha added, "can be ridiculously hard, but ridiculously rewarding. But what it comes down to is I'm a game designer. I can design just as good as any man, if not better."

Brenda Bailey, chief operating officer of Deep Fried Entertainment, said it used to be accepted wisdom in the video game industry that girls didn't like games that were "too fast" or "too difficult." Or that they didn't like games, period. Designers turned out video games about Barbie going to the mall and throwing slow-moving marshmallows at things. When these games didn't sell, it became a self-fulfilling prophecy that girls didn't like games.

Girls and women are a diverse demographic, added Skerl. They tend to play the games their friends enjoy, regardless of gender. "Every time somebody asks me, What do girls play? I can't answer that, because it depends on the girl," said Skerl.