What have women done to video games? What a shocking question. Women have… made them amazing. Centipede- an arcade and condole classic hit that was one of the go to titles for gamers in the earliest days of the hobby (and for those old enough the original cell phone game…) was co created by a woman, without which the history of gaming would likely be very different. Console defining and era defining classics like Legacy of Kain owe their existence in no small part to women. The smash hit and breath of fresh air “Portal” exists thanks to a woman. Major franchises like the Uncharted franchise and the modern and acclaimed Tomb Raider games are thanks to women. Ada Lovelace is known as the first programmer- through the 1840’s she wrote a series of pieces on logical engines, including the first published notes defining a stepwise sequence of operations for mathematical problems. Sort of an important step towards… making a computer. She also theorized about computers being used outside…
.. of basic mathematic applications. Actress and innovator Hedy Lemarr came up with a method for wireless communications that became the backbone for modern wireless technology from phones to Wi-Fi- it’s hard to imagine modern gaming without wireless connectivity. Jean Bartik worked on analog computers and was among a group including 5 other women who worked on ENIAC- a MAJOR milestone machine in computing. ENIAC like most early digital computers used wires jumped across ports to control operations. Asking a question or running a program required moving lots of wires around. Bartik was part of the team that converted ENIAC to a stored program computer- one which could house programs in memory. Grace Hopper, who served in WW2 and went to Harvard, worked on another milestone machine- UNIVAC, and is credited with creating the first compiler. To avoid technical stuff for those who don’t recognize the term- modern games wouldn't exist without compilers.
Jumping ahead- Elizabeth Feinler
Was a major player on ARPNET- the US government project that became… the freaking internet. So that’s pretty important to gaming I think… the freaking internet is important in gaming history I would say. James’s Swanson co created the “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?” Games which spawned a franchise and for an entire generation who are maybe in their 30’s to 40’s now may have been the first exposure to games for those without consoles or gamer friendly environments at home. It also helped define and cement a genre of games in mainstream consciousness. I’ve left many out, and the list goes on with countless major milestones and contributions and games or Indy titles or iconic art and design etc. in gaming being in whole or part to the credit of a woman. While often under represented in the “culture,” women have also had huge impacts due to their playing games as well. So I guess this guy didn’t get the memo, but to the question of what women did to games-
Women helped make a world where games were even possible a reality. Women helped make the basic tools and processes and infrastructure that much of which is still used in games or more important than ever. Women created or were instrumental in the creation of some of the lost universally loved titles of all of gaming history to the earliest days of home consoles and digital arcade machines even. Women created many of the story’s or ideas which were adapted or incorporated into games made by others. This is a fact I think most people overlook because historically sexism in society has diminished what women were “allowed” to contribute or get credit for, or gaming and computing have been seen as a “boys club” so people assume that before the last decade or so of the 20th century or the 2000’s that women didn’t do much because they couldn’t. Not true. Despite all the barriers, women have contributed throughout history to technology- or in this case- gaming.
What an ignorant person.
“Because women are involved in games… men should….” What? Make movies? Most movies are and have been made by men you dingus. The reason that “Lifetime” even exists is because there were few if any programs that were being made with women considered as a demographic. The classic “key” demographic was considered to be males in prime income age, so things like programming etc. were generally primarily geared to their tastes. Programming looking for wider appeal or “family” appeal generally added concessions as an after thought to appease the “other” viewers in the home like “wives and children.” The fact that you until the late 20th century the man was often the primary or only source of income for a home was a major factor there. So when people say things like “how would <THEY> like it if <WE> started getting involved in <THEIR THING>?” Miss the whole point.
The reason so many groups need “their thing” is because they are excluded from the mainstream. Because people like this guy take it by default that they and their group “own” the mainstream or some aspect.
When you compare women in gaming to men making male centric content on a woman’s network- you’re saying that you believe that gaming is something owned by men or for men specifically. That very fact points out WHY things like Lifetime exist- because in the minds of people like this, women and content that is by women or speaks to women doesn’t “belong” in these spaces. If you want to create a gaming studio that makes games to appeal to an audience that wants classic objectification etc- give that a go. The public will decide if they want to be your customer or not.
Jumping ahead- Elizabeth Feinler
“Because women are involved in games… men should….” What? Make movies? Most movies are and have been made by men you dingus. The reason that “Lifetime” even exists is because there were few if any programs that were being made with women considered as a demographic. The classic “key” demographic was considered to be males in prime income age, so things like programming etc. were generally primarily geared to their tastes. Programming looking for wider appeal or “family” appeal generally added concessions as an after thought to appease the “other” viewers in the home like “wives and children.” The fact that you until the late 20th century the man was often the primary or only source of income for a home was a major factor there. So when people say things like “how would <THEY> like it if <WE> started getting involved in <THEIR THING>?” Miss the whole point.
When you compare women in gaming to men making male centric content on a woman’s network- you’re saying that you believe that gaming is something owned by men or for men specifically. That very fact points out WHY things like Lifetime exist- because in the minds of people like this, women and content that is by women or speaks to women doesn’t “belong” in these spaces. If you want to create a gaming studio that makes games to appeal to an audience that wants classic objectification etc- give that a go. The public will decide if they want to be your customer or not.