The women of Cambridge are “destroying” stereotypes in video game development

When Stephanie Dunk-Chappell started teaching teenagers how to make video games, she often asked herself, “Are you in the right space?” The now 26-year-old says it motivated her to keep going, “if only out of spite.” She is one of three lecturers at a Cambridge sixth form college who say gender stereotypes in the gaming industry are coming to an end.

Gamers will tell you the image of a male, nerdy gamer who has died in recent years and has no chance of resurfacing (gaming-speak means “to die and come back to life”).

However, there is still a significant gender gap in the industry when it comes to the people working there.

Stephanie Dunk-Chappell, Laurie O’Mahony and Charlotte Render are among those trying to change that and inspire the next generation.

Decades ago, women in video games had very exaggerated numbers – Lara Croft from Tomb Raider is an often cited example.

But the three lecturers at Cambridge Regional College say modern characters, such as Ellie from The Last of Usare more realistic, and this has led to women becoming more interested in games.

Women now make up almost half of all gamerssaid NewZoo, a market research group that focuses on the industry.

Pop star Raye has been chosen as the new face of Nintendo after the company discovered that more women were playing its games than ever before.

The latest edition in the The Grand Theft Auto (GTA) series will have a female protagonist And Women are now included in “Ultimate Team Mode” in EA FC – the game formerly known as Fifa.

Nevertheless, the trade body UKIE, which represents the British gambling industry, has found that of the 26,600 people currently working in the field67% are men, 30% are women and 3% identify as non-binary.

As a teenager, Stephanie spent all her time playing games and watching videos about the industry online.

Now she gets paid to talk about games every day.

She says: “The stereotype of a programmer is a man, but we are trying to destroy that.”

“I think it’s really important for students to see us as women in games and teach them something and say, ‘Oh, wait. I can do that too.’”

Stephanie says they still get the odd student with a certain outdated mindset, but then they realize the “very broad skillset” of their lecturers.

But she’s seen these settings her entire gaming life.

“It motivated me more than anything to do things out of spite,” she says.

“They don’t think I can do it, but I can do it and I will do it.”

Three of the four lecturers who teach game development at Cambridge College are women – and this representation has a knock-on effect.

Charlotte, 31, says it has led to more female and trans students enrolling and pursuing careers in the industry.

“Open days are where potential students come in and if they see a teacher they are more likely to do it [learn about the course] and feel a little more relaxed.

She specializes in teaching sound for gaming and esports.

She smiles as she points out that one in 10 students taking the college’s esports course is female.

I’m told that this may not seem like much, but it is far more than it used to be.

When Laurie, 32, was a teenager, women playing video games were not widely accepted.

It was this circumstance that motivated her to teach game development.

“I encourage my students to think about things like accessibility and making sure their design is as inclusive as possible,” she says.

“I hope that these things then carry over into their future roles – I always try to look out for people who can’t access things as easily as they previously could.”

Speaking about her start seven years ago, she admits: “It was a bit daunting being the only lecturer.”

But she thanks the supportive team around her for helping her find her path.

Now Your students develop games for the Nintendo SwitchMicrosoft Xbox and Sony Playstation.

For her, seeing more women in her classes is a really positive thing.

“You know, I’m not afraid to get into technology industries like gaming, programming or computer science, and I hope that these numbers continue to increase over time.

“In the past, women didn’t have that much influence. That’s what it felt like.”

“But that scope is starting to change.”