Female video game designers speak out about sexism and misogyny at work

Women over 18 now represent more gamers than boys under 18 years of age. But in the futuristic game design business, talented women find themselves confronting attitudes from the past. Today, our project By Design, looks at an industry, many say is still steeped in sexism.

Video games are often thought to be the exclusive domain of the adolescent male but statistics show adult female gamers now outnumber teenage boys. And in total, nearly half of all gamers are women. Yet behind the scenes, only about 1 in 10 video game designers is a woman.

As part of our series, By Design, we look into that world... as women game designers increasingly speak out about the misogyny and online torment they face.

Brenda Bailey Gershkovitch managed a video game production office with 45 employees, all of whom were men. She went on to co-found, Silicon Sisters, an all female company that produces games for women and girls.

Jace Proctor is the project manager at Humble Bundle, a digital gaming retailer.

Kate Edwards is the executive director of the International Game Developers Association, an indication that the video game industry may be undergoing a transformation.

In response to the #1reasonswhy there are so few women in the video game industry, another hashtag emerged to say all the positive reasons to be a woman in the industry. #1reasontobe.

Have thoughts you want to add to our discussion on the video game industry? We want to hear from you.

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This segment was produced by The Current's Leif Zapf-Gijle.