In this guest blog post, Sugar Gamers coordinating producer and editor Rebecca “Bonks” Rothschild shares her perspective on the game industry’s relationship with women.

Sugar Gamers was founded in Chicago based on our founder’s desire to meet more women who enjoyed video games. I joined the company in its early stages as a coordinating producer and editor and watched our female following grow. The first thing I noticed was the incredible diversity. All sizes, races and walks of life are represented in these women. Even better, these women LOVE to game, and their gaming palate is as diverse as they are. This is clear evidence that the videogame industry has the potential to bring in a much larger female audience. 

The truth is the industry has been male-dominated for a long time, and not really on purpose. Male gaming enthusiasts don’t always have the easiest time meeting women and I feel that like them, the industry just needs to work on its approach. Nowadays little hints of estrogen have been popping everywhere from developers to pro gamers. Not to mention female characters have taken on more interesting and empowering roles. And while this is all fantastic, I feel that the industry’s marketing has a little catching up to do. I have been aching to run into more ladies on my favorite shooters. Cute and cuddly is fine, but give us ladies some options. Some of us love shooting up evil aliens as much as the next gamer.    

Women are multifaceted, as their gaming tastes will reflect. Don’t put us in one genre. Three games our female members constantly gush about are Gears of War, Soul Calibur and Final Fantasy. Three different genres with similarities that have incredible appeal to women, and all three are pretty light on the cute and cuddly.

Male or female, anyone can appreciate a beautifully crafted game of any kind. Lucky for the industry, women have flocked to gaming without much attention from marketers. The industry may want to consider a little conversation with its female fans. Every woman loves good conversation, and we’re notoriously loyal to good listeners.          

About Rebecca Rothschild: A sci-fi and gaming junkie who was working in corporate America as an IT and not feeling fulfilled, Rotschild is currently the coordinating producer and editor for Sugar Gamers in Chicago, a local female-oriented gaming community. Her biggest project on the side is her graphic novel still in the works. She loves comic books, anime and, of course, video games, first-person shooters being her specialty.