From in-game characters to developers and marketing, the gaming industry is inherently biased; Deputy Editor Ilaria Riccio provides an overview of the issue.
The gaming industry, like many sectors of modern pop culture, lacks diversity. Sexism and gender disparity have notoriously cast a dark shadow on the industry, culminating in the 2014-15 harassment campaign called “Gamergate” which targeted female gamers. Another major social justice issue tainting the industry is racism. Indeed, a 2020 report on harassment in online games found that “53 percent of online multiplayer gamers who experienced harassment reported that they were targeted because of their race/ethnicity [...] Roughly a third of Black (31%) and Hispanic/Latinx (30%) online multiplayer gamers experienced in-game harassment based on their race or ethnicity.” These figures create an alarming picture that extends beyond the in-game experience, as other sectors of the gaming industry also lack diversity – notably, White game developers outnumber those of colour, and in 2016 Black developers made up only 3% of the total number of people working in the sector.
White game developers outnumber those of colour, and in 2016 Black developers made up only 3% of the total number of people working in the sector.
However, people of colour were once the heart of the gaming world. Notably, the so-called “fighting-game community” (FGC) was inaugurated in 1996 by gamers from varied ethnic backgrounds who participated in the “Battle of the Bay”. The event was organised as the reputation of Californian gamer Jason Cole extended beyond his native San Jose, arriving all the way to Los Angeles. Back in the 1990s, the designated stage for gaming competitions were arcades, which explains why the participants of the Battle of the Bay were of varied ethnicities: playing arcade games was more accessible than owning a computer. Cole himself did not own a computer, further increasing his legend status as he built his reputation thanks to his arcade masterclasses.
However, people of colour were once the heart of the gaming world. Notably, the so-called “fighting-game community” (FGC) was inaugurated in 1996 by gamers from varied ethnic backgrounds who participated in the “Battle of the Bay”.
This story signals how, over time, the gaming industry has been segregated across racial lines. Indeed, the FGC is still mostly made up of gamers of colour, yet it does not generate the same revenue as the games that are currently dominating the industry. For instance, the 2021 League of Legends tournament saw the participation of only one Black gamer, compared to the conspicuous presence of Black gamers at the 2019 EVO tournament - a direct descendent of the games that inaugurated the FGC.
The 2021 League of Legends tournament saw the participation of only one Black gamer, compared to the conspicuous presence of Black gamers at the 2019 EVO tournament – a direct descendent of the games that inaugurated the FGC.
Socio-economic barriers represent only one side of the story of the segregation of the gaming industry, with racist stereotypes – both in-game and beyond – adding fuel to the fire. For instance, the proliferation of streaming platforms for online gaming offered gamers a fertile ground for sending racial abuse to fellow gamers of colour via live chat functions. Even more disturbingly, the aforementioned 2020 ADL report revealed that streaming platforms often see gamers spread far-right ideology, especially white supremacy. This finding perhaps explains why gamers of colour reported high levels of harassment in online gaming environments.
Games themselves, too, often contribute to the overall racism of the broader industry. Specifically, Black characters are often stereotyped in mainstream games, with their representation restricted to sport games or as violent typecasts. These two examples inevitably affect the perception of people of colour beyond the gaming industry; for instance, violent Black characters fuel the perception that Black people are violent. As for sports games, David J Leonard writes in Intelligent Agent that they result in “the glorification of de-industrialized spaces of poverty contribute to common sense ideas of inner city communities and the constancy of play with the Black community [...] leave[ing] the impression that rather than working, rectifying social problems and improving the community's infrastructure, Black males are too busy playing.” The perpetuation of racist stereotypes in games is strictly related to the lack of diversity within the industry; writing for Polygon, Philip Kollar argues that “developers who aren't Black don't even realise when they're drawing on stereotypes because they don't have any Black coworkers to call it out.” This situation ties in another point raised by Leonard, specifically that “[T]he ideas of blackness introduced through video games reflect dominant ideologies, thereby providing sanction for the status quo, legitimacy for white supremacy and evidence for the common sense ideas of race, gender, sexuality and nation.”
Black characters are often stereotyped in mainstream games, with their representation restricted to sport games or as violent typecasts. These two examples inevitably affect the perception of people of colour beyond the gaming industry.
It could be argued that the inherent racism of the gaming industry is tied to systemic ideas on race; therefore, as long as society remains anchored in white supremacist ideologies, the gaming industry will likely reflect and perpetuate the issue.