July 4th, 2008 by Daniel Duncan

Women…can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em, amirite? Something about that entire sentence structure seems awkwardly wrong. Anyhoo… An issue that many find with the games industry today is the lack of women working on our favorite titles. Sure, there’s Assassin’s Creed producer, Jade Raymond, but how many other women can you name or familiarize yourself with that has played a significant role in game’s development? I’m sure there are plenty of women in the industry who have aided in bringing video games to life, but they’re usually annulled from earning attention. It’s always Hideo Kojima, Shigeru Miyamoto, Gregg Mayles and other big-time, men players in the industry that you continue to hear about. Will this ever change? It’s difficult to say, but things are certainly being done…

The Women in Games Conference is an annual convention with a primary focus on encouraging women to join the industry and discontinue their alleged thoughts of the business being more adapted ‘for men’. Choice topics of discussion will be women’s roles in the industry and what games they enjoy playing. The event this year will be co-organized by Rare senior software engineer–whose recent work includes programming on Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise–Nicola Bholareo. She won’t be alone either as two animators from Rare will be joining her: Carla Prada and Elissa Miller…both women and both responsible for the animations in Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts and who agree that the industry is foreseen as a ‘man’s job’.

How does the rest of Rare respond to that assumption? The majority of the staff agreed "that there is no one specific type of game that appeals to men rather than women. A truly great game, they believe, appeals to all ages and both sexes." Sounds like Viva, doesn’t it?

The conference will be held at Warwick Castle in England on September 10th through the 12th. If you’d like to learn more, visit the official ‘Women in Games’ website. On CCTV.com, you can also read a brief article on the event and view a short video.

Thanks to Rare Community Manager, George Kelion, for the heads up!