Is the Game Industry a Bad Place to Work

It appears to be vogue now to renounce the game industry as an evil empire.  A recent article posted at http://tinyurl.com/l5gcxo4 claims that "poor work conditions and sexism give games industry a bad rap".

It is true that the reports of sexism and bad working conditions give the industry a bad rap.  Note that I am agreeing the reports lead to the bad rap, not that I agree with the reports.

For example, the article cited that only 22% respondents identified themselves as women.  This is exactly in line with other national statistics.  For example, a quick Internet search revealed that about 20% of computer science degrees were earned by women in 2012 (http://tinyurl.com/kcxp2g7),. I realize that computer science is only one discipline used in the game industry.  My point is that if the national average of one of the key skills is at 20% while the game industry is at 22%, then we are not exceptional at all!

Now let's talk about sexism in games.  This is the part where I will really get in trouble.  It always bothers me that people bemoan the blatant use of exaggerated female sexuality in games, but no one ever mentions the same (and probably more pervasive) portrayal of women in almost every other visual media including art, opera, movies, and advertising to name a few.  So why single out the game industry?

In fact, I'll go so far as to say that the game industry actually has a split personality on this issue.  I constantly read articles about how the game industry needs to "mature" and "grow up".  Doesn't maturity imply that we can create game content that is mature? That we can use sexuality (or even over-use it, as is the case in most media) as both content and a means of promotion?

Last year there was a huge uproar because the IGDA had exotic dancers at one of their parties (and exotic does not equal nude).  The whole argument sounded very adolescent.  It occurs to me that adults were attending that party, which also included an abundant amount of alcohol, and adults should be able t handle adult oriented entertainment. Adults can also leave if they choose to. Maybe they should have had male exotic dancers as well! 

I don't see a problem with an adult industry using the same adult-oriented types of entertainment that you would expect to see at other similar types of events. Do you imagine that parties in other types of media (let's say in the movie or music industry) wouldn't use similar entertainment?  Part of growing up is being able to handle grown-up modes.  And by the way, I have never seen a single article that argues against the abundant use of alcohol at such parties.

Now, I admit:  I am not a woman.  If there are women who feel victimized by the game industry's portrayal of women, then I only hope that those same people also refrain from attending movies and concerts for the same reason.  And I certainly don't condone any kind of sexual discrimination or abuse under any circumstances. .

Let's finally talk about working conditions.  I agree that companies take advantage of their employees.  It was not uncommon for me to work 15 hour days 7 days a week at the studios where I was employed.  However, now that I am running my own studio, I am still working the same crazy hours.  The difference is that is my own choice. Apparently, 40% of my colleagues feel the same way and stay in the industry because they are willing to put in the hours.

Again, I don't think it is okay for studios to take advantage of their employees.  At least the studios that do it right offer other incentives and perks (flex time, holiday time off, end-of-year bonuses) to try to compensate...something you rarely see in other industries. 

The game industry is not exceptional in any of these areas.  I worked in corporate America long before I entered the game industry, and there were the same issues: fewer women, sexism, workers being taken advantage of (and without any perks). 

I agree that we should work toward being an industry that treats all people in an equitable manner.  We should encourage diversity in all ways.  However, it bothers me if including any particular group means we have to begin censoring our content or our celebrations.

Man...am I in trouble now for putting this into writing!