Leading ladies: Amazing indie games made by women
If you want to find the most cutting-edge, artistic and conceptually interesting games, indie is where it's at -- and it has a growing pool of talented women.
When it comes to making games, the industry is still overwhelmingly dominated by men. According to the most recent survey by the IDGA, women only account for 22 percent of the game industry workforce -- a figure that is depressingly low (although it's worth noting that a decade ago it was only 11.5 per cent, which marks progress, even if it's slow).
Alas, jobs at the big studios aren't growing on trees, but the indie community provides an environment where anyone can have a go -- and there are some fabulously talented women starting to emerge. Whether they're working solo or as part of a team, they're making games that are beautiful, arty, hilarious and thought provoking.
We've compiled a list of games made by women (sometimes together with men) who are worth watching, but it's by no means exhaustive; if we've missed one of your favourites, please feel free to tell us in the comments below.
We'd also like to take this opportunity to give a shout out to Pixelles, a Montreal-based mentoring program for women who want to get into gaming development. Earlier this year, it released its second showcase -- 12 titles by women who, through the program, became first-time game makers. Pop by and check them out.
For the record, many amazing and talented men also worked on some of these games. The purpose of this collection is to draw attention to the talented women making a positive impact by making games.
