Image by Memin Sito from Pixabay
Online gaming was once perceived as the exclusive domain of young male individuals. This perception remains deeply ingrained in the public consciousness, even if it’s not supported by the facts any longer. Women are becoming better represented in all types of online games, and that’s not limited to the younger generations, either. The process of balancing the gender picture of online gaming is well-underway and while the industry is still not quite egalitarian there is significant progress being made to allow women to have their rightful place.
Of course, the situation is not black and white and definitely not the same all around the globe. A more nuanced look is needed to understand where we stand today in terms of gender equality on online gaming platforms.
The Big Picture – Global Statistics
Global population of gamers is huge. In 2023, there were an estimated 1.1 billion online gamers in the world, creating eye-watering US$ 26 billion in revenues per year. Around 80% of those players are older than 18, with the age group between 18 and 34 contributing 38% to the total. In terms of gender, approximately 53-55% of all players are male. That shows how far we’ve traveled – as recently as 2010, full 60% of gamers worldwide were boys and men.
However, women who play video games might not necessarily see themselves as gamers. One US study found that out of 48% of women who play, only 6% described themselves as gamers. Similar trend is apparent around the world, with women less likely to be involved in the gaming culture beyond occasionally logging in to play. Many women are uncomfortable with the cultural stereotype of ‘gamer girl’ and inherently sexist connotation behind it, which explains the discrepancy between participation and self-identification.
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Regional Developments in Major Markets
Asia is by far the biggest gaming market, almost doubling the second-place Europe in terms of total number of players. Not surprisingly, some of the largest national markets are located there, with Japan and South Korea joining the United Kingdom, Sweden, and France in top 5 countries in terms of percentage of users that actively plays. Most of these nations have fairly balanced gamer populations – for example, in the UK, 53% of men play regularly compared to 51% of women.
North America may be a lagging slightly behind the leaders, but is catching up lately. There are several reasons for this trend of increased popularity of online gaming. In the case of Canada slot casino online games have been recently legalized in some provinces, which is driving up participation. The United States is another major market where approximately half of all players are female, and many of them play on a daily level. South America and Africa are not regarded as developed gaming markets, and statistics about male-to-female ratio in these locations are scarce.
Game Genres and Genders
As you might expect, men and women have different preferences for the types of games they enjoy. Some genres really fit into the ‘male domain’ cliché, as more than 95% of players in sports simulations and tactical shooters are guys. Action adventure RPGs and city building games also fall flat with female audiences as they typically have 75-85% male player bases. Even open-world games struggle to appeal to women, with the popular Assassin’s Creed Syndicate game having only 27% of female players.
Things are more balanced in genres like high-fantasy MMO, puzzle-solving, and interactive drama, where women account for approximately 35-40% of all players. Obviously, women have a different motivation to play, preferring more complex interactions to simply trying to beat the opponent to a pulp. The categories where women make up the majority of players are notably non-violent, as farm simulations and match-3 games top the list with close to 70% of female players. Candy Crash Saga is a great example – 83% of people who play this online game are women.
Why Are There So Few Games Targeting Female Players?
This brings us to the burning question – why is game design still so much in the service of male players? Despite the incredible growth of numbers of female players, game studios are persistently treating them as an afterthought. Game genres popular among male gamers still get priority treatment and account for the lion’s share of most publishers’ portfolios. Likewise, the domain of eSports largely remains just as male-dominated as it was a decade ago, and focused on games popular with men.
One of the reasons for the chronic shortage of women-oriented games could be the reluctance of female gamers to be loud and demand their fair shake. Many of them prefer to play on the internet anonymously, avoiding to draw too much attention to their gender to avoid harassment. It is also very emblematic that very few women are in decision-making positions at large gaming companies, making it harder for the female side of the story to be heard where it really matters. In other words, there is much work to be done before women around the world can get enough of the games they need and deserve.
Image by Juraj Varga from Pixabay
