We can all say we want gender equality in video games, but that doesn't mean anything until someone does something about it.
Now, however, the country of Sweden is speaking up and trying to take steps to promote gender equality in the video game industry.
The Swedish government recently awarded 272,000 kronor (around $36,672) to a video gaming trade body called Dataspelsbranschen. The company will explore how Sweden can support games that offer diverse gender choices, as well as label those games as such. Not only that, but Dataspelsbranschen can give companies certification for marketing the games to the public and make efforts to put videos games that promote gender equality in prominent positions in retail stores.
"Of course games can be about fantasy but they can be so much more than this," says Anton Albiin, Dataspelsbranschen manager. "Games can help us to create more diverse workplaces and can even change the way we think about things."
Although the group hasn't directly mentioned the GamerGate controversy, this seems as if it is a response to that particular movement.
Many GamerGate supporters are using the Twitter hashtag as a plea for ethics in video game journalism, although the movement is hard to define as there is no clear leader or mission statement behind it. However, most associate the movement with harassment against women in the gaming industry, as that's what it's become known for, including rape and death threats against high-profile media critics and game developers.
Most recently, feminist and video game critic Anita Sarkeesian received a mass shooting threat for speaking at a university. Sarkeesian eventually canceled that event. Before that, Sarkeesian received a death threat that temporarily forced her out of her home.
Some might argue that part of the problem is that threats on the Internet are rarely taken seriously. Although making a death threat is a federal offense, there have been no arrests against those making them through GamerGate.
The Swedish video gaming industry has been vocal about its no-tolerance policy for such harassment. Gaming industry academics and developers recently created a joint statement against this harassment, specifically that against women.
"We declare our support to the women affected," the statement says. "We want to defend everyone's right to be and act in the game [industry] without being treated worse because of background, affiliation or gender. Threats should always be taken very seriously."
If Sweden follows through on this initiative, it will be the first country tackling the issue of gender equality so head on. Perhaps other countries, as well as others within the video gaming industry, will follow suit.
[Photo Credit: EA Games]
