What about Lara Crigger (currently with Escapist Magazine online) she did that nice article you guys linked to about Gunpei Yokoi recently and looking over her other work is a damn fine writer to boot! (not actually boot)

Well, many "gamer chicks" have this you must treat me better because I am a girl gamer attitude. So that makes its hard to take them seriously or even care for that matter.

Hear, hear! If I was more of a gamer (and less of an already-employed blogger), I'd be all over it.

Thanks for the encouragement, Brian :)

I used to try and do some stuff for womangamer.com now and then, but I figured that maybe I was better at making snarky comments to other people's articles instead.

Anyways, thanks again for supportin' us gals.

@DigitalHero:

I think you may be confusing it with a 'treat me the same because I am a friggin person.'

I do sometimes get a sense of defensive attitude but I can certainly understand that frame of mind. I'm sure most of us can relate a story or two of when a girl was browbeat/hit on/etc just for having the audacity to speak and concurrently announce their gender.

Affirmitive Action is wrong. It takes opportunities away from the people that have devoted their lives to something.

Eliza is pretty damn great. The problem with most female gamer writers is they are always hung up on the fact that they are a female and writing about games. ITS AMAZING. I HAVE BOOBS AND I LOVE VIDEO GAMES! GIGGLE.

Just be a person. And a good writer.

@DigitalHero: Really? I havn't come across any along those lines. I, for one, hate walking into gaming stores. Due to my lack of a penis, the guys behind the desk tend to assume i'm buying for someone else. When I tell them it's for me, they won't leave me alone, as if i'm some anomaly. A guy walks in, picks up lost planet, and can get in and out in under 5 mins, not me, b/c i'm some freak of nature.

Eh, I would, but I have the attention span of a---I'm bored now >X3

I've been a passionate writer ever since I was young and have been a dedicated gamer for just as long.

I'd personally love to write for a site or a blog or anything and have tried multiple times but everytime I attempt to join a site, something goes wrong. Either the person who was going to start it decides not to or I don't fit the requirements for a writer for that site. I've thought about site before but right now, I just don't have the time.

So I write where I can (normally forums and personal blogs) for now. So don't worry. The interest is there but there maybe girls in the same boat as me; just unable to get a break.

@Magwidgeon
You should become a critic then!!

@xhazeleyes01x
That's because, unfortunately, you are somewhat of an anomaly because woman gamers are still very much in the minority and when they hear you're buying for yourself they then delude themselves into thinking you're single and they've got some kind of chance at getting your number.

Nice to see some woman commenting on here. it's the most i've ever seen.

How about it shouldn't matter the gender? Although don't get me wrong, it does make it easier for people to remember me at GDC (I'm not the blond or the asian. The OTHER one). But I agree that there needs to be a balance from going too crazy with affirmative action crap, but also not dismissing woment just because they're women, you know what I mean?

When I was looking at grad schools in music composition (another field that's a sausage-fest) many of the schools I looked at made at big deal over wanting me because I was a girl. It was actually very annoying, because I wondered if they liked my writing or if they just wanted to see some boobs in class every now and then.

Although since you proposition women to blog, here you go:

http://blogs.ign.com/naia28

Before I blogged there I blogged at Gamespot. Then they annoyed me so I left. Although I'm thinking a one-stop gaming related blog site. Just in case today I registered this place:

http://naiarants.blogspot.com/

Since a lot of designers/ and developers use blogspot to reach out (ie CliffyB) maybe if I can get a gig in the video games industry I can join the ranks... or whatever.

@SuedeGopher:

"I do sometimes get a sense of defensive attitude but I can certainly understand that frame of mind. I'm sure most of us can relate a story or two of when a girl was browbeat/hit on/etc just for having the audacity to speak and concurrently announce their gender."

That is what I'm talking about. Why do you have to announce a gender? It serves nothing more to that you are seeking special attention. Just play games and enjoy yourself. :)

i would LOVE to have girl gamer friends. such a hard thing. and so rare. and the ones that are gamers are usually annoying pc types on those lame ass mmorgs or whatever you call them. blech. usually 400 pounds, ugly dyed red hair, faux something (cuz you know she has no peers of whatever she's trying to "be"). of course i have a harder time finding gamer friends who are gay! im a gay male who likes games. ive come to accept that most women dont like games and most gay guys dont like games. lesbians probably dont either. i'd give my left nut for a wii party full of lesbians!

rob

No thanks Id rather not read another blog about hey Im a woman gamer and listen to me because Im exotic crap. We already know women play games. Stop pushing this 'there are more girls out there...' crap.

Who the hell cares???

I'll bug my sister once she has her internet back.

Then again she would only talk about Dante and TotA lol

Didn't we scare away Eliza?

Heh.

If I wasn't biased or busy I'd be thrilled with the opportunity, but... story of my life. ;)

Yeah! Everyone knows if you have a vagina that your opinion matters more! I could care less really. As long as women exist, I'm happy, meeting women that play games though, makes me happier, for my sake, not the industry's.

If I head into a gaming store to buy a game, I just get in and out under 5 mins. The only exception is when I'm with my hubby. Then we end up spending a ridiculous amount of time in there and half that time I'm trying to drag him out of the store. =P
I guess I could blog about gaming, but I stink at writing and am too poor to buy/rent a lot of games to truly have experiences worthy enough of writing about.

I would blog for Kotaku. Sure beats the hell out of blogging about Japanese music nobody cares about (see link in profile). Actually, I know several females that would jump at the chance to blog professionally, especially about video games. The problem is that they don't have the dedication or time to continue doing it after their first two or three posts. That and some of them just can't, um, write. At all.

And re: the "why do you need a girl gamer" question coming up in these comments. SOMEBODY needs to blog about the girly games nobody else wants to. I don't think the staff is looking for a "look I have boobs and I can use an Xbox controller TEE HEE" attitude, I think they're looking a) for someone who can contribute positively to the website and b) for someone who will cover Hello Kitty Super Fun Partyland Adventure 3. Because, let's face it, I doubt Ashcraft or Crecente really want to cover those titles--but a female would, and may be able to draw in the female readers that this site may currently be lacking.

I would love to be a blogger, but I feel like the game company I work for would probably be unfairly represented (naturally), and I feel there are probably some rules about that... But it's something I've always wanted to do.

I also get extremely annoyed about the vicious cycle with women in gaming. People perpetuating the need to have female gamers only makes male gamers more annoyed and feeling like they don't take female gamers (especially competitive ones) seriously. They in turn only piss off the female gaming contingent by treating them like crap, effectively turning them off to gaming all together. I feel like there must be a happy medium, but until we all get a bit more mature/accepting of female gamers in GENERAL, I don't think it will happen.

I know what DigitalHero is talking about. For every Eliza, who rocks, there's a Faith Naked, who I'd like to tag but flaunts herself as a girl gamer way too much to take seriously.

How can they blog with so much ironing to do?

Seriously though it doesn't matter who blogs (male or female) just that they blog well. I hate seeing anyone from PMS blogging at 1up. 50% of it is the "I'm a girl gamer" crap and the other 50% is bitching about not being taken seriously because they are a girl gamer. Meanwhile their pages are full of cleavage shots.

A few weeks ago I saw a blog on 1up from a woman who wanted everyone to vote for her for Miss Video Games or something like that. I followed the hyper link, not to vote, and about 80% of the contestants' profiles are cheesecake shots. What a joke.

But ladies, blog if you have the urge, just don't resort to that PMS brand of crap, blog like you want to be taken seriously.

We're out there it's just hard sometimes to publicize over the rest of the gaming blogs out there. I, personally, don't have an inherent need in diversity. But, I do think that it can just be a little difficult to break into the video game blogging arena.

I believe myself to be a strong writer, I have a degree in Journalism (with an emphasis in PR, so should be able to promote myself/my podcast) but it's very competitive to be visible. It is a passion of mine, however, and I keep keepin' on because I just like talking about video games.

And I don't think it's necessary to have a female gamer, to review and discuss "girl games". Wow, way to restrict the gender to gender specific games. I'd rather just hear the news from a different perspective. I podcast with two other guys about video games and it interesting just to see the "Console War" or the allure of certain games from different ethnic/gender backgrounds.

@karttikeya

I think it's very good for the industry. In fact it's good for any male dominated industry and sometimes their opinion might matter more, not because they have a vagina, but because they can bring fresh ideas and insights into an industry dominated by males, many of whom aren't pushing their skills because they've got lazy and comfortable in their position and who's main credential is their penis.

What about Chobot?

I've always admired her writing, and the fact she's quite attractive is an added bonus.

(Before people yell out "sexism", I think the same about Crecente...)

Or would there be a conflict of interest there with her working for IGN?

Then again, IGN are News.Corp now. They don't understand the meaning of conflict of interest...

Eliza's posts on Kotaku are certainly something I miss reading.

I suppose the reason there's a lot more male writers on gaming than female ones is down to the stereotypical gaming gender divide once again...

Alice rocks!

oh the prejudice !
i WOULD cover Hello Kitty Super Fun Partyland Adventure 3
although i'm a guy

(nah i'm not even gay)

@KeyonSumner:

Exactly, hearing from different backgrounds can bring some fresh perspective to how we read about the industry. I think it would be a boon on their [video game publications] parts to seek out people with different back grounds (granted they are excellent writers). I'm not particularly for Affirmative Action.

I blog about games on my personal blog, but I don't know if I have "female" views. What ARE female views, anyway? I'm so torn between the male/female gamer thing, as it is. The more we focus on the differences, the more we encourage those differences, thus maintaining that irritating gap between the two. However, it would be wrong to say that men and women have the same views about games (or anything else for that matter). Men and women are different. There's no getting around that. I am certainly not saying that one is better than the other or that one's opinions are "correct." It's a vicious circle.

and i definitely second what Ren said

It's not that we need a "gamer girl" writer, but the perspective of someone who's "a woman and a gamer", as Brian actually wrote.

"gamer girl" is a stereotype, a "woman that play videogames" is, well, a person with a hobby...

Blogging would be awesome! Now, if only I had something interesting to say...

Raising the flag would be a good thing, but my opinions on women in gaming (despite being one) aren't very strong as I find that I find myself agreeing with men a lot more, rather than defending my gender.

In an ideal world, this shouldn't matter, but there is a definite attitude to woman in gaming put out my the men and women with can often strongly oppose each other (even though that could be a sweeping generalisation) and I often finding myself feeling that a lot of women pick out the less important things and targetting them saying it is against us. I also find some women to completely deny that gaming is generally a man's field and isn't focused at women and even games which are ("Nintendo Dogs", "Wii Sports") are rare and often don't last as long or leave a girl wanting to play more.

One thing I have noticed is the generation below us is attracting a lot of girl (I know a niece or two who own PS2s although no-one at my high school in my year plays computer games). Maybe the market will be more open in the future.

Even so, women can be too picky and sensitive on the matter, which usually leads me to get angry. :C Not cool. D:

@jack_straw:

Yeesh, I agree, it's all about the writing though I would say cleavage shots are an added bonus (hey, I'm a hetero dude and I like me the boobs).

I don't think there's anything wrong with a woman speaking as a woman (because, y'know, they are) as it really does bring a different view point. Most of us who read Kotaku are guys and material written by guys is inherently written for guys. The male experience finds that way to creep in. A female writer will have the same 'issue' and it's okay. Boys and girls are different and that's just super as long as everyone respects everyone's right to exist and be who they are.

The reason I responded to your little blurb is because of the cleavage remark, by the way. It reminded me of the 'she was asking to be raped the way she was dressed' mentality and frankly, that frightens the shiznit out of me. Judge on the basis of the contents, not on the packaging. Good advice for any product, even writing.

One presumes a big part is that the ones that are, as Crecente puts it, out there are the ones most notable because they push their identity as female gamers. And personally, I think that's a niche audience, people (presumably other women) interested in an overtly female opinion. Like talk radio and the entertainment industries, being over-the-top is what gets you noticed.

What I'd like to see at Kotaku, and this is where I absolutely agree with Crecente, is the voice of a woman who for, let's say 90% of her posts, reads as gender-concious as the boys do -- which is to say, not particularly. Sure, an occasional Kotaku Original when it's merited, or perhaps even as a regular feature... but really, when I think about what we as readers gain by having a diverse group of voices, it doesn't come from sentences that start with "As a woman..." We can see from the byline that it's by a woman; everything about the post, therefore, is shaped by the experiences and opinions of a woman.

Rather than the kind of niche, and dare I say it, token "girl gamers" for whom that identity is everything, for whom that is the inherent appeal, I want a writer who neither regularly goes out of her way to express a female opinion nor who regularly goes out of her way to be treated just like any other male gamer -- I just want a female writer. That in itself, if she's good enough to be writing here, means I'm going to get a female perspective.

Basically, I want Alice.

Obviously, I love the idea of the site adding another talented writer. And obviously, I love the idea of the site adding a female voice. It sounds like that's what Brian wants as well, so I'm all for a concerted attempt to fill both those needs with the same person. I just think we're better served leaving those who are out there out there.

@hatsumi:

I completely get what your saying. I think that it's more like, people with different backgrounds bring different perspectives. When you come from different experiences you can bring something maybe some might not of thought about. However, that is no guarantee, maybe I think just like the rest of guy bloggers out there. That's why we have job interviews to look for people who exhibit more than just the run of the mill. : )

Maybe I need to up my commitment to blogging.

You know, I'd love to write a gaming blog or write for a blog, or however you put it. I do play games, and I have since I was little. I'm a serious gamer, and I play a wide range of games.

I just don't have the time, energy, or the will to do it. Being poor and in college does that to ya. ;) Nor do I have the writing skills to be able to do well (er.. I do, but.. the lazy thing again).

I don't get hassled in game stores, if only because I'm not "attractive." Piercings, short hair, little overweight, and likes games.. doesn't exactly always attract the men, but I have a steady boyfriend anyways. :)

my boyfriend calls a lot of my fav. games girl games. but he's not exactly a gamer even tho he does play sometimes and does own some. got the wii for my birthday this year and thought that some of my girlfriends would like playing it. nope. it's nothing like the commercials and the people saying that non-male stereotypical gamers will like. at least not in my situation. i do know tho that when i play tetris sometimes, a LOT of the times, on the ds via wifi im playing girl gamers. and you can say oh that';s just casual shitty games but whatever. i have the most fun playing those kinds of games and id rather be playing some hardcore kick ass 12 year old girl or 50 year old hausfrau in tetris than some lame teenage boy in gears or halo.

*Bfly*

Let's just cut to the chase:

Any girl who writes on this blog has to deal with one major insecurity: "Do they really care about what I'm writing or do they care because I'm a girl."

Some gamer girls who have written have taken the overt approach: "I have boobs and I'm a gamer." They're usually branded as Attention Whores. Some unfairly, some not.
Pros: You get recognized as a girl and a gamer... with boobs.
Cons: Everything you write will be pigeonholed.

The Yin to the above Yang is to turn them into androgynous slaves where the only thing that could possibly identify them as a female is their name. They could write about Halo, and Doom, and play Xbox 360 Live with the best of them. This is fine, and easier to swallow for the "community" at large, but eventually you're robbing them of their perspective.
Pros: You're one of the guys now and you're "accepted"...
Cons: ...At the expense of your gender identity. You make a conscious choice to duck issues that could attract attention to yourself lest you be referred to as an attention whore. You're still pigeonholed because there will still be haters that think you're just overcompensating.

im gay so i CAN say this. but most gamer girls ARE as ugly as their male counterparts. and they dont have boobs, and if they DO have boobs they have stomachs that match the weight too. you cant have it both ways. but id imagine most gamer boys are kinda meh too and would just DIE to have a gamer girl with them. id say dollars for donuts the gamer boys and girls match each other looks and intelligence wise. it's not exactly ABOUT that, but still there's a reason why girls dont play video games (the truth is most of the guys 99 percent who play them are nasties)

I created a female gaming community because of the fact that I couldn't find any women gamers on line or covering games in the press.

I agree that we need to encourage more women to write and cover the gaming industry. I have 6 volunteer female writers for the site. While at GDC, I was one of maybe three women in the press room at any one time. It definitely felt like a boys club in there. Fast forward to a Meet the Press Seminar where the whole panel of game journalists were male. Jane or Jessica could have been easily invited to speak on that panel. I truely believe that in order for there to be more Women Game Journalists there needs to be a change in the way Editors view them. My volunteers review games of all types. I would never stereotype and ask any of them to only review Nancy Drew games (which are actually very good) yet many video game magazines do exactly that. One year ago I asked why that is the case over at EGM and an editor told me that women do not play games. That was just a year ago.

It is my hope with gaming communities like mine, that I help promote and give women a place to have their voice be heard and then we can start showing the gaming industry that women game journalists are more people looking for attention because they are female and really just people that love to game and want to write about it.

Sorry that went for so long. lol ^_^

I'll be a bit of a link-whoreanus here and say I'm a female game blogger for http://www.wiiwii.tv and http://www.shinyshiny.tv , but as aforementioned, I don't think it's necessary to tout your gender - it'd be like constantly making an issue of your race, claiming to be a black games blogger, it's just silly and unnecessary.

As much as I'd love to write for Kotaku (my second favourite gaming blog after UK:Resistance), due to our fierce online rivalry (heh) sadly it wouldn't be possible. I weep every night in sorrow, I promise, Brian!

@Ren

The problem with interviews in a male dominated industry is that a lot of employers will take a fella over a woman even if she has better skills because they want to play it safe and don't want to take the risk of employing someone that doesn't fit the "mould". There was a documentry a while back (in Britain) where they sent out identical CV's to employers with the only difference being the name (male or female) and the males got a much higher perecntage of replys despite having exactly the same qualifications. Perhaps if the women got to the interview stage they might have more of a chance but if a certain number are being binned purely because of gender i doubt the interview will go well.

And i think you should up your commitment to blogging!! :>