LAFS SVI Level 8 - Diversity

Level 8
David Mullich
Survey of the Video Game Industry
The Los Angeles Film School

IGDA 2014 Developer Satisfaction
Survey
© 2014, International Game Developers Association

Diversity: Race, Gender, Sexuality
Extra Credits, Season 1, Episode 12 –
Diversity (7:01)

Terms
 Politics: the science or art of government
 Government: the system of rule over the members of a
community, society or state
 State: the central government or authority
 Political Party: a group with common political values and
purposes
 Values: the ideals of a society upon which the people
place relative importance

Conservatives vs. Liberals
Conservatives Liberals
Traditional Values Progressive Values
Local Government Central Government
Nationalism Multiculturalism
Economic Freedom Economic Fairness

Political Affiliation of Game Students
In an IGDA study participants mostly identified themselves as either liberal (27.4%) or did not
care about political preferences (26.4%). Another large percentage (24.1%) identified with
middle of the road ideologies. Only 4.5% identified with conservative ideologies. Seven
participants stated other, with four (4.5%) self-identifying as Libertarian. The remaining three
stated that their view depends on the issue. Compared to the Gallup Politics poll reported in
January 2012 (Gallup Politics, 2012), there are a number of extremely statistically significant
differences between the political views of game students versus the U.S. population.

Politics and Game Genres
Urbanfifth survey, 671 responses

Politics and Game Genres
 The three most conservative genres are first person shooters,
fighting, and sports – in fact, players from these three genres
account for more than half of all responses to the right of center.
 The most progressive were roleplaying gamers and the two
varieties of strategy gaming, turn-based and real-time. These
three progressive genres also accounted for the largest number
of total responses.
 Libertarian sentiments are widespread across the gaming
community, with only simulation and sports scoring above the
neutral “0″ mark.
 The modest support for authoritarian policies shown by
simulation players is an interesting exception that invites
speculation, though the relatively small pool of simulation
responses might be skewed by a few dozen particularly zealous
micro-managers.

Types of Governments
 Democracy: Government in which power is
vested in the people or their elected agents
 Dictatorship: Government in which power is
vested in a ruler or group of rulers
 Fascism: Government in which every
aspect of the peoples’ lives is controlled by
the government

Types of Economic Systems
 Capitalism: Economic system in which
citizens own and control business
 Socialism: Economic system in which the
community owns and controls business
 Communism: Economic system in which
the state owns and controls business

Government Relations
 Diplomacy: The art or practice of handling negotiations
between nations
 Superpower: A state that is able to project its power on a
worldwide scale and control international events
 Cold War: A conflict over ideological differences carried on
by methods short of military action and usually without
breaking off diplomatic relations

Diplomacy
 Published: 1959
 Publisher: Games Research, Avalon
Hill, Hasbro
 Designer: Allan B. Callhamer
 Genre: Strategy
 Board wargame in which players enter
into negotiations to form and break
alliances. Created as a computer
game a number of times

President Elect
 Published: 1981-7
 Publisher: Strategic Simulations
 Designer: Nelson G. Hernandez
Sr.
 Genre: Turn-based Simulation
 Play historical or fictional
political candidates in
Presidential Campaigns from
1960 to 1984

Balance of Power
 Published: 1985
 Publisher: Mindscape
 Designer: Chris Crawford
 Genre: Strategy Sim
 Goal: Choose a superpower
then guide the country through
eight years of Cold War conflict,
attempting to avoid nuclear
apocalypse

Civilization
 Published: 1991-2013
 Publisher: MicroProse, others
 Designer: Sid Meier
 Genre: Turn-Based Strategy
 Goal: Start a civilization in prehistoric
times and evolve it to modern times.
Players can choose government type
and establish relationships with the
governments of other civilizations

Terms
 Faith: Belief in God or in the teachings of religion
 Religion: A set of beliefs concerning the cause,
nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when
considered as the creation of a superhuman agency
or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual
observances, and often containing a moral code
governing the conduct of human affairs
 Cleric: A member of the clergy, the group or body of
ordained people in a religion

Terms
 Secular: Of or pertaining to worldly things or to things
that are not regarded as religious, spiritual, or sacred
 Agnostic: A person who holds that the existence of
the ultimate cause, as God, and the essential nature
of things are unknown and unknowable, or that
human knowledge is limited to experience
 Atheist: A person who denies or disbelieves the
existence of a supreme being or beings

Religious Affiliation of Game
Students
In an IGDA study the majority (41.6%) of participants did not have a religious preference. 13.0%
identified themselves as Roman Catholic, while 39.6% identified themselves as Christian (Other
Christian, Church of Christ, Methodist, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Baptist, Eastern Orthodox, or
Lutheran). 1.5% identified themselves as Muslim, while 2.3% identified themselves as Jewish.
The religious affiliations of the U.S. population differs significantly. Of significance, over 40% of
game students claim no religious affiliation compared to only 16.1% of the population.

Gamespot’s Danny O’Dwyer
Religion in Games (13:59)

Gamespot’s Danny O’Dwyer
• Does Danny O’Dwyer think videogames have
handled the topic of religion sufficiently? Why or
why not?
• What does he think religion can add to a game?
• What does he think of the views of religious
organizations toward games?
• What does his friend Tamoor Hussein think of how
Arabic and Muslim people have been portrayed in
games?
• How would he like to see them portrayed?

Aspects of Religion in Games
Lore FaithMechanics

Dungeons & Dragons
 Published: 1974
 Publisher: TSR
 Designer: Gary Gygax and Dave
Arneson
 Genre: Role-Playing Game
 Clerics are one of the standard
playable characters. They are skilled
in the use of divine magic used for
healing, protection and in some cases,
control of the undead. Clerics worship
a deity and must pray regularly to
restore their powers

Portal
 Published: 1986
 Publisher: Activision
 Designer: Rob Swigart
 Genre: Interactive Fiction
 Text-driven adventure with a
graphical interface, involves a
character who becomes a
science fiction messiah and
leads humanity to a New
Kingdom

Populous
 Published: 1986
 Publisher: Electronic Arts
 Designer: Peter Molyneux
 Genre: Real-time Strategy
 Regarded as the first PC “god game”,
the player uses divine powers, such as
raising and lowering the land or
causing earthquakes, to increase his
followers and help them to defeat
enemy followers.

Darklands
 Published: 1992, 95
 Publisher: MicroProse
 Designer: Arnold Hendrick
 Genre: Role-playing Game
 Set in the Holy Roman Empire during
the 1400’s, the game’s geographic
setting is historically accurate but also
includes supernatural elements. It
tried to stay true to medieval
Catholicism, with a lengthy list of saints
the player could pray to for various
effects.

Black & White
 Published: 1992, 95
 Publisher: Electronic Arts
 Designer: Peter Molyneux
 Genre: Simulation
 In this “God Game”, the player acts as
a god who takes control over villages
across several islands. The player’s
control over the island is manifested in
the Hand, which can move or throw
people and objects, tap houses to
wake their occupants, and cast
miracles.

Halo
 Published: 2001
 Publisher: Microsoft Studios
 Designer: John Howard
 Genre: First-Person Shooter
 A group of aliens (The Prophets)
discovered writings left by an ancient
race describing a 'Great Journey' and
ascension. After defeating the Elites
(yet another alien race) in a bitter war,
the Prophets convinced them to join
their religion and so the Covenant was
born.

El Shaddai: Ascension of the
Metatron
 Published: 2011
 Publisher: UTV Ignition
Entertainment
 Designer: Takeyasu Sawaki
 Genre: Third-person Action Game
 Inspired by the apocryphal Book of
Enoch, the story follows Enoch, a
scribe seeking seven fallen angels to
prevent a great flood from destroying
mankind. He is helped in his quest by
Lucifel, a guardian angel in charge of
the protection of the world who exists
outside of the flow of time, and four
Archangels.

Religion In Games
Extra Credits, Season 5, Episode 16 -
Religion in Games (Part 1) (6:36)

Religion In Games
Religion in Games (Part 2) (5:11)

Terms
 Race: a group of biological factors that define a
person’s appearance, such as skin or hair color
 Ethnicity: a group of sociological factors that define a
person’s culture, including nationality, ancestry,
language
 Stereotype: A simplified and standardized conception
of a group of people

USC Survey
A recent study by University of Southern California found in a
survey of 150 games across nine platforms and all ratings:
 African Americans enjoyed a rate of 10.74%, with a big
caveat: they were mostly athletes and gangsters
 Fewer than 3% of video game characters were
recognizably Hispanic and none were playable
 Native Americans and biracial characters did not appear
in any of the videogames surveyed

Ethnicity of Game Students
In an IGDA study 71.6% of participants identified as white, 10.2% as Asian,
6.5% as black, and 2.7% as Hispanic/Latino. Blacks and Hispanic/Latinos
are underrepresented with respect to the U.S. Population, while Asians are
overrepresented when compared with the US Population.

Are Games Racist?
Are Games Racist? | Game/Show | PBS
Digital Studios (8:01)

Discussion
 Are games racist?
 Why or why not?
 What can be done about it?

Avatars
Avatar Selection
Avatar Creation

Barret Wallace
Final Fantasy VII (1997)
 Far from just a sidekick to
Cloud Strife, Barrett Wallace
pulled us into his world of
anger, vengeance and regret.
While caring for his adopted
daughter Marlene, all the guy
wanted to do was live the
simple life but his battle
against Shinra prevented him
from it. Hands down, Wallace
was one of the most complex
black characters of his time.

Carlos Olivera
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (1999)
 The second main
character of Resident Evil
3. He becomes playable
so that he can find a
vaccine for the main
character, Jill Valentine.
Although a violent
mercenary, he is warm-
hearted and known for his
joking around.

Zasalamel
SoulCalibur III (2005)
 Armed with a death scythe and
immortality, facing Zasalamel is
like recording an M.O.P. diss
record. It's something you only
do if you have a death wish. Not
being able to croak may be cool
in theory but Zasalamel actually
wants to die and seeks out the
Soul Edge with hopes that it'll
end his life once and for all. For
gamers, Zasalmel's strength
made him a hot pick against
opponents and for good reason.

Dominic Santiago
Gears of War (2006)
 First introduced in the
original Gears of War as
a second playable
character. He is a
seasoned veteran with a
strong sense of family,
and often thinks of his
wife, Maria. His personal
storyline is compelling,
he is sympathetic, and
he’s a bad-ass.

Wei Shen
Sleeping Dogs (2012)
 The undercover cop
determined to take down a
Triad gang after the tragic
death of his sister.
Part Inspector "Tequila"
Yuen from John Woo's Hard-
Boiled and part Chev Chelio
from the Crank films, Wei
Shen is the type of character
that you'd secretly imitate
when no one else is around to
clown you for your failed
crescent kicks.

Sergeant James Heller
Prototype 2 (2012)
 Fueled by the tragedy of
losing his wife and child,
Sergeant James Heller faces
off with Alex Mercer who
infected him with the the
Blacklight virus. Along his path
to revenge, Heller transforms
New York City into pile of
twisted steel and flaming
debris. There's no rapping,
dancing or overuse of slang
here, just the story of a man
trying to find justice.

Race in Games
Race In Games (7:46)

Terms
 Sex Object: A person viewed or treated as
a means of obtaining sexual gratification
 Sexually explicit: Presentation of sexual
content without deliberately obscuring or
censoring it
 Pornography: Sexually explicit material
intended to stimulate erotic rather than
aesthetic or emotional feelings

Softporn Adventure
 Published: 1981
 Publisher: Online Systems
 Designer: Chuck Benton
 Genre: Text Adventure
 Adult-oriented text
adventure game in which
the player is required to
obtain certain items to win
the affections of a series of
beautiful women

Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the
Lounge Lizards
 Published: 1987
 Publisher: Sierra On-Line
 Designer: Al Lowe
 Genre: Graphic Adventure
 First in a series of adult-
themed games in which the
main character spends
much of his life attempting
to seduce attractive women

Tomb Raider
 Published: 1996
 Publisher: Eidos Interactive
 Designer: Toby Gard, Phillip
Campbell
 Genre: Action-Adventure
 The female protagonist, Lara
Croft was seen either as a
positive, visual metaphor of
sexual empowerment or as
objectifying and sexist

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
 Published: 2004
 Publisher: Rockstar Games
 Designer: Dan Howser,
James Worrall, DJ Pooh
 Genre: Action-Adventure
 The game was briefly re-rated
as Adults Only by the ERSB
after a player-made software
patch, dubbed the “Hot
Coffee mod”, unlocked a
previously hidden sexual
minigame

Is This Ad Appropriate?
Advertisement for Wartune, which is published by
Kongregate, Armor Games, NGames, R2Games,
Proficient City Limited, and Kabam.
This more-or-less
sexless strategy RPG is
has been promoted
with anime bikini girls
and taglines like "Our
sun-kissed skin so
hot... will melt your
popsicle" and "Your
body is my party... Let's
get it started.”

Sex In Games
Extra Credits, Season 1, Episode 19 - Sex
In Games (8:19)

Nearly Half Of Gamers Are Women
 According to a 2012 survey by the
Entertainment Software Association,
women make up 45% of all gamers
 So why aren’t we making more games
that are welcoming to women?

Ms. Pac-Man
 Published: 1982
 Publisher: Midway
 Designer: Midway
 Genre: Maze
 Conceived due to the high number of
women who played Pac-Man, the
game was superior in everyway and
became the most successful American-
made arcade game of all time.

Where In The World Is Carmen San
Diego?
 Published: 1985
 Publisher: Broderbund
 Designer: Broderbund
 Genre: Educational Strategy
 The goal is to track Carmen’s villains
around the world and ultimately catch
Carmen herself. The game spawned
several critically-acclaimed sequels as
well as television shows and books.

The Legend of Zelda
 Published: 1986
 Publisher: Nintendo
 Designer: Shigeru Miyamoto, Takashi
Tezuka
 Genre: Action Adventure
 Although much of the gameplay
involves the protagonist, Link, saving
Princess Zelda, Zelda occasionally
performs a supporting role in battle.
The series consists of 16 official
games.

Half-Life 2
 Published: 2004
 Publisher: Valve Corporation
 Designer: Valve Corporation
 Genre: First-Person Shooter
 Alyx Vance, a supporting character,
was praised for her “stinging
personality” and intelligence,
developing a close bond with the
player without being simply “eye
candy”

Gears of War 3
 Published: 2013
 Publisher: Microsoft Studios
 Designer: Cliff Bleszinksi
 Genre: Third-Person Shooter
 Anya and Samantha Byrne becomes
the series’ first playable female
characters, receiving a positive
response from female players who find
them empowering.

Bechdel Test
A test of gender bias that asks whether a work of fiction features
at least two women who talk to each other about something
other than a man
1. The work has to have at least two women it in it,
2. who talk to each other,
3. about something besides a man.
Have you played any video games that would pass the Bechdel
Test?

Female Characters
Extra Credits, Season 2, Episode 07 - True
Female Characters (7:01)

Cross Assault Incident
On Capcom's "Street Fighter x
Tekken" reality show, Cross Assault,
Team Tekken's coach made a number
of sexually charged remarks toward a
female player, eventually driving her to
forfeit the competition and leave the
show. This incident raised awareness
of sexual harassment in the gaming
community.

Sexual Harassment
Extra Credits, Season 4, Episode 11 –
Harassment (7:27)

Gender of Game Students
The results of an IGDA study showed that 87.4% of respondents
were male and 12.6% were female. According to the 2010 United
States Census (United States Census Bureau, 2011a), the ratio of
males to females in the general population is nearly 1 to 1, with
males being 49.1% of the population and females 51.9%, clearly
showing a gap in the representation of women.

#GamerGate
 August 2014: Zoe Quinn’s Depression Quest released on
Steam
 Quinn’s ex-boyfriend writes blog claiming Quinn cheated on him
with Kotaku journalist
 Actor Adam Baldwin tweets about conflict of interest and bias in
game journalism, using the hashtag #GamerGate.
 Quinn and her supporters become targets of a harassment
campaign
 Media articles appear claiming an “end to the gamer identity”
 Social media campaigns seen either as attacks on
women/feminism or journalism ethics
 October 2014: Feminist game critic Anita Sarkeesian cancels
speaking engagement due to death threats

Women in Gaming
G4 Icons Episode #10: Women in Gaming
(21:42)

The Work Environment
The office is not like the internet, no matter how relaxed the office
environment may feel.
DO NOT:
Troll. Look at porn. Talk about porn. Bring porn in. Talk about
anyone as if they were in porn. Use porn terms/slang. Talk about
your sexual conquests (real or imagined) in shared spaces. Create
random sexually explicit content, even in lunch hours or overtime.
Display nudie calendars, magazines or pictures on your desk.
Display, discuss or admit to owning tentacle‐porn action figures.
Many game developers find their life‐partner in the office. Just
think about that for a minute.

Terms
 Gender: The state of being male or female
 Sexual Orientation: One’s natural preference
in sexual partners, including heterosexuality,
homosexuality and bisexuality
 Sexual Identity: A person’s inner sense of
being male or female
 LGBT: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transexual

Sexual Orientation of Game
Students
In an IGDA study 255 participants responded to the LGBT questions, with 15 (5.9%) declining to
specify (Table 6). Of those that did, 87.1% identified themselves as heterosexual. 5.5%
identified themselves as bisexual with only four participants (1.6%) self-identifying as
lesbian/gay. Though not shown in the table, two participants (0.8%) self-identified as
transgendered. According to the Williams Institute (Gates, 2011), 96.2% of the U.S. population
identify as heterosexual, 1.7% as lesbian/gay, and 1.8% as bisexual. Compared to the
population of game students, the lesbian/gay population is nearly identical.

Sexual Diversity
Sexual Diversity (6:29)

Gay Game Characters
Would it Matter if Master Chief Were Gay? |
Game/Show | PBS (8:02)

In Closing
Game developers come in many genders, shapes, sizes,
nationalities, ages, body‐types, colors, sub‐cultures, sexual
preferences, religious beliefs or non‐religious philosophies.
Some are not able bodied, some have physical or mental
illnesses.
All of these are valid things for a game developer to be. And
if you are a student, chances are most of them will be more
experienced developers than you are right now.
Respect that. Online and offline.

LAFS SVI Level 8 - Diversity

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