PETALING JAYA: Although Malaysia’s video game market was valued at RM3.5 billion in 2020, according to the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation, research shows that 75% of women gamers disguise their gender while taking part in online gaming competitions, while 25% of women gamers have stopped playing altogether – because of harassment and abuse.
Considering this, the Women’s Aid Organisation stressed the importance of female representation in the gaming industry to ensure women gamers feel safe when competing in major tournaments and other e-sports.
Its research and advocacy officer Anis Farid said last year’s data from the United States indicated that women accounted for 45% of gamers and it is likely that the figure is the same here in Malaysia.
“Research shows 75% of women gamers presented themselves as men while gaming.
“Another 25% have stopped playing altogether due to abuse.
“The reality is that women do game, but they may often be less visible due to sexual harassment.
“Having gaming spaces where women feel safe means they don’t have to hide their gender. It normalises a culture where women have a place in gaming.”
Anis said more women in such spaces can raise issues such as online safety.
“It can be spoken about more and advocated. We can actively work to make gaming safer for women,” she told theSun.
Anis stressed that the gaming industry is bigger than just playing games, as it extends to behind-the-scenes work such as designing the video game itself.
“It is important to incorporate women’s perspectives and voices because a lot of games are designed with male participation in mind, or in a gender-neutral way, which might not account for the types of games, narratives, or experiences women are interested in.
Vanessa Natasha, 30, captains HomeGirls, a Malaysian e-sports team that plays Mobile Legends, a multiplayer online battle game.
She said the harassment she faced as a female player came from her male counterparts who often said that “female gamers are a burden and that females should just stay at home and cook”.
“It’s important to have women representation to break such stigma and the limitation it puts on them.
“Women also can dominate e-sports and can be as good as men. Women should have equal opportunities,” she said.
Alia Husna, 19, another member of HomeGirls, said the public needs to support women who play in competitions to widen their representation in Malaysia’s e-sports arena and that degrading them would only serve to demotivate the players.
“It is important to have women representation because it serves to elevate their status and to open job opportunities, especially among youth and housewives who want to (generate some income) by competing in online games.
“Gender does not play any role in competitive e-sports,” she said.
Vanessa, Alia and their HomeGirls teammates recently competed in the Mobile Legends UniPin (Universal Pin) Ladies Series MY/SG 2022 tournament qualifying round and have advanced to the next stage.
UniPin is a digital entertainment service provider that hopes to help women in Malaysia’s e-sports arena with their UniPin Ladies Series.
UniPin Community senior vice-president Deborah Imanuella said: “Girls need a safe space where they can learn to compete and when they get used to the competitive circuit, they can advance to major tournaments.
“That is why we created the ladies event, because we believe in empowering women through e-sports.”