6 Ways Gaming Platforms Can Support Women

Women now make up almost half of all gamers, diversifying what was previously a predominantly male hobby. 

Unfortunately, along with the increase in female players, there has also been an uptick in discrimination and harassment against them. 

In 2023, 46% of American gamers identified as female. But despite comprising nearly half of all video game players in the United States, a troubling 48% of female gamers experienced gender-based discrimination while playing online in 2023. Including populations around the world and gaming-related streaming platforms, where women also suffer harassment, and those numbers rise significantly. 

As more girls and women go online to play, there need to be better ways to protect them from toxicity—while promoting inclusivity.

There have been some inclusivity efforts… 

Instances of abuse, bullying, sexism, and threats have led to a widespread outcry against harassment in gaming, with women and people of all genders and ethnicities speaking out. 

The Gamergate misogynist movement in 2014, which has arguably led to the online prevalence of far-right extremism and misinformation campaigns, sparked a reckoning and, eventually, some progress towards fair treatment of women in the gaming industry. Since then, some companies have taken steps to promote inclusivity by featuring more female characters in games. 

Back in 2020, 18% of games featured playable female characters, a major increase from only 2% in 2016. Consulting firm Sweet Baby, Inc.—which has recently been targeted by misogynist and racist harassment reminiscent of Gamergate—advises companies on incorporating people of color and women into game narratives. And organizations like Women in Games advocate for change in the gaming industry, focusing on game development, the workforce, and the player community.  

However, despite efforts to introduce diversity and inclusivity, there is still a need for considerable improvement in addressing and combating widespread abuse in gaming.

What can gaming platforms do?

The gaming industry faces a systemic issue, but with every new challenge, there is a new opportunity.  

We offer a few ways gaming platforms can create safe, inclusive environments that empower women who play online video games.

1. Pay Attention to Harmful Communities

The gaming industry historically faces opposition from misogynistic men’s rights activists and incel communities. These groups have been present in gaming for some time now, and continually try to maintain male dominance or exclude women and minorities entirely. Naturally, the goals of these communities contradict efforts to create inclusive social spaces.

Gaming companies can help set the stage for creating safe spaces for women by investigating where threat actors hang out. In these communities, users openly identify themselves, discuss targets, and share abusive content like videos of their harassment.

By tapping into these harmful groups’ communications, Trust & Safety teams can gain valuable knowledge, including who these groups choose to target. This intelligence also helps teams recognize and learn about new dangerous trends in behavior. Taking actions based on this information can help protect users from toxic activity, and maintain brand reputation as well as user retention. 

2. Take Action Against Cross-Platform Abuse

Having access to cross-platform discussions among threat actors can then allow in-game moderators to identify potential areas of abuse and take measures to mitigate them. 

By monitoring both on-platform harmful actions and off-platform coordination on forums and chat groups where threat actors congregate and coordinate abuse, Trust & Safety teams can identify connections between abusive users and determine who should be flagged for temporary or permanent banning.

By improving the overall atmosphere for women playing in online games, platforms can reduce the recurrence of harmful incidents and gradually change what is considered acceptable behavior within online games.

3. Check Community Health

Of course, detecting on-platform risks is extremely tricky due to the vast number of in-game interactions. 

However, to gain insights into the threat actor climate, analyzing communities associated with the games themselves, such as forums, social media platforms, and websites, is a practical approach. It’s also essential for understanding community health and pinpointing areas that require enhanced moderation efforts. 

By detecting abuse on game-specific forums, Trust & Safety teams can identify perpetrators of on-platform abuse to better protect at-risk users, ultimately fostering safer and more inclusive spaces for all players. 

4. Help Women Who Livestream 

Besides the games themselves, off-platform communities play a crucial role in supporting gamers who broadcast their gameplay on various live streaming platforms. 

Unfortunately, misogynistic communities target the livestreams of female gamers with abusive activity and conduct digital raids against their accounts. These raids flood the broadcasts with explicit and derogatory messages. Abusers also weaponize deepfake non-consensual intimate images generated by AI to humiliate female gamers online.

To address this issue, platforms equipped with off-platform intelligence can implement proactive measures to protect users. These measures could include preventing the sharing of harmful content or increasing moderation resources for specific livestreams, thereby creating a safer and more supportive environment across platforms.

5. Identify Harmful Custom Content

Harmful behavior, both on and off gaming platforms, threatens the reputation of games and gaming platforms. The distribution of modified versions of games or custom creations—sold and distributed through forums and special interest groups—jeopardizes platforms as well.

ActiveFence has identified multiple modified versions of popular games that allow players to subject women to acts of sexual violence. Other detected mods involve removing female characters and voices from gameplay. These altered games retain the branding and design of the original versions. Not only does this infringe on copyright, but it also normalizes misogynistic behaviors within the game’s online ecosystem.

Awareness of these modified and bespoke games empowers companies to take action and protect their reputation from potential damage.

6. Amplify Positive Behavior

Creating a positive online gaming community is not just about punishing toxic behavior it’s important to rewarding good behavior as well. 

By identifying friendly and helpful players, game platforms can acknowledge and reward them, either through in-game items or by amplifying their positivity on game-related websites, forums, or social media platforms. Platform admins should be on the lookout for players who display respect, cordiality, appreciation of good performance (“GG, team!”), and positive acknowledgment of others. 

By promoting respectful behavior within game communities, women and other groups will feel more at home as they frag or capture the flag. This strategy will also enhance engagement and retention with players, ensuring game platforms will stay happy, populated, and successful.

Empower One, Empower All

When a social space becomes hostile towards one group, everyone suffers. Places where women are intimidated often also exclude other minority groups. Harmful activity encourages a cycle of unpleasant behavior, and if one group is driven away, others will likely follow.

The cost of ignoring gender-based discrimination in gaming extends beyond the people affected. If left unchecked, toxic behavior will ultimately harm a game or platform’s reputation and revenue. 

However, the reverse is also true. As mentioned in the beginning, nearly one third of the world will be playing video games. Companies can build secure, inclusive, and diverse communities now, foster acceptance by creating welcoming spaces, and unlock new opportunities for expansion.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published on March 16, 2022. It has been updated with fresh information and edited for clarity.