Who creates games?
Who creates games?
Nowadays, there are still many stereotypes regarding male and female professions. And gamedev is one of those areas in which, overwhelmingly, men work. This is confirmed by a study conducted in 2016 by the International Game Developers Association, according to which only 23% of those surveyed were women.
These numbers are, of course, disappointing. But, firstly, the study was conducted more than five years ago, and during this time a lot has changed. Secondly, today there are many examples proving that women can do this work better than men.
If we talk about the most significant and inspiring examples, then these are women whose names are familiar to everyone associated with the gaming industry. Namely:
- Jade Raymond. She can rightfully be called one of the most famous female developers. As an employee of Ubisoft, she was the producer of Assassin’s Creed. Jade founded Motive Studios, famous for releasing Star Wars: Squadrons. And since 2021, the girl has been the founder of a company that produces unique games for PlayStation consoles.
- Corrine Y. A female programmer who has worked at Naughty Dog, Halo, and Gearbox Software. In 2010, she was named one of the most powerful women in the gaming industry by Kotaku.
- Lucy Bradshaw. This girl can be called one of the creators of the famous SimCity game series, which is a hit by Maxis. Lucy is also the vice president of this studio.
Of course, it is simply impossible to list all of them. But having named the most striking examples, we want you to be inspired by them and not be afraid to take a step into this seemingly masculine field of activity.
As for Plazma Studio, we are pleased that the number of women involved in the gaming industry is constantly growing. On the example of our girls, we see the responsibility and professionalism with which they approach work.
But what influenced their choice of profession? We asked our employees this question, and here are the answers we received:
“My father, who is a programmer himself, had a great influence on the choice of future profession. He told me all about his work and responsibilities, and I realized that this one was exactly what I needed. I really like to think over the logic of the system, and, in fact, to program.”
Irina, programmer
“Games are my main hobby. When I found out that the field of game development is very developed in our country, I decided to join it. It was testing that interested me, because this way I can look at games both from the outside and from the inside.”
Daria, tester
“As a child, I wanted to become a doctor, but as I grew up, I realized that this was not exactly what I really liked. And testing makes it possible to feel a little like a doctor who can find a problem and influence its solution.”
Olga, tester
Also, all the girls noted that they do not experience any difficulties in their work. They like to be on the same wavelength with the whole team, and discover something new in their profession.
For our part, we hope that if a girl is passionate about games and wants to take part in their development, then nothing will prevent her from expressing herself.
And in confirmation of this, our company is a vivid example also because its owner and CEO is a young and successful woman.
VR technologies - how it all began
VR technologies - how it all began
Until recently, virtual reality technology seemed to us something fantastic. We met her only in books or films that tell about the distant future of our planet. But in the last decade, VR games have become so popular that it is now difficult to find a person who has not visited new worlds with the help of a helmet.
But where did it all begin, and how did this technology develop to modern scale? Let’s find out the history of the VR industry:
- 1957 – Inventor Morton Heilig created a device called the Sensorama. It was the first model of a VR player with which the user could enter a completely different universe;
- 1961 – the creation of the first Headsight web helmet. He allowed to observe from afar dangerous situations for humans. Initially, this helmet was developed absolutely secretly for special services, but in the future such technologies became widespread;
- 1965 – the first device was created in which the image was created thanks to a computer;
- 1984 – in addition to glasses, the first multifunctional gloves were developed, with which users could interact with objects on the screen;
- since 1993, Sega, CyberMaxx, Nintendo have been trying to release their own virtual reality helmets, but these launches have failed due to existing flaws and the high cost of the product;
- since 2012, Oculus and since 2015 HTC have been releasing their VR devices, which are leaders in this industry today.
As we can see, the history of creating affordable and high-quality virtual reality glasses has stretched for more than half a century.
But what about the content for this device? Today, there are many companies producing VR games. The user puts on glasses or a helmet and is transferred to a completely different reality. Uncharted jungle, a modern spaceship, distant planets or the dark world of the underworld – it all depends on the imagination of the developers.
Plazma Studio is also the creator of a VR project called Expansion. The game takes place outside of our universe. On a modern spaceship, the player can explore new worlds, create their own battle squads of units and fight with other users for influence and superiority in resources.
With the release of truly impressive and exciting games, more and more users will move into the virtual world. Therefore, this industry definitely has a future!