Former Assassin’s Creed Dev Says the Games Industry is Picked on Too Much for Its Portrayal of Women

The internet has admittedly been a hot spot for people complaining about the portrayal of women in video games lately. Many have even taken issue with the industry’s treatment of women, which has resulted in lots of controversial statements and campaigns. However, former Assassin’s Creed developer, Jade Raymond, has a different take on the issue, and one that I particularly like. 

In an interview with Polygon, Raymond said that although the portrayal of women can be improved in games, it seems that the video games industry is picked on far too much, especially since this is an issue that plagues many other industries, too. 

I kind of feel like, ‘Why is everyone picking on video games as being a bad industry?’ Because even though I’ve had a bad end of the stick, I still love the industry. Yes, I think there are some games, you know, yes, whatever, portrayal of women can be improved. Yes, it can be improved in every single frickin’ entertainment form. Movies, even the magazines that we buy. Women buy these magazines and on the cover of these magazines, women are wearing sexy outfits. You see cleavage, all this stuff. These are the magazines we choose to buy for ourselves. I feel like as a person who loves the game industry and likes making games, action games, I made Assassin’s Creed — it’s a game where you assassinate guys and you have a big sword and stuff. I like bad action movies. I like what we do and I don’t feel like it all has to be so … anyway, I wish we weren’t picking on the game industry so much.

Raymond went on to say that she’s on the board of directors of women in film and TV interactive, which is aimed towards helping women advance in their careers. She revealed that half of the management team at Ubisoft Toronto is women.

Half of the management team of Ubisoft Toronto is women and it’s not just because I’m trying to hire women. Really, the best candidates, half of them were women. In HR, our technical lead is a woman. You can have a positive impact by doing positive things.

Raymond also said that she’s too busy trying to make good games, and that she has no time for “bitching and complaining.” 

A positive read for once! What do our readers think?

[Source: Polygon]

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