游戏女玩家面临的性别歧视和其他障碍

Women Gamers Deal with Sexism, Other Barriers in Esports

Susie Kim believes that women video gamers are out there. As manager of a winning esports team, she would know.

But she is also not surprised none of them are on her team.

The Entertainment Software Association reported this year that 45 percent of all gamers in the United States are female. Yet, women make up a much smaller percentage of professional esports players.

The industry has struggled to gain women players in recent years. In 2014, there were reports of harassment¹ and other abusive behavior. The scandal², known as “Gamergate,” involved male gamers targeting women players throughout the industry.

Women gamers say they feel excluded and often get insulting, sexist comments about their abilities or physical appearances.

Kim’s team, London Spitfire, won the first Overwatch League championship in June. Speaking to The Associated Press before the grand finals, she said there are definitely women who are skilled enough to be playing in the Overwatch League.

“But they’re just like, ‘It’s a headache. I don’t want to be part of this at all,’” Kim said. “I don’t blame them.”

At the top

Maria “Remilia” Creveling is the only woman - and only transgender woman - to have competed in the LoL Championship Series (LCS). It is the top series for the world’s most popular esport. Her time in the LCS was short-lived, however.

Creveling’s 2016 appearance got her a lot of attention. Many celebrated⁴ her. However, others commented about her sex, wrote critically about her appearance and questioned her abilities.

A few weeks into the season, Creveling removed herself from her team. She said she did so because of mental health issues. She has not returned to the LCS since.

Creveling did not speak at length with reporters at the Associated Press, but did tell them she has begun competing again and will be looking for a new team soon.

Other major esports have similarly limited histories of women at the highest levels. The NBA 2K League said it had one woman among 250 finalists for roster⁵ spots in its first season. That woman, however, did not receive one of the 102 available positions.

The Overwatch League had one woman for its first season, Kim “Geguri” Se-Yeon with the Shanghai Dragons. Se-Yeon has mostly avoided special attention and fame. She says she simply wants to be seen as a skilled gamer.

“Being the icon⁶ or being looked up to because I’m female — I’m grateful,” Se-Yeon said through a translator at a press meeting last year. “But I don’t really have any thoughts about it. That’s not how I want to be known.”

At the lower levels

Twelve-year-old Ella Lasky has professional gaming hopes for herself. She is on a promising⁷ path. She is one of the top players in the “Minecraft” City Champs circuit. Ella’s parents say video games have played a key role in their daughter’s social development.

“It’s given her a sense of pride,” said Ella’s mother, Johanna.

Ella even appeared on a TV show about the league. That introduced her to a different side of esports. Internet commenters did not seem to like that a woman took center stage on a video game broadcast.

″‘Why is the girl so loud? Why is the girl shouting? The girl needs to shut up. She’s annoying me with her voice,’” Johanna recalled reading. “I explained to her, ‘I think part of it is that because you’re a girl, you’re being targeted.’”

Ella was not affected⁸ much, however, and plans to keep gaming. But she already understands that many in the esports community make assumptions⁹ about her based on her sex.

“I don’t think girl gamers get as much respect as boy gamers,” Ella said.

What can be done?

Publishers have made progress answering harassment complaints since the Gamergate scandal. But video games are still not a space known for gender³ equality.

Some say more in-person gaming events might help. Women say men and boys usually act nicer to them in person than during online play.

Another issue at the professional level is the housing situations for elite¹⁰ teams. Esports competitors are often put in team housing. But sharing a living space with a group of college-aged men is not appealing to many women.

These issues, along with pressure from increased media attention, can take away from a woman’s experience at the highest levels of esports.

Kim says, ”(Women) don’t want to deal with the toxicity¹¹. They don’t want to deal with the media going crazy over them. They don’t want to deal with living with the boys or getting preferential treatment. They don’t want to deal with all of that. They just kind of want to play.”

I’m Mario Ritter. And I'm Alice Bryant.

Words in This Story

scandal - n. an occurrence¹² in which people are shocked and upset because of behavior that is morally or legally wrong

championship - n. an important competition that decides which player or team is the best in a particular sport, game, etc.

headache - n. an ache or pain in the head

roster - n. a list of the people or things that belong to a particular group, team, etc.

transgender - adj.of or relating to people who feel that their true nature does not match their sex at birth

center stage - n. a main or very important position

elite - adj. related to the most successful or powerful group of people

toxicity - n. the state of being poisonous or the degree to which something (such as a drug) is poisonous

preferential - adj. giving an advantage to a particular person or group

1 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

2 scandal   

n.丑事，丑闻，流言蜚语，反感，愤慨

参考例句：

• Scandal and gossip are meat and drink to him.各种丑闻和流言蜚语是他最感兴趣的事。
• His theft from the shop caused scandal in the village.他因偷商店的东西引起全村的公愤。

3 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

4 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

5 roster   

n.值勤表，花名册

参考例句：

• The teacher checked the roster to see whom he would teach this year.老师查看花名册，想了解今年要教的学生。
• The next day he put himself first on the new roster for domestic chores.第二天，他把自己排在了新的家务值日表的第一位。

6 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

7 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

8 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

9 assumptions   

假定，臆断( assumption的名词复数 )； （责任的）承担； （他人债务的）承继； [the A-][基督教]1)。 圣母升天

参考例句：

• Their reasoning was based on a set of unstated assumptions. 他们的推理是以一系列未说明的假定为基础的。
• Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions. 你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。

10 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

11 toxicity   

n.毒性，毒力

参考例句：

• The hoarse grunt or squeal is characteristic of toxicity.嘶哑的哼声和叫声是中毒的特征。
• Dieldrin is related to aldrin,and its toxicity to earthworms is similar.狄氏剂与艾氏剂有关，对蚯蚓的毒性是相似的。

12 occurrence   

n.发生，出现，事件，发生的事件

参考例句：

• Two things account for its occurrence.发生这件事的原因有两个。
• For a military commander，winning or losing a battle is a common occurrence.胜败乃兵家常事。