“It feels as though the games industry is moving into a new phase” – Women in Games Awards sponsor Creative Assembly on the growing diversity in our industry

With the Women in Games Awards 2020 returning on November 25th, we’re taking the opportunity to not only look ahead to the awards, but to look back on the year as a whole.

It has obviously been a difficult year – one that has introduced new and unexpected challenges, while reminding us that there’s still much to be done to remedy long-standing problems in the industry.

Still, we feel that’s all the more reason for us to come together to celebrate the amazing work coming from women in our industry. In order to both celebrate their talent, and to encourage the ongoing change in our community.

It’s a change that Creative Assembly, sponsor of the Rising Star of the Year – Development award at the Women in Games 2020 Awards, recognises.

“It feels as though the games industry is moving into a new phase,” says Emma Smith, head of talent at Creative Assembly. “We are more open, having difficult but important conversations, and challenging ourselves and each other to improve.

“I want to make sure we are fighting misconceptions; the industry is a welcoming place, it is more and more diverse by the day and there are wonderful initiatives bringing communities together to enact change and to celebrate diverse people in games. Yes, globally there are issues, but we are working together to address them and make the industry a truly inclusive place.

“Through projects like our award-winning education programme – The Legacy Project, we have the potential to reach many more people from different backgrounds and help them realise their dreams of creating games. It’s important that, as an industry, we work harder to make an environment in which these young people will want to build a career, be nurtured, and go on to be our future leaders. Events like the Women in Games Awards are an opportunity to celebrate the progress being made and to showcase our fantastically diverse role models to the wider world.”

Nominations for the Women in Games Awards 2020 are open now. If you would like to nominate the hard work of your colleagues, or your own achievements, please head to our Women in Games Awards website to make your voice heard.