Abbie Heppe’s review of Metroid: Other M prompted a wave of backlash across the gaming community. Words like “feminist” got thrown around in comments sections of popular gaming sites as if it were the new “f” word. But what is really feminist versus what is perceived as feminist by virtue of the fact that it comes from a woman’s perspective? Using these reactions as a jumping off point, a panel of gamers, journalists, and members of the industry will look at the ways gender is treated in gaming culture at large. In our debate and discussion of Abbie’s review, we’ll be looking at the larger question: “As our industry becomes more progressive and, arguably, gender-blind, is geek and gamer culture regressing?”
Panelists: Alli Thresher [Director of Digital Content, Moby Games], Yesenia Cisneros [Tech Project Manager, Website], Arne Meyer [Director of Communications, Website], Abbie Heppe [Live Product Lead, Twitter], Jennifer Kye [Global Social Media Director, Twitter], Eric Pope [Senior Community Developer, Twitter], Justin McElroy [Podcaster, Website]
Source: Oliver Surpless