NEWS FROM THE WOMEN IN GAMES ASIA CHAPTER (THERE’S A LOT!)

Our colleagues at the Women in Games Asia Chapter have been incredibly busy over the past few months, as they continue to share our goals and values with women and allies throughout the region.

Here are just a few highlights…

February
Women in Games Ambassador Programme (Keywords Studios)
Luna Javier, Dan Sun and Kah Hui Teo were invited to talk about their motivations to sign as Women in Games Ambassadors in the Asia games industry. Moderated by Athena-Maria Enderstein, the Group Head of DEIB at Keywords Studios, the Ambassadors shared their experiences and challenges. They encouraged women to join the Women in Games Individual Ambassador Programme, to connect to a worldwide network of individuals, to empower and celebrate talented women in the games industry.

March
To celebrate International Women’s Day, AWS for Games partnered with Women in Games Asia to present ‘Unsung Heroines in Games’, an event held at AWS Singapore office, featuring women leaders in the games industry. Dan Sun, Co-Director of Women in Games Asia, shared about the Asia chapter and the initiatives the chapter is focused on in 2023. WIG Ambassadors Luna Javier, Creative Director and Co-Founder of Altitude Games and Kah Hui Teo, Co-Director of Women in Games Asia and Global Localization Manager at Keywords Studios, were joined by Rebecca Chan, General Manager of Visual Concepts China (2K) and Felicia Lim APAC Head of Games BD at Twitch on the panel, hosted by Connie Liu, Senior Inclusion, Diversity & Equity Business Partner at AWS. The participants at the AWS Shanghai office joined the event online and had a post-event celebration and networking session.

Also in March, the Chapter took part in the Women in Games Careers, Development and Networking Expo hosting a panel on ‘Women in Games Asia: A Culture-Specific View of Progression and Development’.

The panel was moderated by Aisyah Ambok from WIG Asia, and featured two guest speakers: Saqina Latif, Co-founder and Managing Director of Persona Theory Games, as well as Sueki Yap, Human Resources Manager of PlayStation Studios Malaysia, who discussed topics such as the unique challenges that women working in the Asian games industry face, as well as advice for people within marginalized groups wanting to break into the games industry.

April
Our Co-Director of Women in Games Asia, Kah Hui Teo, was invited to the first ever Xbox Game Makers Summit Southeast Asia event, which brought experts and leaders and thought leadership to the SEA game developer community. Other than the opportunity to discuss and learn from the SEA community, the event also featured a Women in Games Panel to highlight the need to create more inclusive work cultures and to empower women to develop to their full potential in the SEA games industry. Moderated by Jia Ling Hoo, GXI Program Manager at Xbox, the other panelists included, Agnes Kim, Director of Creative Partnerships at Xbox, Riris Marpaung, CEO of GameChanger Studio, Suan Goh, Co-Founder of CtrlD Studio, Gwendelyn Foster, Business Director of Sad Owl Studios.

May
Sonia Ashraf joined the ‘Wonder Women in The Gaming World’ Panel where she spoke about women in the gaming industry, the glass ceiling and how to work towards fair opportunities and mentorship for young women who are planning on games as a career path.

Also in May, Luna Javier was interviewed for the podcast ‘Girl, Make Your Move’. She talked about being the first female game developer in the Philippines, being part of Women In Games Asia, and why we women need to start taking and making opportunities for ourselves.

June
Sonia (pictured) appeared on Zara Hut Kay, a Pakistani news show where she spoke about the gaming industry in Pakistan, plus what it means to be a Women in Games Ambassador and being part of the Asia Chapter

Upcoming Events
Women in Games Asia will be at:
– ChinaJoy 2023, from July 28 to 31 July
– gamescom asia 2023, from October 19 to 22 Oct

To find out more about Women in Games Asia, click here.