Building a Fair Playing Field
This is a moment when integrating practical steps in every area to bring about gender equality is not just fair, it is achievable.
About the Guide
Women in Games has published the Second Edition of its Guide. Featuring almost 150 pages of information, inspiration, resources, first-hand accounts, case studies, recommendations and more, The Guide: Building A Fair Playing Field is available to download for free.
The Guide – researched and authored by Women in Games CEO Marie-Claire Isaaman and Women in Games Education & Research Consultant Sharon Tolaini-Sage – is for video games, esports, and connected industries of all scales and sizes who are interested in engaging with, and advancing, gender equality and wider diversity and inclusion.
While the Guide is very specifically focused on gender, it encompasses wider intersectional issues of inclusivity and diversity, and can be used to address them at every level.
Why Is It Important?
There is an urgent need for change:
- Women remain significantly underrepresented in the games industries
- Well-publicised controversies around dysfunctional working cultures in the games industries add to the urgency for change
- Longitudinal research shows abuse and discrimination in online multiplayer games is increasing
- This is a moment when integrating practical steps in every area to bring about gender equality is not just fair, it is achievable.
What Is The Purpose of The Guide?
- To address persistent wide scale issues of gender inequality
- To highlight the role of leadership in achieving fairness
- To provide inspiration for companies and individuals across geographical boundaries
- To encourage and enable change
- To share knowledge and showcase existing positive initiatives
- To galvanize action

The Guide: Building A Fair Playing Field is supported by ISFE and InGAME, who have also contributed to the publication, along with Women in Games Individual Ambassadors, Corporate & Education Ambassadors, and the wider Women in Games community.
Following the launch of the English version, The Guide will be translated into multiple other languages. In addition, an audio book is being created to provide more accessibility, while a podcast series and Masterclasses will be launched later in 2023.
Download the Guide here