In this interview with CalvinAyre.com’s Becky Liggero, Cory Allison of Rezli shares her thoughts on how eSports tournament organizers may be able to lure female players to embrace the game.
ESports, considered to be fast-growing industry, is beating other traditional sports by being more inclusive.
The gender gap among players is slowly starting to even out as more and more women players compete in this fast-growing industry. After all, women don’t the brute force that traditional sports require in order to compete.
But despite the inclusivity of the game, women still face an uphill battle when it comes to pursuing a career in eSports. Women are paid less than a typical male gamer and there are fewer women competing in top-tier eSports tournaments.
Advertisers continue to target the male demographic since there is only a handful of female audience in the industry.
Confessed-gamer Cory Allison of Rezli believes that tournament organizers should double its efforts to make eSports more appealing to women. She believes that having a diverse eSports crowd and players will benefit the whole community in the long run.
To encourage more women to embrace the game, Allison said that tournament organizers should create an environment where everybody may feel less intimidated.
“We are always looking for more women at the table and providing the perspective, the different aspects, the different lenses, and what not. The diversity is huge and it is going to add for the benefit of the whole community,” Allison told CalvinAyre.com. “I think the obvious way to do that is to make it (eSports) more welcoming and open it up so that more people can actually view in an easier way and more enticing way. Women tend to stand back and see if they are brought in the conversation as well as in the whole experience.”
Treating women as co-equal will also help encourage more women to play, according to Allison. She added that having a role model for these women will help them embrace the eSports.
“You got to see the people that you can relate to. So, the more we have that the better. And younger people living in this digital space, hopefully they wouldn’t see it any different as they come in and go ‘oh we just play.’ I don’t care if you are a girl or a boy. We are competitors and we will come and play and be equals,” she said.
