LGBTQ gamers nearly 20%, but representation lacks, report says
qvoicenews.comEllie (Ashley Johnson), left, and her girlfriend, Dina (Shannon Woodward), are two prominent queer characters in the acclaimed blockbuster game “The Last of Us Part II.” Approximately 17% of active video game players are LGBTQ+, but less than 2% of games on major consoles and personal computers include queer characters, according to a report from GLAAD. (Photo: Naughty Dog) Approximately 17% of active video game players are LGBTQ+, but less than 2% of games on major consoles and personal computers include queer characters, according to a report from GLAAD.
Also, online harassment of queer gamers, or gaymers, is far too common, the report says. “The findings of this report send a powerful message to the industry: it is time to move past the idea that LGBTQ-inclusive games are a separate, niche category,” Blair Durkee, GLAAD’s associate director of gaming, says. “All games should strive to reflect the people who play them.
And when one in five gamers are LGBTQ, any game with five or more characters has no excuse for lacking LGBTQ inclusion.” The watchdog group this week released its inaugural “State of LGBTQ Inclusion in Video Games,” developed by the GLAAD Media Institute in partnership with the Nielsen Games Team.
It’s designed “to educate the game industry on the current state of LGBTQ representation that exists, make a fact-based business case for LGBTQ inclusion, and provide a playbook for more authentic representation,” GLAAD says in a press release.
