Nintendo acknowledged it has a lower percentage of women working in hardware development compared to men, but also feels hopeful for potential future change, according to a Nintendo Q&A released Friday.
Though women who play games increase in number year after year, female game developers continue to be outnumbered by male developers across the video game industry.
Shinya Takahashi, a director at Nintendo and senior managing executive officer, noted that Nintendo has “many” female developers in its software development departments. He also pointed out that Nintendo has “created an environment to work with comfort even for those who have children.”
Takahashi further said that he thinks women can “participate actively” in Nintendo’s work environment.
Ko Shiota, a director at Nintendo and senior executive officer, pointed out that the discrepancy is in engineering professions, such as hardware and systems development. Shiota said that while it is true that Nintendo has a “low” percentage of females working in hardware development compared to software development, the proportion “could potentially change in the future.”
Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo’s representative director and fellow, noted that the director of the “Animal Crossing” series, a popular IP for Nintendo, is a woman. Miyamoto further pointed out that, based on his impressions, Nintendo has “a lot” of female developers compared to “other development companies in Europe and the US.”
As Nintendo continues to push sales of its Switch console and software, perhaps it will consider pushing for hiring more female developers. Miyamoto, Shiota, and Takahashi did not specifically say that it is a focus for the company. However, Shiota did say that “Nintendo’s work includes approach to unique technologies” which could impact the number of female employees in the future.
Source: Read Full Article