By: Edie W.
On August 17 there was a badge workshop for Girl Scout Juniors at Museum of Design Atlanta, or MODA for short. When the girls first arrived, they went on a tour of the museum. At the museum, the girls got the opportunity to read about different girl lead video games, like Chop Suey and the Sims. They also got to try out different games, such as Gravity Ghost, Skylanders Giants, and Nancy Drew: The Deadly Device. All of these games were either designed or produced by women.
After testing the games at the museum, the girls walked to MODA’s camp space,
where they started on the first step of their Entertainment Technology badge: making a thaumatrope. A thaumatrope created by taping two different pictures back-to-back on a stick. When you spin the stick really fast, the two separate pictures look like one picture. The girls had lots of fun making them, and they were very creative.
After that, Molly Proffitt, a video game designer, came and talked to the Girl Scout Juniors about her job. I got the chance to ask her some questions.
Lime Green Giraffe: What are some challenges you face as a female video game designer?
Molly Proffitt: What I have to deal with on a regular basis, especially because I have to play a lot of games, is playing games that have a lot of male players and they don’t necessarily restrain what they say. It’s offensive to female players. Then, just in general, sometimes not being able to relate to or try to convey things that I feel, or I may react to a game differently than a male would, so when designing a game I have to consider my personality.
LGG: How long have you been working in this field?
Proffitt: About three years.
LGG: What would you say to girls who might want a job in a male dominated field?
Proffitt: I would say to not give up. I started the industry while I was still in college and getting into the industry made me feel really confident. I was like, yes, I can do this. But, it takes awhile. So, that’s for anyone whether you’re male or female, but I think that as women it’s really hard to get in. Consoles and games are just now starting to be advertised towards women, actually. A lot of women get discouraged when they start, because they don’t have support. So, yeah, just don’t give up.
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