The gaming industry has stood as a beacon of relentless growth, innovation, and progression since the Magnavox Odyssey and Atari 2600 were released in the 1970s. Within 50 years, immersive virtual and augmented reality gaming experiences—once considered cyberpunk pipe dreams confined to dystopian science fiction—have appeared to us via ‘buy now’ ads on our smartphones (which, naturally, also hold gameplay capabilities of their own). Soon, we could witness brain-computer interfaces rendering keyboards and controllers obsolete as we game using our thoughts alone.
Technological advancements made at compounding rates are continuously creating more ways for gaming to further infiltrate the consumer market and have simultaneously allowed it to foster a vibrant culture that influences hundreds of millions worldwide across mainstream media, fashion, music, and language.
However, with growth often come growing pains, and the digital arenas that nurture innovation and community are also becoming gateways to darker elements—a challenge familiar to many in the tech industry. Despite gaming’s potential to be a model of inclusivity and opportunity, a troubling underbelly of incessant harassment, discrimination, and toxic rhetoric has emerged. As the industry has expanded, so has its audience, and the need to ensure online environments are inclusive and safe for all users becomes increasingly apparent.
According to the Global Web Index, 51% of all gamers are women today, but it hasn’t happened without resistance. Women and marginalized groups entering the space, including LGBTQIA communities and people of color, have often faced—and continue to face—severe online harassment the most, including sexism, racism, and other forms of discrimination.
High-profile incidents, such as the infamous “Gamergate” controversy in 2014, highlight just how intensely these whirlpools of harassment can mobilize against women in the industry, targeting female developers, critics, and gamers with threats of violence and relentless abuse.
In esports specifically, the issue of sexual harassment is notably severe. 40% of female gamers have reported experiences of verbal abuse, and 28% have received threats of rape and murder (NFHS, 2023).
Players as young as 10 years old report receiving rape and death threats. As of December 2022, the Anti-Defamation League found that three out of five young people (66% of teens and 70% of pre-teens) experienced harassment when gaming online, representing over 17 million young gamers.

This same study from ADL also found that from 2020 to 2021, exposure to white supremacist ideologies among these young gamers increased from 10% to 15%—highlighting a concerning trend around racial and ethnic identity-based harassment. Black (44%), Asian American (40%), and Latino (31%) gamers reported identity-based harassment the most, and these figures represent significant year-over-year increases during a period when the pandemic’s isolating effects and exposure to violence contributed to a nearly 40% jump in suicidality rates among Black youth (CDC, 2021).
Online gaming environments, with their relative anonymity and lack of accountability, can motivate individuals to express and act on prejudicial attitudes without fear of repercussion. This ecosystem has created a slippery slope that not only discourages women and marginalized groups from participating but also normalizes such behavior, potentially influencing attitudes and actions in offline spaces as well.
The problem is even further reflected among gaming companies themselves. The escalating discourse on the challenges of content moderation on streaming platforms like Twitch and Kick has become a prominent topic in mainstream media. And let’s not forget the wrongful death lawsuit faced by Activision Blizzard following the suicide of Kerri Moynihan, whose family claimed was a result of sexual harassment she faced while employed at the company.
The normalization of misogynistic language and perpetuation of stereotypes within gaming forums and multiplayer games contribute to a culture that marginalizes and silences diverse voices. The industry’s struggle with representation in game development and in-game characters further reflects and reinforces these broader social issues.
Fans of Horizon: Zero Dawn recently took to social media to share complaints about female character, Aloy, preferring she were “prettier” and had more “feminine features” in her design. The game was also “review bombed” on Metacritic for featuring an optional intimate character interaction between Aloy and her newfound Quen ally, Seyka.
There is a palpable contrast between the gaming industry’s innovative spirit and the toxic behaviors that plague its communities, raising questions about progress and inclusivity in digital spaces—why does an industry celebrated for pushing the boundaries of technology and creativity struggle to create a safe and welcoming environment for all its participants?
The disconnect points to a critical oversight in the gaming industry’s evolution: the technological and cultural milestones have outpaced the development of processes to ensure community well-being.
In the wake of Gamergate, Andreas Zecher from the independent studio Spaces of Play penned an open letter to the gaming community, garnering thousands of signatures—predominantly from independents—united behind a powerful statement:
“We believe that everyone, no matter what gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion or disability has the right to play games, criticize games and make games without getting harassed or threatened.”
Despite the significance of the message, the past decade has witnessed a disheartening lack of effort toward reducing the amount of misogyny, bigotry, and hate speech still occurring within the gaming space every single day. Addressing the issue requires more than acknowledgment; it now calls for actionable, large-scale solutions for rooting out toxicity.
We can do better—there is no excuse. Rights to Unmute, a non-profit organization and online social platform, is taking matters into its own hands to exemplify the level of industry-wide effort that should be adopted.
In addition to creating a social community of its own and offering consultancy for individuals and companies on navigating the gaming space safely and inclusively, the platform has constructed a proprietary reporting feature for documenting instances of harassment—not only acting as a direct line for those affected to voice their experiences but also helping to compile information in a way that gets it in front of the right people for enacting real, lasting change.
It’s not just about developing better content moderation technologies or implementing stricter community guidelines anymore. It’s about fostering a culture that actively combats discrimination and not only promotes inclusivity but requires it—it can no longer be optional. Only then can the gaming industry truly fulfill its potential as a space where technology and humans converge in positive, meaningful ways.
If you or someone you know may have experienced any form of harassment within the gaming space, we’d love to hear from you.