5 Women Without Whom We Would Not Have 5 Of The Best Games In The World

We introduce you to five women of the video game industry without whom five great games would never have existed.

We have listed various women from the gaming industry who have worked on well-known classics, indie gems, or major AAA titles, enabling us to enjoy absolute top games.

What criteria were used for selection? The five selected games represent an editorial choice. This is a mix of personal assessment, reviews, and influence on the industry.

1. Dona Bailey – Centipede

Who is Dona Bailey? In 1980, Dona Bailey began working in Atari’s Coin-Op Division. She was the only woman employed there. With a four-person team, she created Centipede, working alongside Ed Logg as a creator. Dona Bailey took on about half of the total programming work on the game.

What type of game is Centipede? The shooter is a true classic among games, released in the early 1980s and considered one of the commercially successful arcade games of that time. In the game, you try to eliminate all segments of a centipede as the insect moves toward the bottom of the screen.

2. Wren Brier – Unpacking

Who is Wren Brier? Wren Brier has been working in the video game industry for 9 years. She started with Halfbrick, later working as a freelancer until she joined Witch Beam Games. As Creative Director, she co-created the surprise hit Unpacking, which had a successful release on Steam in 2021.

What type of game is Unpacking? It is a puzzle game where you move into a new apartment and have to unpack all your belongings.

In our colleagues at GameStar, you will find a detailed review of Unpacking and can read why the game is celebrated as a small indie gem.

3. Kim Swift – Portal

Who is Kim Swift? Kim Swift and her team created the game “Narbacular Drop” as a senior project at the DigiPen Institute of Technology. Robin Walker, a developer from Valve, took notice of the talent of the game developers and invited the group to present their work at Valve.

This was so well received that Gabe Newell hired them all. From Narbacular Drop came the Portal we know today. In addition to the game, Kim Swift worked on other well-known games such as Left 4 Dead and Star Wars Battlefront II.

Today, she works at Xbox Game Studios as Director of Cloud Gaming.

What type of game is Portal? It is a puzzle platformer where you strategically place portals to move through different rooms. Both Portal and its successor Portal 2 are inseparable from Steam and are among the most popular games on the platform according to user ratings.

4. Amy Hennig – Uncharted

Who is Amy Henning? She began her career in the video game industry with games for the Nintendo Entertainment System. For example, she worked on the title “Michael Jordan: Chaos in the Windy City”. One of her top hits, for which Amy Henning is probably best known, is the adventure hit Uncharted. She served as Creative Director for games 1-3 of the series and was a Story Consultant for “Golden Abyss”.

Amy Henning is regarded today as one of the most influential women in the gaming industry and has won several awards for her work.

What type of game is Uncharted? Uncharted is a successful action-adventure game from the developer studio Naughty Dog. The story revolves around the adventurer Nathan Drake, who goes on a treasure hunt.

5. Aya Kyogoku – Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Who is Aya Kyogoku? She works in Japan as a director, supervisor, and producer in the gaming industry. In 2000, Aya Kyogoku started at Atlus and was involved in titles such as deSPIRIA or Wizardry: Tale of the Forsaken Land.

In 2003, she moved to Nintendo, where she worked as a scriptwriter for games in the well-known Legend of Zelda franchise. Five years later, she worked in various roles on the Animal Crossing games – for instance, she was the main director for the latest game “New Horizons”.

What type of game is Animal Crossing: New Horizons? In the game, you become a resident of a small idyllic island with animal neighbors. There, you build your own house and create your own little paradise.

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