A latest study within the U.S. revealed that of the 31.four million gaming fans, only 30% are female. As a full-time streamer on Twitch, Autumn Rhodes has made a name for herself in the male dominated gaming world. This Toronto based mostly streamer, who started enjoying games with her dad at a young age, zaniolo02 talks about her experiences in an industry not always open to the fairer sex.
1. How did you get into eSports?
I started enjoying video games at a very young age because of my father and my brother, and ever since then I’ve by no means been able to stop. When I was launched to the eSports world I was astonished about how it all worked. Being a very competitive individual, I decided it was time to take my love for gaming to the next level, and when I discovered Twitch.tv and all of the superb possibilities I had in front of me.
2. What exactly do you do within the eSports enviornment?
I am a full time streamer on Twitch. I play games equivalent to CS:GO, CoD, LoL, and so many more. I dedicate hours and hours a day to those games, always training, and always making an attempt to be one of the best I can be. I’ve played competitively in many games and I always have such a good time doing so.
3. What do you think of ladies in eSports, specifically in your region?
I think the ladies concerned in eSports round my region, which is Toronto, give a superb name for all of us. They know how tough it may be in this business as a lady, and they work hard to take care of their image as not only a critical competitive player but as a girl who can play just as well as any man. Because Toronto has such a high inhabitants there may be so much competition within the eSports world.
4. What has been a few of your experiences of being in a discipline that has been dominated by males?
A few of my experiences in this discipline have not always been nice, however different instances they have been fantastic. I remember being in the Cineplex World Gaming CoD tournament last yr, and as I walked into the theater the men were just shocked as to why I used to be even there. The male I confronted was so terrified because he never had to play towards a girl earlier than and he didn’t know what to anticipate; it made him so nervous. Meanwhile, some other males on the tournament figured because I am a woman that I might easily be overwhelmed because there’s no way I might be good at any games. Being in an industry the place we’re told we “cannot presumably play video games because we’re girls” is really disappointing in as we speak’s society. There are just SO many males who hate on girls who are involved within the gaming industry, and I do not know if this is because society has taught those that ONLY boys can play video games or if some of them are just too ignorant to realize that our sex has absolutely nothing to do with our capability of being great at something.
5. What’s your favorite thing about being part of the eSports community?
My favorite thing about being a part of the eSports community is how well all of us understand each other. It is such a fantastic feeling going to competitions and events and having so much in widespread with everyone. We all can relate in one way or another.
6. What is the most difficult part of being in eSports?
Essentially the most difficult part about being in eSports as a lady is how so many men look at us. They hardly ever take us severely and it’s quite annoying because we’ve worked just as hard as them or harder to get where we’re in the gaming industry.
7. Why do you think it’s so important that ladies be represented in eSports?
I think it’s very important that more ladies are represented in eSports because we have to break the stereotype that it’s only a person’s world. SO many women avoid the gaming business because of the truth that so many get harassed and bullied for showing an curiosity in gaming. It is good to see that persons are lastly starting to shed light on this topic and speak out about it.
8. What are your hopes for ladies in eSports?
My hope for girls in eSports is that at some point males won’t decide us for being a part of the gaming community and that they’ll realize we can play games just as well as them and even better. I can tell over the previous couple of years more and more persons are opening as much as females within the gaming world, which is such a reduction because it is not honest to the ladies resembling myself who put a lot time and dedication into competitive gaming to just be shut down because society says we won’t be good at games.