Diversity is a strength. That seems to be the doctrine the gaming industry operates within these days, but it’s hard not to feel cynical about these talking points. For years, the conversation around inclusion, identity, and representation was led by artists, people who genuinely wanted to build worlds that looked more like the one we live in.
Somewhere along the way, however, something went wrong. This well-meaning spark was unfortunately hijacked by corporate strategy and investors, and the result is that Diversity, Equality, Inclusion (DEI) in gaming often feels less like progress and much more like a performance, in order to check all the boxes.
Some studios, like BioWare back in the day, used to stand out because they dared to make personal, inclusive stories a part of the overall world they’ve created – not because corporate policy decided that now they’d have to include certain elements of inclusivity, simply to sell more copies and make for better PR.
Now, it sometimes feels like these developers and publishers are afraid to make anything that might not pass the focus-group test.
DEI in Gaming
Diversity in storytelling is a good thing, it always has been. The issue has never been representation, although I wish there were more diversification of ideas, mindsets, and opinions in the characters, rather than slapping a skin color or sexuality on an NPC or even party member and calling it a day.
The community evidently cares about meaningful initiatives, and are quick to pushback at any studios leaving a sour taste. For example, Lollipop Chainsaw developers had a new IP buried in less than 24 hours after a bizarre, out-of-touch anti-DEI statement back in July.
The issue is the way corporate DEI initiatives have turned creativity into a sort of compliance exercise. You can feel it in the way modern character design is handled, in how writing feels pre-approved, and in how risk-taking seems to have completely vanished.
Take BioWare, for example. Once the studio was pretty much synonymous with emotional storytelling and diverse character depth, from Baldur’s Gate to (especially) Mass Effect, it now feels pretty much caught in a tug-of-war between artistry and optics, with very little substance.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard has been framed – by its own marketing – to be a more inclusive and modern evolution of the franchise, and while I commend the effort, it’s also kind of telling that that’s the headline it went with, rather than it being a natural byproduct of good writing and world building.
If you look at their older titles, they all had diverse casts too, and they were arguably the pioneers of having diverse characters in their games, while feeling natural and not forced. Back then, this was just part of their writing, and not a forced press release to tick a box.
Now every creative decision seems filtered through a risk assessment, and you can clearly see the hesitation in the final product; pretend to make something bold, but do not offend at any cost. Say something meaningful, but still make sure it plays well in some 50-odd markets.
DEI in Gaming is a Corporate Strategy
There’s another example I can give to back up my claim. When Electronic Arts was acquired by a Saudi-backed investment firm co-owned by Jared Kusner earlier this year, it sent a strange vibe throughout the industry. A company that publicly champions inclusivity and equality is now partially owned by investors with vastly different cultural values. It’s the perfect irony; inclusion as brand identity, but still sold to the highest bidder.
Most DEI initiatives in AAA studios in particular care less about creative integrity and inclusion, and much, much more about market segmentation. These products don’t appear to appeal to any mass of gamers, but are designed to please the shareholders, with representation as a product feature to swim within the modern Zeitgeist of our political and social landscape.
It turns something vital and human into another asset for brand identity. Gamers aren’t angry because characters don’t look like them – they’re frustrated because the stories that once felt alive now feel designed by committee. We don’t need more inclusion statements. We need better art – honest, weird, personal art that doesn’t feel the need to justify its existence.
What Does DEI in Gaming Look Like in the Future?
DEI needs to evolve past the corporate shell it’s trapped in. True inclusivity in games comes from hiring diverse writers and not in skin color or sexual identity. By diverse, I mean writers with different backgrounds, ideas, dreams, and ideals. Trusting them to tell their stories authentically, and resisting the urge to commodify human experience into marketing beats.
We don’t need games to lecture us about equality – we need games that embody it, naturally and confidently, without fanfare. The more studios obsess over optics, the more genuine voices get lost under the noise. And maybe the lesson here is simple: creativity doesn’t need permission. The best stories, whether written in a cramped Montreal apartment or on the floor of an indie studio in Tokyo, come from people, real people, not made-up policies in order to tick a box or to appeal to a certain shareholder.
