International Women’s Day 2025: Celebrating Women Driving the Games Industry Forward

by Megan Cooke at BigGamesMachine

For the past 100 years, International Women’s Day has celebrated the achievements of women worldwide, including those doing incredible work on video games. Despite that, the games industry is still perceived by many as male-dominated, with many women feeling that their accomplishments often go underlooked. That’s why, to mark this year’s International Women’s Day on March 8, we’ve invited three inspirational women to share their insights, experiences, and success stories from their time working in games.

Lígia Gonçalves – CEO of WalkMe Mobile Solutions

Lígia Gonçalves’s journey into game design began at just 14 years old when she first discovered programming, which she went on to study at university. In 2013, she became co-founder and CEO of WalkMe Mobile Solutions, a Portuguese games studio specialising in puzzle and trivia games for mobile. Under Gonçalve’s leadership, WalkMe’s titles have generated more than 40 million downloads worldwide. The studio is now looking to transition into VR with Trivia World Quest, an all-new title that will be playable at this year’s GDC.

“Having women in game development is vital because it brings diverse perspectives and experiences to the creative process,” Gonçalves says. “This leads to more comprehensive games since men and women think and look at the world differently. Also, it’s useful for reflecting the reality of a player base that includes a significant number of women. Plus, it inspires future generations of women to pursue careers in the industry, breaking down barriers and fostering a more equitable gaming landscape.”

Tamsin Hough – Social Media Manager at Big Games Machine

Another rising star in the games industry is Tamsin Hough, whose hard work has secured her two promotions since joining PR and marketing agency Big Games Machine as a Social Media Executive two and a half years ago. In her current role as Social Media Manager, her determination has only grown, and she consistently delivers exceptional results for a diverse range of B2B and B2C clients across the globe.

Based on her time in the industry, Hough says that people’s biggest misconception about women in gaming is that women can’t be “real gamers.” That couldn’t be further from the truth, especially considering there are more than 1.39 billion female gamers worldwide. More women than ever are getting involved in video game development, too. GDC’s 2025 State of the Game Industry report found that women and non-binary individuals now make up 32% of game developers, compared to 29% last year and 24% in 2022.

“The biggest change I’d like to see in how women are represented in games is a reduction in sexualisation,” Hough says. “There’s lots more that women can bring to the table, and more games should champion female characters for things other than their looks. That’s why I’ve enjoyed games like The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, which moves away from the damsel in distress trope and instead allows players to explore Hyrule in a new way.”

Jenna Jokela – Game Analyst at GameRefinery, a Liftoff Company

Jenna Jokela describes games as her “gateway to Cloud 9.” She channels that passion for all aspects of video games, alongside her expertise in game art design, into her role as a Game Analyst for the mobile games analytics platform GameRefinery. Jokela spends her days monitoring countless mobile games for new features, monetisation strategies and market trends. She then uses the data and insights she gathers to produce reports for clients, which helps them to better understand what’s appealing to players on the market.

Looking at the future of women in games, Jokela hopes there will be more opportunities to support women entering the industry: “When games feature a broader range of stories and characters, they encourage a stronger sense of belonging. An industry that champions diversity in its workforce and content will be more welcoming, innovative and appealing to a broader audience. Ultimately, I’d love to see a gaming industry where gender is never a barrier to success.”