The most recent episode of the AIAS Game Maker’s Notebook podcast has been released, and Chelsea Blasko, Co-CEO of Iron Galaxy Studios, came onto the show to talk about her long path to where she got to be in gaming, along with the various challenges that come with diversity in game development.
Many game development studios have issues with diversity, with several of the bigger studios such as Riot Games and Ubisoft having a culture that is notably misogynistic to the women on staff. Iron Galaxy, however, is different in that Blasko never had very many problems, as the studio focuses on equity and properly paying their employees for the work they do.
Blasko’s story, however, has actually been a symbol for many women who also want to get into game development, and has been using that to make herself more visible to help not only inspire more women to get into game development, but also help inspire more change.
Blasko also had a better time at Iron Galaxy Studios because when she came, it was smaller than it is now. Things tend to fall by the wayside as studios get larger, so it’s up to the higher-ups to make sure that that doesn’t happen to other employees.
Iron Galaxy has been responsible for a number of smaller indie games over the course of its history. They were responsible for making Divekick, along with seasons 2 and 3 of Killer Instinct and 2018’s giant-killing action game Extinction. As of 2016, the studio had over 160 employees as well, and hopefully will make bigger games later without sacrificing what makes it special.
If you want to listen to the most recent podcast about Iron Galaxy Studios, and have an hour to spare, you can do so by following this link to go to the website itself.