iamagamer inaugural game jam to focus on female protagonists

iamagamer will host its first 48-hour game jam for 150 developers, designers, artists and students to create games starring female characters, the organization announced via press release.

The game jam is a response to a Gamasutra article that discussed the difficulties of featuring female protagonists. iamagamer, which organizes game jams around social causes, will attempt to dispute the idea that video games with female leads won't sell well.

In a guest piece featured on Corona Labs, organizer Kimberly Voll wrote that her motivations for the game jam span from the need to set positive examples and "shine a critical light on ourselves" to never thinking "there was anything wrong at all."

"I grew up in a world that showed me I was different, and I accepted that," Voll wrote. "I want a world in which every child sees only possibilities free of the constraints of outdated ideals. A world where we don't worry what people think if we pick a gender (or no gender at all) in a game. That's why I need to do this jam."

You can read her full list of motivations over at Corona Labs. The event will take place July 12-14 in Vancouver, Canada. Registration is open on iamagamer's website.