Diversity in the game industry: Unconscious bias keeps you from listening … and could hurt your business

The breakout sessions at GamesBeat 2015 were a bit different in format from other presentations at the show, allowing larger groups of panelists to have more direct interactions with attendees and each other. The breakout session on diversity in the games industry began with a showcase of this more interactive approach: In order to set the tone for the panel, the speakers asked attendees to perform an in-person exercise with the person sitting next to them. While one person was requested to discuss something they felt strongly about, the other person was instructed to either ignore, rebuke, or affirm the other party.

The exercise was designed to not just make the attendees uncomfortable but to also illustrate a point: many people in minority groups often feel that their opinions are often ignored or rebuked by others.