The #1ReasonToBe panel returns to GDC 2025.
The #1ReasonToBe panel returns to GDC 2025.
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GDC’s #1ReasonToBe panel will celebrate women game devs in a tough climate

  • Posted byby Dean Takahashi
  • Updated
  • 5 min

The emotional and sometimes controversial #1ReasonToBe panel is returning to the Game Developers Conference. The session is happening in a climate in the U.S. that may not feel so welcoming this year.

With U.S. President Donald Trump trying to make diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) illegal, this kind of panel may run into outright hostility in some circles. But the women on the panel — which often delivers inspirational personal messages about the journey to discoverin games — are going forward with the session this year.

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Written by

Dean Takahashi

Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.