Welcome to MAI 14: Feminist Pedagogies in Games

Dearest MAI Readers,

Most of us are probably feeling fairly desolate right now. Recent political events in the United States, not to mention the ongoing horrors in the Middle East, Ukraine and elsewhere, render the future murky and make it extremely hard for hope to squeak through. But it must.

The struggle for equality, human rights, and respect is integral to MAI. We have always known that patriarchy, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, and white supremacy—the forces this community stands most staunchly against—die hard and that this would never be a battle that could be won quickly. The world is dark, and it is hard to see where we go from here. But we will move on and win in the long term.

In the short term, there is this: December is nearly upon us. The Winter Solstice must always be a time of hope and renewal, whether one calls it Yule, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or something else. At the coldest time of the year, the period most bereft of colour and life, we defy the chill and hold hands against the dark. We bask in warmth and light, look to the green of spring, and immerse ourselves in love. We remember to reach out to help those suffering and those who are alone. We rejoice in community and family.

In the end, this is not about faith or religion, nor is it about party politics. It’s about our duty of care to one another and ourselves, free from conditions and ego, as on the Winter Solstice, so too on all the other days of the year. We hold hands against the dark because it is only through love and unity that we will dispel it. As we refuse to shut up and accept the patriarchal oppression which keeps materialising in and outside politics, we offer the articles in this focus issue for your consideration.

First, you will find a portfolio of contributions about teaching games design—a collection of expert voices from feminists who have worked in this male-dominated field. Commissioned by our guest editors, Rebecca Rouse, Josefin Westborg and Amy Corron Youmans, these texts illuminate how games of all sorts, so popular and instrumental when it comes to socialisation today, still cannot depart from internalised patriarchal gender norms and expectations. As much as such observations add to our concerns, we cheer our games authors for their future-orientated approach and the many proposed strategies to address and change the old-school teaching methods, to make critical interventions and raise awareness of their students and colleagues.

Similarly, we applaud other authors included in the second half of this focus issue for their courageous articulation of thoughts on film, photography, art, books, and music that centre on women’s experiences, which tend to be dismissed or treated as a lower priority by ego-driven politicians. Thus, we present you with a few mind-stimulating visual culture evaluations and confessional accounts that pertain to women’s health, ageing, abortion, sexual consent, matricentric cultures and other somewhat naturalised gender expectations that stand in the way of equality across the globe.

We wish you a wonderful holiday season filled with hope and an equally hopeful year to come. Yes, it fills us with deep sadness that white patriarchal privilege still ranks so high, suppressing and dismissing women’s needs and voices. Yet, perhaps more than ever, we recognise the need to care for and support one another and take action to raise consciousness.

Therefore, we publish authors who resist intimidation and call out those who may cause harm, intentionally or not. What you are about to read is not just a grim assessment of our global realities; it is a collection of inspiring voices that shed some light on the way forward, a path to a brighter future. We are strongest together, and we will prevail in the end.

With hope, care and best wishes, 

Anna Misiak & Houman Sadri

(Falmouth, UK & Gothenburg, Sweden)