According to the Pew Research Center, nearly 60% of all girls between the ages of 13 and 17 are gamers, yet 76% of solo video game protagonists are male. Over 42% of females own a console, compared to 37 percent of males, and yet for every 5 male characters in a game there is only one female. And on video game covers, men were portrayed almost four times more than female characters, given significantly more game relevant action and less objectified sexiness.

Last week on ‘Dot Complicated with Randi Zuckerberg’, Randi talked to Lina Chen and Naomi Ladizinsky, founders of gaming firm Nix Hydra to discuss women gamers:

“We were looking at our mobile devices trying to find games to play. There was nothing we wanted so we decided to make our own.”

“We learned to code from the internet like everyone else.”

“The computer takes things literally. Learning how to code helps communication.”

“Nix Hydra is a serendipitous name for us. They’re both mythological figures. You have to guess which of us is which.”

“Before we started we saw the homogenous side of digital conferences and the lack of games on phones.”

“There was a line for the women’s bathroom at one conference and everyone in there was so excited.”

“A big part of this is that are so many types of games that are under-explored right now.”

“Egg Baby is a mobile game with eggs that you adopt, pamper, and raise. Because of your interactions, the egg will develop into one of 100 creatures that give you gifts.”

“Our next game is the newest version of Egg Baby. With Egg! it’s two-player. You can raise a baby with a friend.”

“When we first started Egg Baby we put together the fastest version we could, but it took off from there. We had to hire people to keep up.”

“Egg Baby was done with 3 people and no marketing. Now we have 25 people plus marketing. We’re hoping for a much larger adoption than 14 million downloads.”

“This shouldn’t have surprised me but thinking back, it’s amazing how viral the teen girl market is. They go to school and tell everybody about it.”

“Our first product we ever did was Hot Guy Alarm Clock. We wondered if we could make an app at all.”

“It’s hard to start a company in the US when you’re not a citizen.”

“In order to get a work visa you need to raise enough money to prove that your company is legit but you can’t make money if you’re not in the country.”

“We had a hard time finding people who have a lot of experience in the gaming industry. The tone of gaming is so established and different from what we want to do.”

“We try to hire people who have a lot of perspective and have passion for what we do. They don’t have to be a particular gender. But more women fit this bill than men.”

“Brandon Beck of Riot Games was a personal mentor before we started the company. We made the effort to keep in touch with him.”

“There’s no waiting around for people to discover you, it’s making sure you’re on the top of people’s minds.”

“Be open, friendly, and grateful when reaching out to people. One day you’ll find someone that you connect with very well and ask them for advice and keep the relationship up.”

“Everything we’re doing individually to make Nix Hydra more visible is done on an individual case.”

“We’re mostly ignored than anything. We’re so far out with what we’re doing that they’re our games aren’y even considered games.”

“There’s an entire culture around online voice chat that can be threatening. It can be a scary place.”

“I was late to the game with Instagram but I love it.”

“Protect Carrots (Carrot Fantasy) is my obsession now. It’s a fixture in my life”

“Neko Atsume is a Japanese game where you put cat treats in your tree and wait for the cats to come get them. It doesn’t sound fun, but it’s awesome!”

Find out more about Nix Hydra at eggthegame.com or nixhydra.com

Join ‘Dot Complicated with Randi Zuckerberg’ this Wednesday when Julia Wang of pregnancy /  parenting site The Bump joins the show! Only on SiriusXM Business Channel 111 at 12pm.

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