"There Are No Women and They All Play Mercy": Understanding and Explaining (the Lack of) Women's Presence in Esports and Competitive Gaming

This Nordic DiGRA 2018 paper by Ruotsalainen and Friman investigates why women remain scarce in esports and competitive gaming, arguing that the explanation lies in cultural structures rather than any deficit in skill. Drawing on a questionnaire completed by 737 Finnish women gamers and on discussion threads from the former Overwatch official forums during 2016 to 2018, the authors contend that the field is shaped by toxic meritocracy and hegemonic geek masculinity, which constrain both women's access to competitive play and their recognition within it. The work positions women's room for participation as extremely narrow, both in terms of how many women take part and in the forms their participation can legitimately take.

The survey evidence shows that 13.5 percent of the women respondents had considered competing. Among those who had not, the most common reasons were a dislike of competitiveness, a lack of interest in esports titles, and a sense of insufficient skill, with gender-related concerns and community toxicity recurring as significant themes. Forum discussions largely attributed the absence of women in the Overwatch League to cultural and environmental factors rather than biology, often citing research finding negligible gender differences in gaming skill. The signing of the player Geguri was widely framed as merit-based, although her gender nonetheless became a focal point of debate.

A further finding concerns the association of women with the character Mercy. Women players frequently justified playing her by pointing to team needs, the character's background and design, and their enjoyment of supportive roles. Yet many respondents, including male players mistaken for women or identified as queer, reported disliking her or never playing her, and noted pressure to play Mercy despite competence with other heroes. The authors conclude that Mercy functions as a narrow, tolerated but subordinate position for women, reflecting gender-essentialist assumptions and a masculinized competitive culture that leaves women's participation in esports precarious.