RECAP: 4th Annual Black In Gaming Awards Spotlights Industry Brilliance
Awardees included a range of Black talent including game developers, non-profit leaders, media professionals, a voice actor, current executive leaders and a retired president.
Thirteen African-American/Afro video game professionals from across the industry were formally recognized for their work and commitment during the 4th Annual Black In Gaming Awards on Sunday, Sept 13.
This year’s awardees included renowned names Reggie Fils-Aimé, former president and chief executive officer of Nintendo of America, Chris Judge, voice actor of main character “Kratos” in the critically-acclaimed God of War game and Kymberly Bryant, founder and CEO of Black Girls Code, a not-for-profit organization that focuses on providing technology education for African-American girls. The awards show, also a part of this year’s PAX Online, was hosted by Black In Gaming, an action special interest group within the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), the world’s largest nonprofit membership organization serving all individuals who create games.
Shana Bryant, a producer and 14-year gaming industry veteran, was excited during her award speech in receiving BIG’s Image Award. For her, 2020 has been a year of reflection in looking back on the challenges, learning the lessons she’s faced and where she wants her own story to go from here.
“Back in the day there was no ‘Black In Gaming’, no awards, no incubators and few of any of peers and mentors looked like me. Nevertheless, [I] persisted and fought for what I believe this industry could be: More,” said Bryant. “I learned how critical it is to find your community. This is my community.”
“If its one thing almost two decades in this industry has taught me: Change doesn’t happen by accident and that it doesn’t happen overnight,” she said. “Our stories and our perspectives are good and necessary to enacting social change, on and off the sticks.”
“I got to open my award right here in my home with my children standing next to me. Their [enjoyment] and delight was something to behold,” said Sarah Bond, Head of Global Gaming Partnerships and Development, Xbox and Microsoft, who was awarded the BIG’s Champion Award. “Gaming has an incredible power that no other media form has, which is one of the few ways that you can actually experience something from another person’s perspective.”
“When we create diversity in gaming […] we actually shatter barriers, we change preconceptions, and we move society forward,” said Bond. Bond was an important member of the team who introduced Xbox Game Pass, a video game subscription service from Microsoft for use with its Xbox One console and Windows 10.
Fils-Aimé, awarded the BIG’s Legacy Award, used his award speech to recognize Jerry Lawson, a Black engineer who pioneered home video gaming in the 1970s by helping create the Fairchild Channel F, the first home video game system with interchangeable games.
“It’s very sad to me that Jerry’s name isn’t mentioned with so many of our other industry luminaries,” said Fils-Aimé. “Jerry created the first game cartilage system, which essentially gave birth to gaming consoles capable of playing hundreds, then thousands of video games. He truly is one of our industries gaming giants.”
During his speech, Fils-Aimé also empowered the online audience that one doesn’t have to code to be a legend in the industry.
“I never made a video game. I never created a character. I never wrote code. I never mixed sound. What I did do was lead an organization and impacted the overall culture of Nintendo, and in so doing, magical things happened,” he said.
According to the details of the event, Black In Gaming created unique categories for each award that highlighted the achievements that the selected awardees have made during the duration of their careers. On IGDA’s website, BIG strives to “bring awareness and activism into the game industry in regards to race and discrimination.” The award show was sponsored by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Niantic Inc. and Unity Technologies.
FULL LIST OF AWARDEES:
- Legacy Award – Reggie Fils-Aimé, Former President of Nintendo
- Lifetime Achievement – Mike Pondsmith, R. Talsorian Games
- Performance Award – Chris Judge, Voice of Kratos in God of War
- Champion Award – Sarah Bond, Xbox
- Excellence in Programming – Raymond Graham, Unity
- Excellence in Product & Design – Marcus Montgomery, Oculus
- Education Award – Kymberly Bryant, Black Girls Code
- Industry Spotlight Award – Keisha Howard, Sugar Gamers
- Indie Developer Award – Aurion: Legacy of the Kori-Odan
- Excellence in Media Award – Kahlief Adams, Spawn On Me Podcast
- Excellence in Artistry – Erlson Neba, Bethesda
- Image Award – Shana Bryant, Crystal Dynamics
- Social & Economic Initiative Award – Roderick Woodruff, Urban Video Game Academy
WATCH THE FULL AWARDS SHOW HERE (CLICK IMAGE):
