SOE courts female developers

Sony Online Entertainment is attempting to lure more women into the games industry by offering a $10,000 scholarship and paid internships.

Students of any of the 35 Art Institutes in the US are eligible for the scholarship, while the internships are available to students of accredited universities.

"It is a misdirection that women don’t like video games," said SOE publicist Tania Rodriguez. "If more women make games, then more women will play games and get excited about making games. We want to strengthen that cycle."

A Sony-sponsored survey of female students of game courses at The Art Institutes showed that around half of those questioned believed that more women would play games designed by women.

"We are under-represented," SOE’s Devra Pransky told AFP after the GDC announcement. "Video game making is male dominated and we need to change that."