Xbox Live team launches video praising next summer's Kickstarter-funded convention Gaymercon.
Next summer's LGBT gaming and geek lifestyle convention Gaymercon has drawn the support of one of the largest players in the industry: Microsoft. Xbox Live developers have launched a video (embedded below), showing why its employees are looking forward to the convention.
Gaymercon is the result of a successful Kickstarter campaign. With just over a day to go, the fund has rocketed past its $25,000 original target, amassing over $76,000 from more than 1,300 backers. The convention will take place August 3-4, 2013 in San Francisco, California and is open to the public.
According to its Kickstarter page description, Gaymercon aims to dispel stereotypes and provide a safe place for gamers of all sizes, genders, races, and sexual identities.
“At Microsoft we value the ideas and leadership of all of our employees and believe an inclusive and diverse community is important to a thriving Xbox Live," a Microsoft spokesperson told GameSpot. "This video was an employee-driven effort to show support of GaymerCon’s Kickstarter campaign and had the full support of Xbox Live leadership.”
Microsoft has previously handled LGBT members of its online communities with some controversy. In 2009, Microsoft banned a gamer for self-identifying as a lesbian on Xbox Live. Microsoft later apologized, characterizing its own policies as "inelegant."
Eddie Makuch (Mack-ooh) is a News Editor at GameSpot. He works out of the company's Boston office in Somerville, Mass., and loves extra chunky peanut butter.
LOL. Yeah, San Fran would definitely be the place to have such an event. I don't see why this is news, though. I don't see how 76k can fund any kind of decent conference but whatever... I think i'll probably not attend this one... It would be nice to either exile or expunge or turn-into-a-parking-lot the entire state of Cali, though. Open-mindedness if that's what you call it..... it can't make up for having a state full of socialists. Well, enjoy your "colorful people", high state-income tax and $5 gas! I'll be as geographically far away from Cali as I can possibly be. (and still be in the US, anyways)
@Stevo_the_gamer Totally! San Francisco encourages people to be who they are without an environment of discrimination, disapproval, shame or hatred for a person's beliefs, feelings, or lifestyle regardless of race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. Hell yeah, San Francisco!
@AhvrenStone@Shadowdanc3r@Stevo_the_gamer Many major game developers are here too (not to mention most of the major internet companies), so be careful what you wish for. From my experience, SF is far more the nerd haven than the LGBT haven. But whatevs, people like to latch onto the LGBT thing because it's more controversial and chances are they've never been here so their imagination runs wild with the gayness.
@Shadowdanc3r@Stevo_the_gamer It didn't go over my head. But I'm totally serious about what I said. I've lived in SF for years and the city is about freedom of expression. It's famous for being an LGBT haven, but it goes beyond that.
If anything, the below comments have proved why Gaymerscon was deemed a good idea by both the organizers, those who supported the kickstarter campaign and Microsoft (along with other video game studios hopefully)
It's clearly needed in a word where homosexuals are openly called unnatural or sinful in an open forum like this. Gaymerscon will give LGTB people a place to interact, play and talk about video games without feeling subjugated by backwards-thinking bumpkins, the vocal minority.
Well, if you don't want to be hit on, why are you dressing in such a suggestive way? Shorts cut way above the knee, a neckline so low that chest hair is showing... what do you expect!?!? ;)
@DS_fan_atic I will repeat this again so you can get it through your bigoted skull. There is NOTHING, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING wrong with a person disagreeing with the ACT of homosexuality. It does NOT make them bigots, it does not make them assholes. However, trying to FORCE, to SHOVE your ideas on us DOES. You are one of the biggest hypocrites on this site, what you are saying is that YOU can disagree with us but we CANT disagree with you. What you are saying is also that UNLESS we AGREE with you that homosexuality is this great wonderful thing, then we are all assholes and bigots.
I couldn't have said it better myself, either you agree with them (gays) or you don't have the right to have an opinion on the matter, who the hell are they to tell us what to think?
I'm over here trying to understand what there is to "agree" upon? Nobody asked you to permit or disapprove a homosexual relationship, it doesn't matter what you think. People seem to think that they should pass judgment on whatever little slice of someone else's life that they can get a hold of, even when it rarely or minimally overlaps with their own life. Humans have been engaging in same-sex relationships probably since the "beginning", whether it is sexual or platonic. To all of you I say, broaden your perspective a little, there isn't any place in this world for you to disapprove of how someone else breathes or loves.
@dreamfist11 You seem to think that you're entitled to both your own opinions and your own facts. You're actually only entitled to the former, not the latter.
Is a person that stands by their genuine beliefs any better or worse than a person that genuinely stands against it? Do as you will, stand by your own personal convictions, just don?t shove it down my throat, no pun intended?.
lol, Microsoft has changed their tune, I distinctly recall them telling to one of their XBL members that she couldn't disclose her sexuality in an open manner via her profile. Microsoft will do anything for good publicity among the LGBT community...
can a specific LGBT convention be considered discriminatory against straight people ? as far as i know i dont think the other conventions are targetted specifically at LGBT people.. and i havent come across any discrimination against LGBT people whenever i have attended GamesCom.. so why the other way round ?
@sapphey_snake@dreamfist11 But you could say the same exact thing about any other convention, the thing is, I don't think heterosexual men would feel comfortable in that environment, the real question is, why don't (and sorry if this is the wrong word) homosexuals feel comfortable, if that's the case, at a place like PAX or E3? There's no discrimination there, I just think this seems a bit unneeded. The thing is, it should never be about sex related ideals, and that's just what this is.
PAX, and what have you isn't called Hetero-PAX, or Hetero-E3, so why does this need to be targeted towards a certain croup of people, when what we already have is targeted towards everyone? It's not a heterosexual's fault that one other person that thinks differently is shy about how they feel. The thing is, and this is a reply to @DubYew comment here as well, is that it doesn't matter whether everyone can go to Gaymercon, it is that it's blatantly targeted towards certain groups, and just with that, it takes away from the whole equality idea we're all trying to strive toward, we won't achieve it with things like this.
It's not hard to see the logic in all of this. Or I could be wrong, it is for everyone, but they put a lot of emphasis on sexual demographics, but why is that needed when it comes to anything game related?
@anvilone@sapphey_snake@dreamfist11@DubYew But that's different. It may be for women, and sure, you can say that that's a little sexist in a way, but it has nothing to do with your sexual preference. In the end, it's not really as bad. Also, these people aren't minorities as much as they are outcasts, or at least that's what they'd like to think of themselves as, and that's the problem.
@NTM23@sapphey_snake@dreamfist11@DubYew Simply put, the LGBT community is a small minority. For minorities to be involved/represented in mainstream conversation, they need to be vocal, stand up a little taller, and speak a little louder to be heard. Therefore having clubs, groups, clans, YouTube channels, Facebook pages, and conventions all make sense for visibility. Inviting others to participate is a positive way of saying "We're here, and we want to hang out too." In gaming, women are the minority. Would there be so much hemming and hawing if it were a game convention for girls? I think most people would applaud the idea; wanting more women/diversity in the gaming world. The same should go for LGBT and any other minority.
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