There are hundreds of custom Minecraft events and tournaments run each month – but how many can you name that are led by women? Whilst women and other marginalised genders frequent the event scene as players, the vast majority of events – especially those considered more competitive, more well-known, or more prestigious – have men at the helm and/or as the primary visible presence in a position of power.
For Women’s History Month, I want to spotlight the voices of fellow women who have stepped into top leadership roles in the event scene – sharing their experiences as women in these positions, exploring whether they consider gender important to their identity as organisers, and discussing how their experiences with gender affects their leadership choices and how they aim to make their own communities a safe and uplifting space for other women.
Back row L-R: Zingzy (Solar Skirmish), Zuite (Chrunchy Christmas), Mollyyxy (Girloffs), SomethinglikeAmy (Cube Championships), VelvetAshes (Cube Championships).
“I may not run the largest event out there, but I am proud to be a woman in this space,” FiveEyesStreams, or Fives, tells me. Fives is the owner of Sink Or Swim, a livestreamed gameshow inspired by Survivor, where the audience can influence the game in real time through Twitch chat. While backed by a small staff team, Fives participates and oversees every element of production. “I have a unique position where I am the voice and host of the show and, even though I represent myself as a VTuber, I think it’s important for others to hear voices like mine in the community. I hope I can inspire other women to follow their passions in hosting and participating in Minecraft events.”
“I do think being a woman is an important part of my identity as a Minecraft event organiser,” zskv says. Zskv is the owner of SMP Showdown, a minigame tournament where members of different SMPs compete against each other. “It kind of affects how I see things, especially when it comes to building a community and making sure people feel included.”
Not every woman event organiser considers their gender important to their identity as an event organiser, however. “I think at times, I would have a bigger presence in the community if I were a man, and that could have more easily given me connections to grow both my content and my events,” says Mollyyxy, who runs speedrunning tournament Girloffs, “but I think regardless of my gender, I would be doing stuff very similarly.”
“Every host is creating something amazing at the end of the day, for people all around the world to connect,” says Cl1pz, who primarily makes civilisation events through her event studio, Cl1pz’s Igloo. “That’s what I think the focus should be on regarding identity as well as the type of person I am as a whole, instead of gender.”
Despite making some incredible events, it’s an unfortunate truth that women organisers, like myself and those I spoke to, may be treated less favourably due to our gender. One way this can occur is through false assumptions being made about our role, or misgendering us due to these positions. There have been multiple instances where someone has instantly assumed me to be a man because I direct an event studio and am in charge of Sphere News. In one event I ran, I was apparently transvestigated by a player who presumably didn’t believe a cis woman was capable of running an event like the one they were playing – managing to be both transphobic and misogynistic at once.
I’m not the only one who has been at the receiving end of these false assumptions. “Every so often, I will be misgendered in-game or during stream despite my pronouns being listed in several places across my profile or in-game,” Fives tells me. “I understand it may be difficult to discern my gender by appearance, since I use a non-humanoid VTuber model to represent myself, and I wear a Minecraft skin that matches that model, but that doesn’t make me any less a woman.”
“I’ve hesitated to apply to opportunities featuring women creators because I worry I do not present myself as ‘feminine enough’ to deserve to be featured alongside some of the other amazing women in the community,” Fives continues. “In fact, to my recollection, this interview is the first time I have been formally acknowledged as a woman across my entire content creation journey.”
It’s not just assumptions of gender, but also skill. “Some other people who are also involved in the event community have assumed that I lack the knowledge or skill to be able to produce a good quality event, or to present myself well as a whole,” Cl1pz tells me. “My main message as an event host is to keep creativity flowing and to always prove people wrong – so if anything, the assumptions just keep me going and keep me creating!”
While of course assumptions can be harmful, women organisers may be subject to more direct discrimination in addition. “There have been a few times where people have spammed my DMs with really hurtful or hateful stuff because of who I am, including some death threats,” zskv says.
“Before I was in the event community there was already a stigma around being a woman, and people would react to my messages with a tea emoji,” says Zingzy, who co-owns Solar Skirmish alongside MxAero and Knapp, as well as being the main developer for the event. “Ever since I have come to the event community, it has always been positive, which is very nice.”
“Being sexualised and others not respecting boundaries has been a past problem for me, but as I got more involved in hosting events, I realised the gain of attention from the players seemed to make things worse,” says Cl1pz. “In my first event, for example, I banned fourteen out of eighty players just for calling me nicknames that were inappropriate.”
While being a woman in a Minecraft event leadership position comes with challenges, the organisers also shared their positive experiences of being a woman in the space.
“It feels like there is a sense of women looking out for each other in the event space, and that is very nice,” Zingzy says. “I have participated in a couple of woman-only charity events in the past, which have been very fun to play in.”
“I don’t think the specific event of Girloffs would’ve existed if I wasn’t a woman,” adds Mollyyxy, “so I’m very thankful for being a woman and being able to host such a wonderful event with wonderful girls in it.”
“When I first came out, I was incredibly worried and concerned that people would react negatively and pester me for it, because some people in the community I originally hailed from were misogynistic,” says SomethinglikeAmy, co-owner of minigame tournament Cube Championships. “Instead what I got was messages of support from both my friends and people who I didn’t even speak to at the time.”
“I am proud to say that I’ve met so many amazing women across my time as a content creator in the Minecraft space,” Fives tells me. “So many of them inspire me to push my limits as a creator and artist and I am grateful for every single one of them. Everyone has made such a profound impression on me and encouraged me to improve with every passing day. To me, Minecraft represents a community, and community means everyone – including women.”
Because many of the organisers have experienced misogyny in the community themselves, they’re also aware of the importance of creating a safe, inclusive, and uplifting space for women within their own communities. One way to do this is through the clear establishment and enforcement of rules and expectations for players.
“I try to make it a space where respect and inclusivity are just expected from the start,” says zskv. “That means having clear rules, not putting up with harassment or discrimination, and actually enforcing those rules when needed.”
“If something happens in a voice call or chat related to our event, I am quick to punish and remove the offender from the event in entirety,” Zingzy agrees.
“I like encouraging positive interactions too and pointing out when people are being kind or helpful, because it helps set the standard for everyone else,” zskv adds.
Another important thing to do is to ensure there are paths for communication – both for reporting issues when they occur, and for feedback about improving systems. “Cube Championships has a ticket system which players can use to report participants who may make women feel unsafe,” SomethinglikeAmy tells me. “These tickets are only shared between me and VelvetAshes to ensure safety.”
“I keep multiple avenues open for communication from players to promote safety,” says Fives. “I make it clear to them, every chance that I get, that the team is here to accommodate their needs. The safety and enjoyment of the players is more important to me than any other aspect of the event. I absolutely would not hesitate to remove someone from the competition if they were being disrespectful or made someone feel unsafe.”
“I’ve been talking to my players as much as possible, getting input as well as trying to make a friendly environment,” Mollyyxy says. “It’s a competitive event, so I know a lot of people get nervous easily, but I want everyone to be as comfortable as possible. I think if the players are happy and engaged it makes organising a lot easier for me as well.”
Crafting an invite list to include positive role models, and exclude players known to be misogynistic, is another way to support women and marginalised genders. “I always try my best to keep my events and projects safe for others to take part in,” says Zuite, the lead organiser of Chrunchy Christmas. “I personally do not handle player management, but I always have a say in who we are inviting.”
Another suggestion is displaying players’ pronouns to reduce the chance of accidental misgendering. “In-game, we have pronouns on display for all players to see,” says Fives. If not in-game, player announcement graphics are another good place to put this information.
While some of the organisers tell me that gender isn’t considered when choosing players, and that inclusion of women and marginalised genders happens naturally, other organisers take a proactive approach to ensuring representation in their events. This doesn’t mean selecting players purely to fit a quota, but rather ensuring the final cast isn’t drastically unbalanced in favour of men.
“Since each season consists of only ten players, we have to be very intentional with deciding who makes the cut,” says Fives. “Representation is important in an event like this because every player gets a lot of screentime compared to traditional events. We want to choose players with unique backgrounds and personalities to show the audience the range that the Minecraft community contains. Plus, having a diverse cast of gender and background makes for a better competition – everyone has their own perspective! Sure, it’s ‘just’ a Minecraft gameshow, but it’s also a snapshot of a larger online community. Everyone deserves the chance to see themselves in the competition, so we try our best to make that a reality.”
Other organisers choose to run events specifically for players of marginalised genders – for example speedrunning tournament Girloffs being inherently for players who identify as girls. However, it’s not just representation for players that Mollyyxy wants to achieve. “I really wanted to showcase a lot of girl commentators in Girloffs as well,” she says. “There are so many girl commentators who are great and insightful and don’t see an opportunity to show it.
While events like Girloffs are women-dominant by nature, other events – including Cube Championships – run special editions for occasions like Women’s History Month. “We’re running an event for Women’s History Month that highlights primarily women and other marginalised genders,” says VelvetAshes, co-owner of the event.
The organisers I spoke to also had some advice to share for women wanting to organise their own events.
“There is rarely a time when you’ll feel completely ready – you just have to go for it,” Fives says. “You already know what you would like to see in the event space, so why not make it happen yourself? You don’t have to be the best at everything for your contributions to be valuable. Every success you find opens the path for more to follow, and every struggle you face makes you a stronger person, so go do that difficult thing! Smile in the face of adversity!”
“Just trust yourself and your ideas, and don’t let anyone make you doubt what you’re capable of,” zskv adds. “It’s okay to start small, but focus on making a positive, welcoming space and lead by example. Most importantly, stay confident. Your perspective as a woman matters, and it can make your events more inclusive and better for everyone!”
About The Author
