Allison Carter

allison.carter@indystar.com

For the first time, more women than men will serve on Gen Con's Industry Insiders Featured Presenters list. 13 women and 12 men will host seminars and attend panels during the mega-convention, which runs from Aug. 4-7.

Why does this matter? Women in gaming — video, tabletop, you name it — have been a hot-button topic for years. Just see the ongoing #GamerGate controversy. Last year, Gen Con itself courted controversy by initially announcing plans to have a "Writing Women Friendly Comics" panel that included no women. After an outcry, women were added to the panel.

Gen Con Indy 2015 Costume Parade and Contest

In introducing its Featured Presenters, Gen Con touted the lineup as being "as diverse as the program itself."

Jessica Price, a tabletop gaming manager and Featured Presenter, wrote in a blog that "five years ago, the ratio of women to men in the Insiders was 1:16 (6.25%). Two years ago, it was 4 out of 25 (16%)."

"I don’t think I can emphasize enough how big of a deal this is. Gen Con last year had over 60,000 attendees. I can’t think of another gaming convention that size that had a featured speaker lineup with actual gender parity," Price wrote.

Allison Carter is an engagement producer at IndyStar. Follow her on Twitter @AllisonLCarter.

Gen Con to expand into Lucas Oil Stadium