Gayming Magazine is a British online LGBTQ video gaming magazine. The first video gaming website dedicated to the LGBTQ community, the site was launched in June 2019 with the aim of connecting the LGBTQ and video gaming communities, and has launched virtual Pride events. In 2021, the magazine hosted the world's first LGBTQ+ gaming awards ceremony, Gayming Awards. Its editor-in-chief is Aimee Hart.[2]
Gayming Magazine debuted its event Gayming LIVE Online in 2022,[3] which aims to bring video games, drag artists and queer culture under one virtual roof.
History
Gayming Magazine was revealed at the London Games Festival in April 2019.[4] According to founder Robin Gray, the LGBTQ+ community had been a niche of the video gaming community, and they wanted to celebrate that and bring the two communities closer together.[4] The site was launched in June.[5] In September, the site was nominated for a Women in Games Advocacy award.[6] A live event, Gayming Live, was run between 30 September and 5 October, which featured LGBTQ+ gaming artists and journalists, and writers from Fusebox Games offered writing tips.[5] Within its first year it was reported to have a readership of 17,000.[7]
During Summer 2020, Gayming Magazine hosted DIGIPRIDE 2020, a digital Pride event, emphasising the importance of getting through the COVID-19 pandemic and noting that normal Pride events were being cancelled.[8] The site was nominated for another Women in Games award in September 2020.[9]
Gayming Awards
Gayming Awards 2021
In July 2020, Gayming Magazine hosted the world's first LGBTQ+ gaming awards ceremony, Gayming Awards.[10] Presented by Electronic Arts (EA), the awards were supported by The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment. The first ceremony was held virtually in February 2021 and hosted by Suzi Ruffell.[10] The panel of judges consisted of more than twenty LGBTQ people,[11] though the public voted on the Best LGBTQ+ Streamer and Gayming Magazine Readers’ Awards categories.[1] Voting took place in November and December 2020,[1] with all games released in 2020 being eligible.[10]
The full list of winners[12] of the Gayming Awards 2021 are as follows:
The digital-only ceremony was watched by over 150,000 unique viewers around the world, making it the largest LGBTQ+ event on Twitch over the past year.[13]
Gayming Awards 2022
The Gayming Awards, presented by Twitch, returned in-person in April 2022.[14] As before, the ceremony was live streamed on Twitch and IGN and was watched by over 320,000 people in 97 countries.
LGBTQ Streamer Rising Star Class of '23: BetweenTwoGays (Jayce & Ryan), Blobarella, itsOnlyVega, MadiDuVernay, Marisol Lords, TheJustRyan
Best LGBTQ Contribution to Esports: XSET
LGBTQ Tabletop Game Award: Adventuring with Pride – A Queero’s Journey
Best LGBTQ Comic Book Moment: Young Men in Love – A Wave Blue World
Gayming LIVE
Gayming LIVE Online logo
Gayming LIVE, a virtual event created by Gayming Magazine, is a convention celebrating all things queer geek culture. The three-day event will play host to game play streams, panel talks, drag performances, celebrity & voice actor virtual meet & greets, exclusive competitions, indie game festival, virtual marketplace, and more.[5][7] Gayming LIVE Online is headlined by Jiggly Caliente, Juice Boxx, and Rock M Sakura, from RuPaul’s Drag Race, as well as Biqtch Puddin’ and Erika Klash from The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula.
