Dom is one of our Autistica Play Ambassadors and works for Ukie. We wanted to find out how he got involved in games and what advice he’d give to autistic people who want to work in the games industry.

Describe what you do in the games industry.

I am the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Coordinator for Ukie – the UK trade body for video games and interactive entertainment. My role involves providing advice and guidance to companies, putting on activities and events, networking with various games professionals and overall encouraging, amplifying and empowering EDI matters across the UK games industry; striving for a more accessible, inclusive and transparent sector altogether.

How did you get into it? 


I had been hovering around that industry for 4-5 years since I graduated from university in 2015 but sadly, I hadn’t found much luck in securing a stable income or a longstanding job. However, over the years I was able to develop my skills, build my network and I made some good connections with a range of games professionals such as Dr Jo Twist OBE, CEO of Ukie.

Through those links, I became Office Manager for Ukie covering maternity leave in 2020. While in the job I would do a multitude of tasks, including helping team members sort out the logistics for their events. One such event was the double launch of the UK Games Industry Census Report and the #RaiseTheGame pledge that occurred in February 2020, which would start Ukie’s external campaigning and work around diversity and inclusion. I was only ever required to help out with the preparations for the event, yet I soon found myself helping with bits of admin and the website after launch.

Of course, who would expect Covid-19 and the global lockdown around the corner in March 2020? I worked as part of the Operations team to ensure Ukie were able to work remotely. With this move, however, my role altered since use of the office was restricted. I found myself doing more work around Ukie’s online infrastructure and making sure people could work in a positive, remote environment. It also meant I had the option to volunteer to take on more work, which is where my ongoing efforts towards Ukie’s EDI work became even more valuable.

Around October 2020, Ukie’s senior management team were starting to consider the previous Office Manager’s return to Ukie and my place going forward. I am happy to say I wasn’t made redundant and Ukie created my current EDI Coordinator role.

The fact I am fortunate enough to be considered an invaluable employee, positive colleague and overall reliable individual worth keeping on really makes me want to cry with joy.

What do you think you bring to it as an autistic person? 


I feel I bring an outside-the-box perspective, it may be a general term to say that autistic people think differently than most, yet I really do feel that is the case while working at Ukie. I feel my quirky outlook has not only benefited my team professionally when considering aspects outside the norm, but I feel it has allowed me to stand out and connect with colleagues more genuinely.

On top of this I feel the fact I identify myself with a range of minorities (LGBTQ+, neurodiverse, low socio-economic background) alongside my overall experience and upbringing allows me to acknowledge, understand and connect with many elements of my work; couple that with my energetic nature, OCD level focus and bombastic passion to create the diamond in the rough that is me!

What change would you most like to see in the games industry in relation to autism? 

I think there is still a long way still to go for greater inclusion and representation within the games industry around neurodiversity in general; within companies, in the minds of professionals, and in the games we play. Nevertheless, I'm really happy that people are starting to be open to change and make the effort to include more autistic and overall neurodiverse individuals within this sector.

I feel it's worth noting that presenting myself as someone who's open to talk about my experience and my neurodiversity aspects has helped a lot of people within the networks I’m in to understand autism and neurodiversity more. Having arranged meetings where I, quite literally, give people in the industry just some 101 basics around Autism and Dyslexia has helped. I feel it undeniably highlights the importance of role models or advocates in industries that are open to any questions, can squash negative stigmas and overall be seen to spread more inclusive messages around diversity dimensions like neurodiversity.

The top change I would currently like to see is more positive autistic characters in games. There is a clear connection between the value of play and video games to autistic individuals.

What could employers do to support more autistic people working in the games industry? 

Read, follow and engage with all the content present in this article that I worked on with the amazing Hannah Cass and Helen Carmichael who have also both been Autistica Play ambassadors. It’s a shameless plug but honestly, we put good amount of work into this piece to make it suitable for comprehensive first steps that are simple, tangible and easy to implement. It also includes a signpost link to a piece I previously did on behalf of Autistica towards GamesIndustry.Biz around 10 top tips to consider around neurodiversity within a games company.

I would also suggest employers openly challenge themselves to review their processes, environments and work to think how they can be more inclusive and create a sense of belonging that promotes culture add rather than culture fit.

What advice would you give to an autistic person who wants to get involved/start working in the games industry?

Once you see a spark of interest in an area of a game you like, research it. Learn and understand everything about that discipline, job and role. Into Games Careers Directory can help you and once you have enough understanding, decide how you want to get there.

All the while networking with people in the industry, attending virtual and in-person events to build connections, and start building your stairways to the place you want to be that Ukie and many other organisations are more than happy to assist with.

What’s even better is if you change your mind or discover a new area of interest in the games industry you want to pursue, you are open to explore that. The possibilities are endless – you’ve got to start somewhere and make that first move!