Stephanie Harkin
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saharkin.bsky.social
Stephanie Harkin
@saharkin.bsky.social
580 followers 300 following 27 posts
Lecturer at RMIT researching feminine gaming | she/her
Author: Girlhood Games: Gender, Identity and Coming of Age in Videogames
Curator Feminine Play: feminineplay.org
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saharkin.bsky.social
My book is out! 💗
Girlhood Games: Gender, Identity and Coming of Age in Videogames is a 6-year-long labour of love for young adult stories, teen heroines in videogames and unnoticed girly game histories.
Thank you @livvy.itch.io for the beautiful cover!

www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi...
Book cover for "Girlhood Game: Gender, Identity, and Coming of Age in Video Games." A youthful feminine bedroom is depicted, centring on a computer desk setup with game accessories.
October 1, 2025 at 11:29 PM
saharkin.bsky.social
We also talked about the Bowser Big Brother house continuous comic - which I found again! It ran from issue 60 of NGC magazine.
September 12, 2025 at 11:42 PM
saharkin.bsky.social
Dolly magazine’s Sims Fest! (Not Girlfriend magazine, whoops!)
September 11, 2025 at 12:57 AM
saharkin.bsky.social
RMIT Games now has a bluesky account — for students, alumni, industry folk and any wanting to see updates, news, events, accolades, media and more from our students and staff 🧚‍♀️
@rmitgames.bsky.social
Screenshot of profile and banner for 'RMIT Games' bluesky account.
March 20, 2025 at 12:25 AM
saharkin.bsky.social
More!
Two people sit at a round table playing a card game. 3 adults and 1 child are seated at computers in a row playing games. A child hyper-stylised with a large head holding a net and a jar is depicted on an old Apple G3 computer. A person is seated at a table playing the game with the back of their head visible. In a large open space 4 people sit at a long rectangular table in front of a crowd of people; the first row sitting on the floor while others stand behind them.
November 12, 2024 at 6:34 AM
saharkin.bsky.social
Still floored by the enthusiasm of visitors and the wisdom of panelists at Feminine Play's Opening Night.
Thanks to everyone who made the evening so special.

And to Matto Lucas for the beautiful photographs!
These were commissioned by Creative Vic as part of Melbourne International Games Week 2024.
People are seated playing games while others stand behind them to watch. An information decal titled 'Feminine Play' (text indistinguishable) is on the wall in the background and fairy lights hang overhead. A plastic figurine of a dog sits inside a tiny plastic bathtub inside a plexiglass-cased PC. The images is framed by florals attached to the outside of the PC. The backs of two figures in shadow are viewing a tarot-inspired projection on the wall. The projection depicts a figure with red glyphs on their arm holding a sickle that drips blood. A person holds an smart phone that displays an AR game that features Banh Chung meal preparation.
November 12, 2024 at 6:34 AM
saharkin.bsky.social
Big thank you to everyone who visited Feminine Play! You can now view/download an online version of the catalogue at feminineplay.org with beautiful art from all the exhibited works and an essay by @jtg.design @mahliann.bsky.social and I about femininity and games :)
Catalogue cover that reads Feminine Play 2-page table of contents Preview of the first page of the catalogue essay titled ‘Feminine Play’
October 18, 2024 at 11:41 PM
saharkin.bsky.social
I’m not on Bluesky as much as I’d like, but Feminine Play is coming together really beautifully and I’ll be posting updates on this new Instagram page if you’d like to follow along 🙏💕

www.instagram.com/feminineplay...

Pictured: Little Ruin by Lucernal ❤️
August 31, 2024 at 7:42 AM
saharkin.bsky.social
I picked up a bunch of second-hand Total Girl magazines recently and this single spread captures 2007 preteen girl Australia better than anything I’ve ever seen
A photo of a magazine’s Sims 2 comic, zoomed in on the profiles of three young women Sims characters A double page magazine spread featuring an ongoing comic based on the Sims 2
January 10, 2024 at 12:53 AM
saharkin.bsky.social
Bit harsh on the huggability ratings
And double page of Nintendo’s Girl Gamer magazine with the article heading “Who’s The Cutest?” featuring different videogame characters evaluated on “looks” “furriness” and “huggability” out of 5 stars. Only Kirby’s huggability (4/5) exceeds 3 stars.
December 22, 2023 at 6:00 AM