Sexuality in Mass Effect

[Pyode]

-snip-

I 100% agree. To be honest, I really don't understand what the problem is here. It's obvious that Bioware isn't entirely opposed to having a gay or bisexual character, so it stands to reason that if they didn't put the option in this game because they didn't feel like it. They don't always have to cater to every demographic. Let them tell the story that they want to tell.

Of course, the main problem with the OP's complaint is that there technically is no lesbian option either. Asari are mono-gendered. They are not actually "female" so it is impossible for them to be lesbians.

Before anyone gets on my case, yes, I realize that the mono-gendered thing is a huge cop-out. Bioware wanted to be able to have some girl on girl action without having to worry about too much media backlash, but that doesn't change the fact that, as of now, neither Fem or Male Shepard have had gay sex. (Kelly doesn't count, you cant have sex with her)

 

[Vrex360]

I can see your point, there is kind of an unfair double standard that a female Shepard can have both but a man can only have women, while I think Mass Effect is a well crafted piece of work with indications like that you can see why people would think it only panders to the immature male sex fantasy drive. However, I'm not sure if Mass Effect is the right choice, it was pushing a few boundries having sex scenes at all even ones tastefully shot, especially given that they can be between humans and aliens, so I'm not sure how the media would react to say Commander Shepard and Urdnot Wrex's passionate love.
So while I see your point and want more elements of homosexuality in games, I think that given how much the media reacted to the first it seems unlikely they will try it.

P.S Sort of on topic I have yet to play Mass Effect 2, but when I do I can assure you all that Shepard is going to remain faithful to Ashley Williams. Partly because I don't want my Shepard to be the kind of asshole who would be unfaithful to someone who loves him especially after everything that's happened, and partly because I really don't want some kind of soap opera ish 'why did you betray me' kind of thing happening for the third.

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

Stab in the dark here, with the dull hope that lurking somewhere in the shadows is what i was aiming for in the first place.

"Gay Girl Gamers" as you so eloquently and alliterately coined is a target market so small, that the games developers would have more commercial success building a game for dead giraffes.

Nothing personal, you're just a group of people too small to register in the industry.

But GGG's are catered to by Mass Effect, since FemShep can be played as LesbianShep. So by your own reasoning, if Bioware will cater to my tiny demographic, surely they can cater to gay male gamers, who by virtue of being male are probably far more numerous.

You sure?
You sure that it's not an option for straight men who just want to observe lesbians? That's a profitable idea, no offense.
It kinda looks like it.

 

[RatRace123]

I think it's more of a call back to the old Captain Kirk style of integrating with alien species.

I don't think Bioware are homophobes though, they just know that considering the controversy about the first one, that including the option to be an active homosexual male in that would lead to a total furore, such is the double standards of the knee-jerk crowd in the mainstream media.

Also, I could imagine a situation where they might even face legal action by backwards parents, concerned that their child is playing 'This sick filth' as they would most probably call it.

I think they're just erring on the side of caution, they don't want any more bad rep for the series.

I'm pretty sure the Kirk/Shepard allusion is the reason for that, though it could be to appease the target demographic for Mass Effect 2, Young male, being mass effect is a scifi shooter, not unlike several other well known ones. At least that's my theory for straight and lesbian sex... or maybe in the future only lesbians exist.

 

[Mother Yeti]

How do you know Shepherd isn't gay? Maybe no one he can have sex with is gay, rendering it a moot point.

The fact that this discussion is resulting in some of the posts it is, it's fairly clear why they didn't include it: fandumb. You can't please everyone, and if you try (as with DA:O) then it will forever be referenced as "what they CAN do but chose not to."

Maybe it was cut for time. Or maybe, just maybe, they were exercising their right as the WRITERS to dictate a character trait. You aren't, after all, playing as *insert your name here* You could just as easily argue "why can't I play as gay Link?"

Could they have included it? Yes. Is it absolutely necessary? No. Is it somehow discriminatory that it's not included? No more than any other game.

It's no different from Resident Evil 5 or Left 4 Dead 2. We're finding controversy where there is none.

You couldn't just as easily argue for gay Link because Legend of Zelda isn't true roleplaying. You're playing as Link, who has a predetermined personality and reacts to things in a scripted way. The only real choice you're given in a Zelda game is what order to tackle to dungeons.

The word "controversy" is overused. I prefer "discussion."

In Mass Effect you are absolutely roleplaying; as you put it, playing as [Insert Name Here]. The protagonist has no given personality. Shepard's gender, first name, appearance, and behavior patterns are decided by the player. These behavior patterns include sexual preferences. So why is it that pretty all sexual preferences (including xenophilic) are available EXCEPT the combination of gay and male?

Basically: If they're going to allow a range of female sexualities, why aren't they allowing the same for males?

(I feel like I should put this sentence at the head of every post I make, since so many people are missing it.)

 

[GeekFury]

Well dur! Don't you realize that in the future, the gays were tired of people discriminating on them so they moved to a different universe?

To the Galaxy of Fabuloso? That would be the most tidy planets in the multiverse, not to mention alot of dancing.. I'm hetro and I want to go there!

 

[Mother Yeti]

Stab in the dark here, with the dull hope that lurking somewhere in the shadows is what i was aiming for in the first place.

"Gay Girl Gamers" as you so eloquently and alliterately coined is a target market so small, that the games developers would have more commercial success building a game for dead giraffes.

Nothing personal, you're just a group of people too small to register in the industry.

But GGG's are catered to by Mass Effect, since FemShep can be played as LesbianShep. So by your own reasoning, if Bioware will cater to my tiny demographic, surely they can cater to gay male gamers, who by virtue of being male are probably far more numerous.

You sure?
You sure that it's not an option for straight men who just want to observe lesbians? That's a profitable idea, no offense.
It kinda looks like it.

I must say, I find it kind of offensive that you're assuming only gay players would want to roleplay a gay character. I've roleplayed straight characters before of my own free will. I'm sure any number of straight males here accessed the Zevran sex scene in DA out of curiosity, or roleplayed a straight female Shepard.

 

[AC Medina]

After a couple Mass Effect sessions, I got to thinking about the romance options. I'm sure this has occurred to others, but still.

A female Shepard can romance both sexes. You can roleplay her as straight, gay, or somewhere in between; it's totally up to the player whom she's into. A male Shepard, on the other hand, can only romance women. Even if you WANT to play a gay ManShep, you're simply not allowed.

After Dragon Age, which allowed the PC to fall just about anywhere on the sexuality spectrum, I was sort of hoping that Bioware had come to understand that their audience is not entirely male and not entirely hetero. But no, apparently not. And as a gay girl gamer, I think that really sucks.

What do you think?

While I'd normally agree with you, I think you have to consider this:

Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect are actually really different in how they approach the idea of the protagonist. While DA:O is of the old-school *you are this person* mold in which you get to completely customize your player character's appearance and choose his or her dialogue word for word and completely control his or her actions, Mass Effect approaches it differently. Consider:

The dialogue wheel basically wrests some control away from the player. You get to choose the general direction of what Shepard is going to say, but he's gonna say it however he wants.

Ditto for having an actual voice. He doesn't sound like you imagined he would or how you'd like him to? Too bad.

The paragon/renegade actions. You don't know if he's gonna merely give a guy a push or shoot him in the head. More moments in which you don't have complete control.

The point I'm trying to make is, I think Bioware created a very specific character and, more so than completely control it, they want you to just experience it. (This, by the way, is *the* thing that makes Mass Effect so great.) And, since their conception of Shepard wasn't of a gay one, then you're not given that option. And, yes, I think this explains the difference between the male/female possibilities as well. I think it's pretty obvious that they consider the male Shepard the "canonical" choice--that that's the character they imagined and created. So the female Shepard is already "off-canon," so to speak, so you might as well do whatever with it.

 

[Pyode]

And dude, the attitude of "I don't mind gay people as long as they're not all in my face about it" is textbook homophobia.

No, it's not. There is a difference between not hiding the fact that your gay, and making sure everyone in the room knows you're gay. It's the latter that pisses most hetros off.

I've known quite a few homosexuals in my life, most of whom made no effort to hide it, but it never bothered me. It was only when someone made sure I knew, by grabbing his partners crotch right in front of me (yes, this actually happened) or randomly started making out with their partner. It's not just gays either, these things piss me off when straight people do them as well.

The point is, gay or straight, I don't want to know about your sex life or orientation unless I specifically ask you.

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

Stab in the dark here, with the dull hope that lurking somewhere in the shadows is what i was aiming for in the first place.

"Gay Girl Gamers" as you so eloquently and alliterately coined is a target market so small, that the games developers would have more commercial success building a game for dead giraffes.

Nothing personal, you're just a group of people too small to register in the industry.

But GGG's are catered to by Mass Effect, since FemShep can be played as LesbianShep. So by your own reasoning, if Bioware will cater to my tiny demographic, surely they can cater to gay male gamers, who by virtue of being male are probably far more numerous.

You sure?
You sure that it's not an option for straight men who just want to observe lesbians? That's a profitable idea, no offense.
It kinda looks like it.

I must say, I find it kind of offensive that you're assuming only gay players would want to roleplay a gay character. I've roleplayed straight characters before of my own free will. I'm sure any number of straight males here accessed the Zevran sex scene in DA out of curiosity, or roleplayed a straight female Shepard.

I must say, I find it kind of weird that you missed the point I was trying to make.
I'm assuming that straight men would want to roleplay to see lesbians, again, no offense. Not the other way around.

 

[Mother Yeti]

Oh no, it's one of those annoying fuckers how whine about this. Let me guess, you complained about there not being gay Na'vis in Avatar as well?

Seeing what you write to EspirituExterminatus have only made you seem ignorant and you will only cause hate towards homosexuals with what you write, good job.

OT; Because they didn't think it would fit? Have you seen the characters in Mass Effect? Would you kindly name one that would fit as being homosexual?

Am I whining? I'm just trying to foment discussion. Are you one of those people who thinks that "whining" is defined as "talking about something that doesn't interest me"?

The type of people who agree with EspirituExterminatus probably aren't exactly sympathetic to the equality cause to begin with, so I consider it no harm no foul. I wouldn't want to rouse them from their basements, anyway.

I don't care about Avatar, because Avatar wasn't a roleplaying game that allowed the player to assume pretty much any sexual identity (or none at all) except gay/bi male.

Any male character in Mass Effect could be gay or bisexual. No reason Garrus, for instance, couldn't express romantic admiration for a male Shepard; he's practically licking your boots by the end of ME1 anyway. I know this may shock you, so if your jaw shatters upon hitting the floor please don't blame me: Gay men don't always, or even usually, look or act different from straight men.

Stab in the dark here, with the dull hope that lurking somewhere in the shadows is what i was aiming for in the first place.

"Gay Girl Gamers" as you so eloquently and alliterately coined is a target market so small, that the games developers would have more commercial success building a game for dead giraffes.

Nothing personal, you're just a group of people too small to register in the industry.

But GGG's are catered to by Mass Effect, since FemShep can be played as LesbianShep. So by your own reasoning, if Bioware will cater to my tiny demographic, surely they can cater to gay male gamers, who by virtue of being male are probably far more numerous.

You sure?
You sure that it's not an option for straight men who just want to observe lesbians? That's a profitable idea, no offense.
It kinda looks like it.

I must say, I find it kind of offensive that you're assuming only gay players would want to roleplay a gay character. I've roleplayed straight characters before of my own free will. I'm sure any number of straight males here accessed the Zevran sex scene in DA out of curiosity, or roleplayed a straight female Shepard.

I must say, I find it kind of weird that you missed the point I was trying to make.
I'm assuming that straight men would want to roleplay to see lesbians, again, no offense. Not the other way around.

I must say, I was referring to your original post Sorry, I forgot to delete your reply.

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

Oh no, it's one of those annoying fuckers how whine about this. Let me guess, you complained about there not being gay Na'vis in Avatar as well?

Seeing what you write to EspirituExterminatus have only made you seem ignorant and you will only cause hate towards homosexuals with what you write, good job.

OT; Because they didn't think it would fit? Have you seen the characters in Mass Effect? Would you kindly name one that would fit as being homosexual?

Am I whining? I'm just trying to foment discussion. Are you one of those people who thinks that "whining" is defined as "talking about something that doesn't interest me"?

The type of people who agree with EspirituExterminatus probably aren't exactly sympathetic to the equality cause to begin with, so I consider it no harm no foul. I wouldn't want to rouse them from their basements, anyway.

I don't care about Avatar, because Avatar wasn't a roleplaying game that allowed the player to assume pretty much any sexual identity (or none at all) except gay/bi male.

Any male character in Mass Effect could be gay or bisexual. No reason Garrus, for instance, couldn't express romantic admiration for a male Shepard; he's practically licking your boots by the end of ME1 anyway. I know this may shock you, so if your jaw shatters upon hitting the floor please don't blame me: Gay men don't always, or even usually, look or act different from straight men.

Stab in the dark here, with the dull hope that lurking somewhere in the shadows is what i was aiming for in the first place.

"Gay Girl Gamers" as you so eloquently and alliterately coined is a target market so small, that the games developers would have more commercial success building a game for dead giraffes.

Nothing personal, you're just a group of people too small to register in the industry.

But GGG's are catered to by Mass Effect, since FemShep can be played as LesbianShep. So by your own reasoning, if Bioware will cater to my tiny demographic, surely they can cater to gay male gamers, who by virtue of being male are probably far more numerous.

You sure?
You sure that it's not an option for straight men who just want to observe lesbians? That's a profitable idea, no offense.
It kinda looks like it.

I must say, I find it kind of offensive that you're assuming only gay players would want to roleplay a gay character. I've roleplayed straight characters before of my own free will. I'm sure any number of straight males here accessed the Zevran sex scene in DA out of curiosity, or roleplayed a straight female Shepard.

I must say, I find it kind of weird that you missed the point I was trying to make.
I'm assuming that straight men would want to roleplay to see lesbians, again, no offense. Not the other way around.

I must say, I was referring to your original post Sorry, I forgot to delete your reply.

No problem.
But the original post wasn't mine, just to clarify.

 

[AC Medina]

Are you talking about Mass Effect 1 or 2?

Because Mass Effect 1 was before Dragon Age, and in Mass Effect 2 i don't think you can play as a lesbian.

But throwing all that aside, why. Why is there such a huge need to represent all possible sexuality scenarios. Why do you feel offended that you can't see all types of sex in a videogame that has sex. Why, in the name of whoever, does a company have to include a sex scene to indirectly proclaim that a nice group whose numbers i can count on my fingers has a solid standpoint in their game, just because they included another similar scene but for a broader audience, considering that the game wasn't even about that in the first place.

So just because Dragon Age had it, why does every BioWare game have to have gay sex. Risking moderator wrath, i'll have to pull out the "you just want attention" card here.

You can be a lesbian in Mass Effect 2.

By the way, I'm only responding to that part of your post because it's the only part that actually made any sense.

Oh, except for the part about the fingers, which is just kind of weird because I had never met anybody with hundreds of millions of fingers before. What kind of creature are you?

 

[Mother Yeti]

And dude, the attitude of "I don't mind gay people as long as they're not all in my face about it" is textbook homophobia.

No, it's not. There is a difference between not hiding the fact that your gay, and making sure everyone in the room knows you're gay. It's the latter that pisses most hetros off.

I've known quite a few homosexuals in my life, most of whom made no effort to hide it, but it never bothered me. It was only when someone made sure I knew, by grabbing his partners crotch right in front of me (yes, this actually happened) or randomly started making out with their partner. It's not just gays either, these things piss me off when straight people do them as well.

The point is, gay or straight, I don't want to know about your sex life or orientation unless I specifically ask you.

We're getting way off topic, but there's a difference in what we're talking about. Disliking extreme PDA or over-the-top behavior is one thing. Disliking someone simply for being obviously gay is another. Anyway, the impression I got from EspirituWhatever's extremely aggressive language was that he was referring to the latter attitude. I could very well be getting the wrong impression, but I'm not feeling like giving the dude a second glance.

 

[Carlston]

After a couple Mass Effect sessions, I got to thinking about the romance options. I'm sure this has occurred to others, but still.

A female Shepard can romance both sexes. You can roleplay her as straight, gay, or somewhere in between; it's totally up to the player whom she's into. A male Shepard, on the other hand, can only romance women. Even if you WANT to play a gay ManShep, you're simply not allowed.

After Dragon Age, which allowed the PC to fall just about anywhere on the sexuality spectrum, I was sort of hoping that Bioware had come to understand that their audience is not entirely male and not entirely hetero. But no, apparently not. And as a gay girl gamer, I think that really sucks.

What do you think?

Honestly why I think the little romance options of these games are best left way, way in the background.
If I make a male character and get the best lovey dovey bit with a female, i'm not caring about trying to get it on with everything and the dog (Dragon Age). Once that's outa the way and someone likes me a lot or defines why my character fights I just kind worry bout killing the evil demon baddie end guy.

 

[Mother Yeti]

No problem.
But the original post wasn't mine, just to clarify.

Forgive me for my airheadedness, I'm working late and this is the only thing keeping me from stealing everything that isn't nailed down and starting a new life in the south seas.

 

[The_ModeRazor]

Meh. I don't much like cutscenes anyway (not true), and I'm not gay either.
Sorry, but homosexuals are still the minority.

You, sir, are not a very good person.

And you should probably think of something that is worth typing before you post a comment.

It is still going to be pointless and stupid, but at least you tried.

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

No problem.
But the original post wasn't mine, just to clarify.

Forgive me for my airheadedness, I'm working late and this is the only thing keeping me from stealing everything that isn't nailed down and starting a new life in the south seas.

Again, no problem.
Stealing everything is a damn good idea, actually.

 

[Catchy Slogan]

Huh. That is kinda strange. You can have inter-species relationships but not two guys?

Maybe the only guys that could have a relationship with Shep are hetero? Meh.