Sexuality in Mass Effect

[Crimsane]

Hmm. Perhaps Bioware should gauge interest by including strictly homosexual male/female DLC characters for like $1 each. (I'd buy them, mostly because I'm tired of the only homosexual options in games being bisexual, which feels like a cop-out.) Yes, it's unfair to have to pay for something that should be in the game in the first place, but for testing the size of market purposes it may be a necessary evil. After all, if people are willing to complain about it but not pay to have it included, why would Bioware ever cater to said people in the future? It just becomes more forum noise to them at that point.

 

[Xanadeas]

When I found the brothel in DA:O I immediately chose the most amusing possible uh... "playmate" I could find. The male dwarf. I laughed my ass off at the scene that ensued. When ME1 came out I was expecting there would be an option for a gay male Sheperd (Think I spelled his name wrong..) as there was apparently one for the gay female Shep. I was moderately disappointed to learn otherwise but it never really bothered me.

Now there's ME2, which I still haven't played and I /hate/ all of you people that told me

Spoiler

Shepherd apparently DIES

and didn't use a spoiler tag. T_T Anyways... ME2 apparently follows the same guidelines as the first. Disappointing since it came out after DA:O and proved they're willing to have homosexuality in their games but at random decided M/M is a no for ME2.

 

[Pyode]

So, what, because we had one game that featured male homosexuality, gays should just shut up and be grateful?

I do not think it is entirely unreasonable to ask for a significant demographic to be catered for, especially when you are catering to a demographic that is roughly the same size and you have already catered to the former demographic in another recent game.

Basically, yes.

Homosexuals are a minority, and therefore will always have a minority representation in art. I'll use writing as an example.

When someone writes a book or story, they write what they know. They often base the characters, especially the protagonist, at least partially on themselves and their own experiences. As a result, the vast majority of time, a straight writer is going to crate a straight protagonist, a gay author will make a gay protagonist, a black author will make a black protagonist, etc. This isn't racist or homophobic, it's just the way art works.

To demand that a straight author or script writer create a gay protagonist is only going to hinder the creative process.

That being said, I realize that Mass Effect is an RPG and that it is supposed to give the player freedom to make the decisions he/she want's, but it's not without it's limitations. As a matter of fact, Mass Effect has relatively little freedom when compared to games like Fallout or Oblivion and, from what I understand (I haven't played it, so I can't say for sure), Dragon Age as well. The main focus of Mass Effect was the story and as such, the majority of the development was put into that aspect. To ad months of development to a game, in order to cater to a relative minority, would not have been feasible or logical.

 

[WestMountain]

Its simply because the majority of men think lesbians is hot

 

[jediroshi]

Well I browsed through the thread and well my take on the idea is that overall Mass Effect never really touched on it for lesbinism as a female shepard to begin with.

Dr. Liara T'Soni is an asari and there entire race is female! For them there is no such thing as gender over all thus there is not gay, bi, or straight option for them, like she explained in the game it's more of a joining that trancends all things. So really it's an option given her species and there mating rituals not really a play for anything gay or the like.

My second opinion on the matter is if you want to play a gay Shepard is fine, but really who are your options to do that with? Kaidan Alenko is clearly straight, that would leave Wrex or Garrus.

Ha, backstory wise Wrex is more intreasted in helping out his people and that means doing it with females to atleast try and battle the Genophage. While Garrius, well... he could've been an option I suppose, I mean you don't learn alot about him that doesn't deal with his bussiness, pursing justice, ect. Which is one point against him, he doesn't at all seem intreasted in romantic intreasts only on the mission. Plus he's a Turian and even though they have a mutual respect for one another. Turians and Humans still have bad blood by story backround.

My two cents on this although I'm sure this thread will continue quite a well with such a hot topic, someone already got banned for it.

 

[RyVal]

So, what, because we had one game that featured male homosexuality, gays should just shut up and be grateful?

I do not think it is entirely unreasonable to ask for a significant demographic to be catered for, especially when you are catering to a demographic that is roughly the same size and you have already catered to the former demographic in another recent game.

Basically, yes.

Homosexuals are a minority, and therefore will always have a minority representation in art. I'll use writing as an example.

There's a difference between having a "minority representation" and having practically no representation whatsoever.

When someone writes a book or story, they write what they know. They often base the characters, especially the protagonist, at least partially on themselves and their own experiences. As a result, the vast majority of time, a straight writer is going to crate a straight protagonist, a gay author will make a gay protagonist, a black author will make a black protagonist, etc. This isn't racist or homophobic, it's just the way art works.

To demand that a straight author or script writer create a gay protagonist is only going to hinder the creative process.

If people actually adhered to this in real life, the media would be pretty bland.

But your claims do not hold water. Some of the most critically acclaimed films about homosexuality were made by heterosexual directors. Ethnic minorities are regularly featured in video games/films which have been made by white people. Even if they are not the protagonists, writers are at least able to slot them in as a secondary characters.

No such luck for homosexuals in video games. Not even Dragon Age: Origins featured one; Zevran was a bisexual, after all. In fact, the only other mainstream games which I can recall that feature secondary homosexual characters are Indigo Prophecy/Fahrenheit and Jade Empire. There is literally no representation in the market whatsoever.

To ad months of development to a game, in order to cater to a relative minority, would not have been feasible or logical.

How would the inclusion of even a single male homosexual option have taken "months of development"?

 

[RyVal]

So how is this going to negatively affect your own game experience, when the only way you would even notice it is if you were intentionally trying to find it?

It doesn't, it won't and it can't. My problem is with this thread, not with sexuality in videogames. I couldn't care less if gay people were more represented in games,

You made that abundantly clear.

The whole idea was that you're making too much of a big deal out of a company that chose to represent gay sex in one video game, and chose not to in another. You're making it feel like you're being marginalized which is stupidly ridiculous and only serves to attract negative attention to you, which i thought you didn't want.

It is "stupidly ridicilous" to claim that we are being marginalised?

You yourself could not even name me ten mainstream titles which feature homosexual characters, nevermind protagonists. Perhaps we complain about being marginalised because - you know - we are being marginalised. When the USA was still institutionally rascist and black-ethnic minorities were horribly underrepresented in the media, would you have just told them to shut up and stop whining?

 

[katsa5]

I thought that myself. The big question (at least for me) is: Which one? *shrug*

Jacob [http://i897.photobucket.com/albums/ac171/mdsx1950/320px-Jacob_Taylor.png?t=1259772419] seems an obvious choice, what with his propensity for going topless.

True. My first thought was Thane, but that's WAAAY too predictable. Jacob was second.

 

[YoUnG205]

You see this is what happens when you give the people something,
they just want more of it.

 

[RyVal]

It is "stupidly ridicilous" to claim that we are being marginalised?

Yes. How exactly are you being marginalized? Does your group have a large enough influence over the gaming media that mainstream titles should warrant homosexual characters, nevermind protagonists?

Marginalise: relegate to a lower or outer edge, as of specific groups of people; "We must not marginalize the poor in our society".

Social groups who are marginalised are minorities in the first place, since it would be impossible for them to become marginalised otherwise. So your "Homosexuals don't have a large enough influence to warrant homosexual characters" point is redundant, since this is a key aspect of being marginalised.

Of course, you see nothing wrong with this, since you belong to the majority.

Why does sexuality matter so much, anyway?

Why does gender matter? We should just make all our characters male.
Why does race matter? We should just make all our characters white.
Why does appearance matter? We should just make all our characters look the same.

Again, we are talking about a Role-Playing Game here.

There's a difference between being marginalized and not being featured. You're taking it to the extreme.

Which is...?

 

[RyVal]

You see this is what happens when you give the people something,
they just want more of it.

Which is the exact same rhetoric people who opposed black civil rights used.

And indeed, the same argument initially used against democracy, political freedoms and all civil rights in general.

 

[The4th1]

I've been lurking on this thread for a while now and it seems to me that no one pointed out that being a lesbian and being gay are THE SAME THING. Someone might have, quote if necessary. You treat it like a symbol.

As the original poster is a gay girl gamer, why does she care? maybe to champion some group that she apparently has no relation to, like Major Kyle and the Biotics.

If you're hoping that a company is a benevolent deity that looks upon its audience and caters to every outcry of unhappiness that arises - Why do you think that?
First of all, they care about profits, Second of all, do you really think the developers want to rinse and repeat things. Games are always about trying out different ways to present gameplay.

You can always contact BioWare about not giving you the choice of a male romance sub plot.

 

[RyVal]

Marginalise: relegate to a lower or outer edge, as of specific groups of people; "We must not marginalize the poor in our society".

Social groups who are marginalised are minorities in the first place, since it would be impossible for them to become marginalised otherwise. So your "Homosexuals don't have a large enough influence to warrant homosexual characters" point is redundant, since this is a key aspect of being marginalised.

Good, you've answered your own question. Now that you know what the difference between being marginalized and not being featured is, can you take the hint and stop being so aggressively demanding?

Because asking to be represented at all is being "aggressively demanding", obviously.

 

[Levitas1234]

Bioware just dosnt want to lose there 16 year old homophobic audience if there is a gay scene.

 

[RyVal]

As the original poster is a gay girl gamer, why does she care? maybe to champion some group that she apparently has no relation to, like Major Kyle and the Biotics.

Apparantly, you do not have to belong to a group to point out when it is being marginalised or underpresented. Hence why we no longer practice slavery.

First of all, they care about profits,

Dragon Age: Origins' profits did not seem to be damaged by the presence of gay characters.

Second of all, do you really think the developers want to rinse and repeat things. Games are always about trying out different ways to present gameplay.

That did not stop them from having more lesbian options in the sequel, and yet not a single gay one.

 

[Hollock]

I'm not sure but I think Mordin might be game for something. I haven't heard anyone mention it but then again I haven't heard

Spoiler

you can hook up with tali

and I did that.

 

[Whispering Death]

I'm gay. So when I heard there was a "gay" option to relationships in ME2 I thought it was awesome of Bioware.

Unfortunately, I find that it's just a lesbian option, there is no gay male option.

Obviously, such a thing doesn't make ME2 less of an awesome game. I think it's great.

But I do wish I didn't have to be forced to be a straight character in every game. It would be nice for developers to throw us a bone every once in a while.