The Gay Option

[Fynn]

Some games that allow for romance also allow for homosexual romance. Do you like it? Do you think there's enough of it? Or maybe you wanna get controversial and say there's too much of it? That said, what would you think about playing a game where the in-story romance not determined by the player (like in FF) was a gay one?

Personally, being straight, I don't feel it like I need a gay romance option in a game, but I really appreciate it when a game goes the extra mile and adds that, cause hell, I don't think there is such a thing as too much representation.

That said, I will sometimes take the gay route if it's well written (like, holy crap, Aigis' social link is so much better if you play Persona 3 as a girl). I also like to at least have the option - like, even though there was a valid gameplay reason to not allow gay pairings in FE: Awakening, I was so, so hurt that I couldn't get Stahl and Kellam, my OTP, together ;~;

I think it's not a matter of if, but when, when it comes to a gay romance in FF. For now all that's left for me, is to agree with Rantasmo - video games need more gay.

[WildRaubtier]

Personally, being straight, I don't feel it like I need a gay romance option in a game

literally 100% of the problem in one sentence right here

We absolutely need so many more compulsory gay times in game time its not even funny.

[Fynn]

Personally, being straight, I don't feel it like I need a gay romance option in a game

literally 100% of the problem in one sentence right here

We absolutely need so many more compulsory gay times in game time its not even funny.

Have you read the rest of my post?

Just because I don't personally need it for the game to match my personal orientation, doesn't mean I think we as a whole don't need it. Like I said later on, you can't have too much representation.

[Karifean]

...this just made me realize that in all the romance-involving visual novels I've read, there's not even a single homosexual romance route. Christine Love's novels are kind of the exception as they have almost no heterosexual relationships, but even then it's never involving the POV character. That's kinda sad.

[Fynn]

...this just made me realize that in all the romance-involving visual novels I've read, there's not even a single homosexual romance route. Christine Love's novels are kind of the exception as they have almost no heterosexual relationships, but even then it's never involving the POV character. That's kinda sad.

Huh. That's kind of surprising, to be honest. I expected a genre so focused on romance to at least occassionally have gay options.

Seriously, not even lesbian ones?

[WildRaubtier]

Kind of irrelevant? Point is most vidjas are aimed at the gamergater demographic - white, straight and male - to the absolute exclusion of anyone else. It should be fairly obvious to all and sundry by now just how damaging that homogenous targeting has been.

And what's their excuse? "I'm not [x,y,z], so it doesn't need to be there."

[Karifean]

Huh. That's kind of surprising, to be honest. I expected a genre so focused on romance to at least occassionally have gay options.

Seriously, not even lesbian ones?

None. Well admittedly I can count the female-POV-character-novels I've read on one hand, but still.

I guess you could argue that in the Hate series you can *technically* have a lesbian relationship, but you never actually define your own gender in that series. It only comes up when one of the characters asks you what your gender is - and that character is the one you CAN'T romance if you say you're female.

[Psychotic]

In Bully I'm kind of a slut and will kiss anyone who will kiss me back, male or female, at any time in any place.

[Fynn]

Kind of irrelevant? Point is most vidjas are aimed at the gamergater demographic - white, straight and male - to the absolute exclusion of anyone else. It should be fairly obvious to all and sundry by now just how damaging that homogenous targeting has been.

And what's their excuse? "I'm not [x,y,z], so it doesn't need to be there."

But that was not my argument at all. I wholeheartedly agree that we need to extend the demographic of games. I used the rest of my post to point out how I think it's important regardless of my orientation and that I enjoy such options and really want them in my games. Please, don't twist my words into homophobic gibberish. I really do my best to support the LGBT community through my writing and I did my best to make my post positive about the gay option. So yes, to me it's relevant that you took one clause from my statement out of context to make me look problematic.

Let me spell it out clear now:

WE NEED GAY STUFF IN GAMES BECAUSE REPRESENTATION IS FRIGGING IMPORTANT.

[The Summoner of Leviathan]

I am kinda bias given the fact that I am gay. I would love to see a non-player control gay romance for the player-character. Partly because smurf YEAH and partly because I wanna see these "gamergate" guys, as Wild Raubtier puts it, trout themselves.

There is really lacking in in-depth gay romance options. Off the top of my head, I think the best are done by Bioware and even then it was only in later installments of their two big franchises that we saw any in-depth relationship. Otherwise, the gay characters are little more than tokens. They can be gay but they are usually single or the fact is often hidden or obscured. It doesn't help that Japan, because let's face it I play a lot of jRPGs and this is a FF board, is pretty behind when it comes to homosexuality, in general.

[Pumpkin]

I would love a gay option in Harvest Moon because I want to be a lady and also marry a lady

I think it's important to have, yeah, for reasons already stated.

[WildRaubtier]

such nagry

Chill dude, I picked part of a sentence you wrote, stripped of context, and said "this is how some people think and it's a problem!" and that's literally it

[Fynn]

such nagry

Chill dude, I picked part of a sentence you wrote, stripped of context, and said "this is how some people think and it's a problem!" and that's literally it

Sorry I'm fine, I just got a bit sensitive over those issues lately.

EDIT: By the way, starting this whole topic reminded me of this:

[Old Manus]

I definitely remember reading several times way back when that Paul from Tekken was gay. I totally thought this was a thing until just now when I Googled it and found nothing. Have I been lied to my whole life

[Fynn]

I definitely remember reading several times way back when that Paul from Tekken was gay. I totally thought this was a thing until just now when I Googled it and found nothing. Have I been lied to my whole life

Maybe it's a case of Hide Your Gays? Although the example you mentioned isn't listed, sadly :/