| TopCat8 said: Here's another question: Did gaming help you realize your sexual identity in any way? Maybe you thought a character was attractive or maybe you met someone online and discussed sexuality with them. It could be anything, really. My example would be when I started playing The Sims, it didn't seem weird or unnatural to put two guys in a relationship with each other, and I started realizing that I also wanted that in my own life. I know there are a million other things that help shape a person's internal identity, but I was just curious where gaming comes into play for you all. |
I grew up in a time before there were any clearly lesbian characters in video games, or at least that I was/am aware of anyway. The first time I can recall seeing a clearly lesbian character in a video game was in the original Dead Rising from 2006. It was in a scene where this morbidly obese butch lesbian cop sexually assaults a much thinner, blonder, innocent straight woman in public for what's billed as an interrogation while she cries out in protest. I think that says all that needs to be said about that. I wouldn't say that I noticed any good faith attempts at lesbian representation in video games as a medium before 2008, at which point I was 26 years old. I feel unspoiled that way.
That said, I definitely, um, noticed Samus Aran, particularly in Super Metroid way back when. That was definitely a different Samus though than the modern one with the "zero suit" (ugh) who has no muscles. I liked Ayla from Chrono Trigger too back in the day, although by that time I'd already had my first girlfriend.
Anyway, to tell you the truth, Gone Home meant a lot to me when that game was released. That was the first video game (at least that I noticed or played) to narratively center a lesbian character. In retrospect, it's not like the best story in the history of games, but it was the only one like it at the time and well I've discussed this whole matter at length before. But what I would point out about it is that yes, that is a game that truly is mainly about its romance arc. The fact that Sam is lesbian was not just some incidental aspect of the story, it was a defining aspect of who she was as a character. That was as it should have been for the first lesbian-centric game, IMO. That's not some unplausible thing, especially for its setting. People used to, and sometimes still do, decide things like where to live based on their sexual orientation because some communities might be more welcoming than others, or in the past some states might have say allowed you to marry a partner of your sex while others didn't. You orientation really could define much of your life, especially back in 1995. Living through more repressive times and experiences might make you less...out right now. And maybe more appreciative of simple acknowledgements because they didn't used to be there. My point here being that I wouldn't like prescribe that games should have to treat same-sex attraction as just incidental like some have suggested here.
Butterfly Soup is my actual favorite game about lesbian characters, especially narratively. I'd recommend that as the best example in existence. It's a really well-made graphic novel style adventure that has a lot of heart. And it's hilarious. Like seriously, the flat-out funniest game I've ever played before.
Last edited by Jaicee - on 12 May 2020
