Poll: Gay Main Character

[WolfEdge]

I think, if a game came at this from a sincere angle, that there would be very little problem with a homosexual protagonist. The biggest hangup is doing it in a way that isn't superfluous or insulting. To draw a parallel, look at how many games have female protagonists... that aren't just doing it for the spectacle. They're distressingly few. The problem you get, especially in an industry so dominated by corporate funding, is that you have a writer who (in addition to being less than comfortable when it comes to writing in say, the female voice or the homosexual voice) is heavily pressured by the people who write his paycheck to perform to their standard. So the finished product comes out as:
Bob: "Hi! I'm Bob. I'm gay."
Bob:"Look at me, being all gay over here. With my drag and my funny voice and my love of men."
Bob:"Teehee... gay..."

 

[Dys]

Why should I care about the sexual preferences of the protagonist (outside of a sex game, in which case I have no business playing a gay role)? I can't see it ever being anything more than an annoying, tacky cry for attention. In an RPG where the choice is up to the player, I can (and have) seen it done effectively, but I see no reason for Gordan Freeman, Lara Croft or the Master Chief to suddenly, inexplicably announce their homosexuality.

 

[Mik0ri]

If the female love interest is well written and there's more to her (and the relationship) than absurd cleavage. This is generally not the case in video games I've played. Most video games present relationships to the main character as "Here's your love interest. Sure you don't really know anything about her, but look at those funbags."

...
This.

Anything I could add would be ramblings.

 

[Serenegoose]

Why should I care about the sexual preferences of the protagonist (outside of a sex game, in which case I have no business playing a gay role)? I can't see it ever being anything more than an annoying, tacky cry for attention. In an RPG where the choice is up to the player, I can (and have) seen it done effectively, but I see no reason for Gordan Freeman, Lara Croft or the Master Chief to suddenly, inexplicably announce their homosexuality.

It's simple, really. Quick example. In Dead Space, one of Isaac's primary motivations is to find Nicole, his lover. Well, there you go. He's just gone and announced his heterosexuality. (or bisexuality, but we don't know, do we?)

It's not an inexplicable announcement of heterosexuality, it simply is. There's no reason that a gay character can't have the same kind of treatment of their orientation.

 

[Lucifer dern]

little known fact. dante from devil may cry is actualy gay...
ill be the first to say it
id tap that...

 

[Lucifer dern]

little known fact. dante from devil may cry is actualy gay...
ill be the first to say it
id tap that...

Looking at your avatar, I'm not surprised!

gasp...did u just call every one who likes the crow gay...
fare play, ive been 2 enough partys to know the guy dressed up as the crow..ent ever going 2 get a gf...soo....

 

[vodkainferno]

If they were a Gay in the way that Wallace (From Scott Pilgrim) is, I'd be pretty cool for it.
Flameboyant, good idea.
Walking fire storm... Not such a good idea.

Pretty much an example of

The character shouldn't be a walking stereotype but obvious that their gay.
(Gay Tony from GTA:BoGT was good)

 

[ProfessorLayton]

Honestly, I wouldn't care one way of the other. But the problem with having a gay main character is this... when a company wants to sell a game, they bring in controversy. And I can almost guarantee that if the main character was gay, he (or she) would be this huge flamboyant flaming homosexual who prances around and makes everyone facepalm.

But most of all, I don't care about romantic subplots or anything of the sort in gaming. Even the straight romance almost always feels shoveled in.

And another thing... imagine if the new Call of Duty game came out and at the end it turns out the main character was gay the whole time. The target audience of the newer Call of Duty games would absolutely flip out. Instant controversy.

 

[theultimateend]

Is there any games that actually have a gay main character? That arn't BL. It seems kind of weird that you see a lot of games about saving the girl so I would think they would change it up to make it more unique or something. Do you think their should me more homosexual characters?

The way I see it.

Nobody should be designing characters that are any particular thing.

They should be designing characters that happen to be particular things.

I'm interested in what this rogue has done in the far off land of Diramore, to hear how they've coped with the slaughter of their family and the overreaching arm of the barons who have consumed their lands.

Frankly everything else, the skin color, gender, eye color, hair color, sexual preference, religious preference, all that shit could be decided by dice roll.

The fact that people care is beyond me. Maybe I'm just so majority in my own setup (brown hair, brown eyes, white, straight, male, middle class) that I don't really care. It must be important for "unique" people?

 

[Blunderman]

I don't think I'd like any game where the main character's sexual orientation is somehow more relevant than the romance mini-plot(s) were in Mass Effect 2. So in this context, no, I wouldn't want more gay main characters in video games.

Also, statistically it's easier to relate to a heterosexual main character since that's still the norm around the world.

 

[Serenegoose]

And another thing... imagine if the new Call of Duty game came out and at the end it turns out the main character was gay the whole time. The target audience of the newer Call of Duty games would absolutely flip out. Instant controversy.

I would never stop laughing.

Never.

 

[Dr.Fantastic]

Some people would like it, and some would yell at the gaming industry[Extreme catholic/cristian people,retards who believe marrige is sacred,retard groups that think there kids will be converted]. I personally wouldnt give a shit, as long as the character isnt a douche.



P.s marrige isnt sacred at all. I found out that I can marry my toaster, and I did.
Me and Sally live a happy life with our child soap bottle.

 

[Sacman]

I don't think a protagonists orientation particularly matters...

 

[tahrey]

"Depends" - as in, they'd have to be decent characters in their own right, rather than just tokens.

As for the "could you cope" thing... good question. As sexual orientation is more of a mental thing and, if you'll excuse the crude explanation, down to the way you "think"/your mind works (nnngh... i'm not quite getting the right words), it may be a bit harder for someone to gel with such a character if they don't share that orientation (who knows, this may also work in reverse) than for one of the opposite gender, and certainly more so than one of another race (to bring other so-called minority issues into this). If at some point you have a main character making out with someone of the same sex in a romantic subplot, a lot of people will be squicked (more so for guys than girls... unfair i know), and i'm not sure even how comfortable i may be. I wouldn't be outraged, but it might not be the easiest viewing, and unlike if e.g. i was playing a straight character of the opposite gender, i couldn't just let my POV drift to that of their beau for that particular interlude.

All the same, it would be interesting to see/attempt, and perhaps if it was Just Another Choice whose box you could tick whilst doing pre-play character customisation, or have as part of in-game development (choosing who to talk to and/or make out with whilst play was in progress) it would allow greater immersion and inclusivity for everyone who may be playing. We've got over the hurdles of assuming all players are white males in their teens, now let's break the final, taboo assumption that they're straight also (though Mass effect partly did this, it's not all the way there yet) and have it as a widespread acceptance rather than a per-game gimmick.

 

[cobra_ky]

yes, for the same reason there should be more female characters, black characters, buddhist characters, middle-aged characters, and filipino characters.

 

[KoSTHB]

so long as there no "god of war " like sex mini game I'm ok with a gay protagonist

 

[MajorKris]

It would be better if the protagonist wasn't a walking stereotype. Like any character development, it should be a gradual part of the character that you may not see till later on in the plot. That way, it gives the player time to get to know not only the story, but their character. (Assuming he/she isn't custom made)

I don't think most people would be comfortable watching a full-blown sex scene, but foreshadowing and character interactions/conversations are what make me enjoy in-game love interests, rather than nailing them later on.