Apparently the option to boink woohoo most of your party members regardless of gender upset them. Gaider says the love interests are ”for everyone.”
The user posted on the official BioWare forums that Dragon Age II neglects it’s ”main demographic: The Straight Male Gamer.”
”I don’t think many would argue with the fact that the overwhelming majority of RPG gamers are indeed straight and male,” they continued.
”In Dragon Age 2, I felt like most of the companions were designed to appeal to other groups foremost, Anders and Fenris for gays and Aveline for women given the lack of strong women in games, and that for the straight male gamer, a secondary concern.”
”It makes things very awkward when your male companions keep making passes at you. The fact that a “No Homosexuality” option, which could have been easily implemented, is omitted just proves my point,” adding ”some straight male gamers” aren’t bothered.
Riding to BioWare’s defence on the issue of party companions was Dragon Age II lead writer David Gaider, who was involved in the creation of the companions and their interaction with our Kirkwall Champion Hawke.
”The romances in the game are not for “the straight male gamer”. They’re for everyone. We have a lot of fans, many of whom are neither straight nor male, and they deserve no less attention,” replied scribe Gaider.
”The “rights” of anyone with regards to a game are murky at best, but anyone who takes that stance must apply it equally to both the minority as well as the majority. The majority has no inherent “right” to get more options than anyone else.”
”More than that, I would question anyone deciding they speak for “the straight male gamer” just as much as someone claiming they speak for “all RPG fans”, “all female fans” or even “all gay fans”. You don’t. If you wish to express your personal desires, then do so.”
”The truth is that making a romance available for both genders is far less costly than creating an entirely new one. Does it create some issues of implementation? Sure– but anything you try on this front is going to have its issues, and inevitably you’ll always leave someone out in the cold. In this case, are all straight males left out in the cold? Not at all. There are romances available for them just the same as anyone else,” he said.
”And the person who says that the only way to please them is to restrict options for others is, if you ask me, the one who deserves it least. And that’s my opinion, expressed as politely as possible.” BioWare is all about free digital love.
Has a videogame ever assailed your gamer sexuality? Dragon Age II released on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. Head on over and check out our review of Hawke’s adventuring.