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Gay marriage is a testy subject for almost everybody, regardless of the position one takes. To tackle such a historically revered state of being is almost like going against the laws of humanity for right-wing zealots and those electors greedily exploiting the issue. I never saw the big deal, and it's gotten to the point where I don't even hear the words "gay marriage" anymore, just a long sequence of white noise spewing out of some random evangelical or conservative pundit. I'm sick of hearing about it either way, and I know most of you share similar sentiments, so I'll spare you any further discourse. But, I will broach a similar, if not equally pseudo-traitorous notion: gay game heroes.
Anime has gotten to the point of being androgynous in almost every way, we have children's books about gay penguins, and even major motion pictures now feature leading characters whose boats float upstream. Even though Hollywood and other American businesses may continue homophobic practices, the Japanese don't seem to mind as much. Just venture into the Tokyo nightlife and you'll know what I mean. Japan is much more sexually adventuresome, dating back to the early shogun, who, besides multiple concubines, had many male lovers as well. Culturally, there is little dispute homosexuality is here to stay. And if gaming is a reflection of cultural trends, where are all the gay gaming heroes and heroines?
We've seen many supporting gay characters and gay themes within games. The most popular game of which is probably the cross-dressing sidequest from FF VII, which rewarded players for collecting all the best drag swag for Cloud. But, considering how early on in the game that quest took place, most people had forgotten it by game's end. The entire Shadow Hearts series has had several gay characters. Shadow Hearts featured an acupuncturist, who, in order to level up character weapons, gave "massages" to the chagrin of the male characters. Shadow Hearts: Covenant featured two prominent gay characters in the Magimel brothers. And the leather clad duo Gerard and Buigen from Shadow Hearts: FTNW, lusted after the leading (and legal, mind you) character Johnny, despite his hots for femme fatale Shania.
And there are a few other games which had supporting, if not wholly forgettable gay or lesbian characters. Milich Oppenheimer from the first Suikoden, despite his raucous claims in various dialogue points exclaiming his straightness, is in my honest opinion a flaming queen. Wild Arms 2 featured a leading gay character Brad Evans and his boyfriend Billy. And Jade Empire allowed players to pick either a male of female lead character, and ultimately pair off with a male or female partner. But, all of these games have been utterly forgettable, and none of them have had any lasting impact, probably due to their lack of presence within the game, or the entire game's lack of presence. We've seen very little improvement in the proliferation of LGBT characters since these games releases, a testament to their lack of impact.
Gay consumers have proven to be one of, if not the most affluent of all consumer markets. And many of these are gaming gold; single, 20 to 30 something males with a truckload of disposable income. So what's keeping developers from actually marketing to them? I know, a game is a game, and it isn't really necessary to market to a gay audience, especially when more people may be offended at the notion a game is "gay" and not buy it at all. But, I do believe in a happy medium, and I think it is possible to make a name brand RPG with a gay hero or heroine and not offend anybody. Most young people nowadays are open to the idea of LGBT people, unless they live in the Midwest and/or don't have a mind of their own. I don't think the majority of gamers would be offended at the idea (and you can correct me if I'm wrong).
Having a leading gay character in a major release could present an interesting twist and a refreshing storyline, which I cannot exclaim enough have been lacking in most current RPG releases. I'd love to see a Cloud fight demons and go to the end of the earth to save another Cloud (blasphemy!), or have two lesbian lovers fighting crime together. I don't even care about stereotypes. The simple fact that they're there, on screen, would be enough for the time being. We can worry about political correctness later. For the meantime, developers, get with the social trend, and throw gay gamers a bone (no pun intended).
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