Inquisition will have the first homosexual male party member

Dorian The Mage will be the first homosexual male part member in a game. He comes from a place where propriety and pretense are valued above everything else. This makes him a bit of an outcast. It is unclear right how this will effect relationships with other characters or if you can have a relationship with him. If nothing else it dose make his story a bit more interesting.

I like that bioware is adding a homosexual player. If they allow you to have a relationship with him that opens up an opportunity for players who like to explore those type of relationships the opportunity to.

I don't really know why different sexes have not been portrayed in video game very often. In the real world people like different things so they would in a fantasy setting to. Maybe even more so. I know that I might make a male character just to explore an relationship with him.

 

I honestly do not know why people make such a big deal about these things. I am happy everyone is getting equal rights and people can live how they want to live. But do you see straight people making a big deal about these things? 'Oh hey look I am a man and I can have a relationship with a woman" It's just not that big of a deal and I don't know why people always make such a big deal about being gay in a video game.

Greg

 

We don't see heterosexual people making a big deal out of these things, because heterosexual people haven't been facing bigotry, condemnation and hate crimes. I don't know which fantasy world you're living in, but most countries on this planet do not recognize homosexual marriage, let alone homosexuality. In fact, the USA is a prime example of bigotry and hatred. In fact, Canada was only the first few countries as a whole that recognize homosexual marriage and gave equal rights to them. USA has a lot of catching up to do.

So yes, it's a big deal because a LOT of people make it into a big deal. Heterosexual people don't have pride parades, support groups and such and such because people expect heterosexuality is the norm.

When was the last time you saw or heard a lesbian or gay couple disown their heterosexual child for being heterosexual? When was the last time you saw or heard a heterosexual couple disown their gay child for being gay? Look through Youtube. There are tons of these. So imagine how many similar type of scenarios there are in this world.

Even here in Vancouver, some ten or so years ago, a gay couple was attacked while they took a stroll outside at a park. When was the last time a heterosexual couple was attacked because they are heterosexual?

It will stop being a big deal when fundamentalist religious nutjobs and so-called 'traditional' groups stop trying to limit the rights and freedoms of homosexual people. It will stop being a big deal when countries stop their mass bigotry. It will stop being a big deal when more people are educated and less entrenched in their one-sided upbringing of ignorance and hate.

 

This era where we live in is the transitioning stage of where old society is a fading and a new more equalized society is trying to break out of its cocoon. I'm glad Bioware has done this. Up here in Canada, one of our largest banks pushed out advertisements last year that show homosexual couples for mortgage ads. Though many people still have a strong desire to limit the equal rights and freedoms of homosexual people, I am also glad that it is becoming an equalized part of society. Hopefully sooner than later, that things like this is no longer a social taboo, specially speaking about it in Canada. In the USA, there is still a lot more work to do.

 

Everything that tinybutnotfangless said. All of it. Although I don't see society as becoming more equal. There's still leaps and bounds to go before that happens. The hate just transfers to some other group of people so that discrimination can hit that group harder than before.

 

I think that adding him will be a really important thing, because not allowing gay people to marry is a really illogical decision, and the fact that gay characters are getting into media means that homosexual people will probably soon be able to marry each other.

It's really dumb to not allow two people that love each other to get married just because an old book/old, religious people think that it's not right.

 

I generally do not comment on anything that is controversial but I am making an exception for this. I love the fact that Bioware is breaking out of the mold. I believe that, if it makes you happy and does not hurt anyone else, why should I have a problem with it? I think we will start seeing much more of this sort of thing showing up in games. Kudos to the company for taking this step.

 

I love it. I absoltutely 100% love it. With our generation becoming more and more involved in equal rights and opportunities for all people, it's good to see that Bioware backs us up with a homosexual character. Now, if they portray him in a satirical or stereotypical way there will be problems. If he is just like every other character other than the fact that he happens to like men instead of women, that's what we're looking for.

 

I think it all has to do with nowadays trends. Everyone wants to be seen as a "tolerant" person and probably the creator of the game did that in order to attract gay people and probably their supporters. I don't think we should make a big case out of this, after all is just a game and we should play it because it's fun, we are not forced to play it, in the end it's only our choice.

 

How is it the first homosexual party member?
Dragon Age: Origins already had Zevran and Dragon Age II had Anders, I don't see how this is any different.

 

This is something good to see, because a lot of people are really against these kind of characters. I like that they make this game, so it can attract an wider audience. It could also be so that it decreases the sales, but I wouldn't say that this kind of stuff really does that. This really shows that our society is moving forward and is alowing everyone to express their opinions without the fear that they will become hated by all.

 

^ This.

Dragon Age already has a history of homosexuality in the game itself, so it isn't surprising that the new installment has gay characters. The game has already been very progressive when it comes to 'gay rights' if we look at it from that perspective.

 

Were they "openly gay"? I only just encountered Zevran in Origins so I haven't had that many interactions with him yet.

 

Oh very much so, Zevran makes open advances towards you and you can start the Anders romance completely by accident!

 

Well if Zevran makes open advances towards me, then there's no way he'd be gay (my character is female).

 

^Yes, exactly. Zevran and Anders were not homosexual as this implies exclusively same-sex relations (the same goes for Fenris, who is often left out of these discussions).

I agree with all of this. With respect to Greg, recognition of minorities is extremely important. You may not think so, simply because you (I'm guessing) experience recognition of your sexuality all the time - there are plenty of straight characters, and you wouldn't think anything of it if another one appeared in a game. But for those whose sexuality is either actively denied or simply ignored for the better part of their lives, even recognition of their existence is a step to acceptance and understanding.

I'm very excited that Bioware continues to create and explore diverse characters.

 

Actually, there was a video I saw that covered something of this nature. If I remember correctly, they were saying the same as you, but they theorized that the reason why there's not that much portrayal in gaming is because some people are not only against change, but media usually portray these type of people as the villains.

It's a sad way of thinking, I know that for sure. I, for one, wouldn't mind seeing more diversity and realism in gaming.

 

Because it's the societal norm, perhaps? Just a thought.

 

I think Dragon AGe: ORigins have one too but meh. It's not really surprising but It's good to know that Bioware do this kind of thing.

 

This reminds me of a quote from George RR Martin, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones).

An interviewer asked him how he wrote his female characters so well, and to that, he responded, "I write them like people."

This applies to all characters. Women and men, heterosexual or homosexual.

I think Bioware used his sexual orientation as a bit of a crutch. He's ostracized because he's gay. Why can't he just be a gay man who has problems like everyone else? It's a fantasy world where things are fantastical.

Maybe mirroring some of our real world issues in the game was the point though.

He's not a bad character. On the contrary, I ran him in my party because he made me laugh. But I feel like his achilles heel could have been something far more interesting.

The fact that there are gay characters, I guess, is a step forward.