One of the things that made me fall in love with Overwatch was having two of their most popular characters be LGBTQ+. OW was one of the first FPS that I knew of that had queer characters, and it makes me so happy that inclusivity is a core value of the game. However, it is a bit disappointing that there isn’t more references to the queer aspects of characters in-game.
Yes, I know many people will feel like it’s forced-diversity (which I can understand if the representation is done poorly, but that’s mostly said when people don’t like minority groups getting representation), but I hope OW2 will have more voicelines, sprays, and lore that includes their diverse backgrounds. Do you think OW2 will openly include more LGBTQ identites in-game, or is it mostly going to be relegated to the short stories?
Edit: Wow, I should’ve known better than to make a post like this on the OW forums. I’m very disappointed to see that so many people don’t understand the value of representation and what that means when you’re a minority. I’m not going to reply to anyone else under this post because I don’t have the energy to debate with people about their intolerant talking points. Maybe go outside and see how the world is very diverse, or just practice basic empathy skills.
Maybe not understanding how someone appreciates seeing people like them in a game outside the context of real-world politics, and inside a fictional reality instead, is a certain kind of privilege we take for granted.
Im sure a Ukrainian would love to see themselves in Overwatch outside the context of being partially colonized/any real world baggage. It’s simply normalizing the earth’s different people through fiction.
Well most gaming communities are pretty hostile towards LGBTQ people, so I felt welcomed to play a game with mascots who were queer. Representation means a lot to people, especially if the first experiences you had playing video games was hearing gay slurs being thrown around.
At this point I’ve grown pretty cynical about the topic. Companies usually weigh the monetary advantage/disadvantage of allowing for candid representation and are often cowed by their core demographic and most country’s politic.
And the endless “wHy DoEs iT maTteR?? SToP ShOviNg iT DoWn oUr tHRoAts.” “cRiNge fOrCeD rEpReSeNtAtiOn- hAs NoThInG tO dO wItH ThE GaMe!!!” from the usual cishet squad of manbabies.
If you are satisfied with the way you feel about that then that’s great. But I will still never be able to understand it because I play video games without caring what the environment looks like
I wouldn’t have had a issue with the characters being gay if they actually had it be a meaningful part of the story, have a PURPOSE. It 100% was thrown down our throats due to it clearly only being used to appease a group. Gender & sexual preference doesn’t matter in a game, a compelling story is what matters. If that leads to a better story/plot (take widowmaker for example) then its fine.
Not saying you’re wrong, but I would just like to personally say that I’ve never seen this in person. I’ve been gaming all my life, and I’ve never seen talk of someone saying “I cannot stand this character because they’re gay”.
I think a LGBT person only existing so long as their birthed state of being is
tokenizes them to only one experience. It’s okay for it to be painted over some characters with joy, and it’s okay for it to be the last thing some mention.
Honestly I hate the controversy/taboo around openly showing and representing gay relationships. All we ever get is an acknowledgement and done. Nothing more, nothing less. In the end, nothing would be contributed.
Since OW2 is expanding the story lore as well as hero lores, I hope they start adding content that goes into some depth about the various relationships that characters like Soldier, Tracer (and even Ana - even straight relationships should be promoted) with their loved-ones and how they factor in to the wider OW conflict.
Are we supposed to believe that two OW members can just have loved ones that won’t be targeted by Talon or affected by the Second Omnic Crisis in some way.
Considering we had to wait 6 years for a Rainbow player icon, i wouldnt be shocked if we only got the most minimal content during Pride and, of course, lcoked behind a hefty paywall.
i think we dodged a bullet being left out of any recent narrative piece
jokes aside…
it’s a shame we never got to see soldier happy with someone. i think he deserves a good man to take care of him and break the cycle of lonely miserable veteran
essentially. i know ABK won’t do anything too risky, they’re very much like disney in that they play both sides of the fence. a minor character in a film being non-het is fine, their latest show might have some slightly ham-fisted sociopolitical commentary, overpriced rainbow merch in theme parks, there might be a raceswap to farm some controversy
but none of their biggest characters are gonna have gay relationships on screen. nothing that threatens what the majority of their audience likes, nothing that will make said audience super uncomfortable (yes i’m still mad she hulk was shrunk despite the whole strong unapologetic woman thing) and nothing that can’t be edited out for overseas audiences
Have you ever played a fighting game? Even ask pros, and they’ll tell you to pick a character whose personality you like and identify with over their playstyle. You have to enjoy the character first and foremost. That’s just as true for a hero shooter as it is a fighting game. Characters become your avatar, not just a collection of stats.
…Or was this rhetorical and you didn’t want an answer.
I mean, if im not mistaken they took the panel of Emily and Tracer kissing in her comic skin when it released in some other countries. We already have evidence of Blizz doing this.
Honestly, until the day Blizzard lets two heroes of the same gender interact on the same level as Genji/Mercy or Ana/Rein, I’m going to consider them rather cowardly on this score.
Since Year 1, Blizzard has put in the bare effort and only stuck to showing queer support in the most minimal and least visible of ways. They’re clearly more worried about trending on any toes.
Respawn and Riot have surpassed them by leaps and bounds as allies.
