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[Zoator]

Do they exist? To be clear, let's break down the criteria a bit:

1. Main Playable Character: The character that the player directly controls for all or most of the game. If gameplay is split between multiple playable characters, this character must not have significantly less play time than any other character. Additionally, the player must be required to play as this character in order to beat the game.

2. Unambiguously Gay: The game can leave nothing to the imagination regarding the sexuality of the character. The character must demonstrate a clear and unmistakable romantic or sexual interest in a character or characters of the same sex (and only characters of the same sex), or the game must flat out say that the character is gay in exposition. Not just implications or innuendo. If the character has romance options, all options must be members of the same sex. Additionally, this must be 100% clear within the game itself; it's not enough if the developer mentions that the character is gay in an interview or something.

I'm honestly struggling to come up with a single example that meets the above criteria. I skimmed through this Wikipedia list of games with LGBT characters and couldn't find a match. I would be disappointed, although I guess not that surprised, if there are literally no AAA games like this. However, there must be some indies that fit the mold, right? Can anyone think of any examples?

 

[Redhood]

Play Coming out on top. It's an indie erotic romantic visual novel with gay protagonist.

 

[ZeroX03]

Left Behind/Last of Us 2?

Nothing that ambiguous about Left Behind's ending. I guess it doesn't show "and only interested in the same sex" though.

 

[Golnei]

Play Coming out on top. It's an indie erotic romantic visual novel with gay protagonist.

Porn doesn't count.

 

[7Th]

NepNep from the Neptune series.

 

[Taliban Stan]

I can name some with lesbians. I can't name any with a homosexual male.

 

[Tizoc]

Sol Badguy from Guilty Gear is Bisexual I think? So that rules him out it seems.
Sorry can't think of many gay main characters in games, but other characters who I know to be gay in games are
Eagle from SF1/Capcom vs. SNK 2
Zangief at one point was gay, though I think Capcom made him straight now?

 

[The Last Wizard]

Can't think of any.

Plus you'd get a lot of "I can't relate" nonsense.

 

[LordKasual]

Sol Badguy from Guilty Gear is Bisexual I think? So that rules him out it seems.

Wut? Since when?

Also, Venom may also be at the very least bisexual

 

[yananana]

Fear Effect maybe?

 

[daxy]

GTA IV: Ballad of Gay Tony's titular character (i.e. Anthony Prince)?

 

[Murkas]

Could Kung Jin from MKX count?

 

[Pinko Marx]

 

[Yohane]

Not directly playable (Party NPC) but Arcade Gannon from Fallot: New Vegas

 

[Justified]

Last of Us

 

[enixbelmont]

Fear Effect
Nights of Azure

 

[Raysoul]

Maybe some Japanese lesbian eroge titles.

 

[Zoator]

Left Behind/Last of Us 2?

Nothing that ambiguous about Left Behind's ending. I guess it doesn't show "and only interested in the same sex" though.

I don't recall

Spoiler

Ellie showing a romantic interest in any male characters

in TLOU, so I think this would count. However, I do consider Left Behind to be DLC (and thus a part) of TLOU, of which Joel is the main playable character. This could change in TLOU2, though.

 

[Grettir_the_Swole]

God Hand.

 

[Kinsei]

Could Kung Jin from MKX count?

His sexuality isn;t really unambiguous though. The developers had oto come out and say it post release for people to finally accept that Kung Jin is gay.

 

[Pinko Marx]

Gene is gay????

 

[Keasar]

GTA IV: Ballad of Gay Tony's titular character (i.e. Anthony Prince)?

He's not the Main Playable Character though.

 

[TheLostBigBoss]

TLoU 2 is mainly going to be from Ellie's PoV from what has been shown and teased so far.

So that's going to be the first big AAA game where we have a gay character be the main character that I can remember.

 

[Deft Beck]

There's plenty, but mostly indies. Japan has the entire yaoi genre, where you are most often a guy dating another guy.

But, outside of niche games, I don't think it's often all that interesting of a primary character trait or source of major character conflict, unless it's a very narrative focused game with heavy LGBT themes. It can feel like tokenism or playing to stock tropes. I would rather see a gay character who is more than that.

I would be open to seeing more gay main characters and playable characters in general, as long as their whole character doesn't revolve around that.

(Disclaimer: I am a gay male)

Porn doesn't count.

Coming Out on Top is not just a porn game.

 

[Rapscallion]

Can't think of any besides ones already mentioned.

Goes to show how slow the industry has been in regards to sexuality.

 

[Justified]

oh Enchanted Arms

 

[jello44]

I don't recall

Spoiler

Ellie showing a romantic interest in any male characters

in TLOU, so I think this would count. However, I do consider Left Behind to be DLC (and thus a part of) TLOU, of which Joel is the main playable character. This could change in TLOU2, though.

Spoiler

She doesn't, but there are no boys her age. however, she does take one of Bill's magazines... which was full of naked men

.

But Druckman confirmed she is gay, so that is all moot.

 

[Hydrus]

The chick from overwatch?

 

[keraj37]

Duke Nukem 3D

 

[Lights and Waves]

Unambiguous?

Obviously gay but held back by a cowardly development team/publisher without the courage to actually stand up for us?

 

[John Kowalski]

Porn doesn't count.

Why tho? Erotica can be quite good about these kinds of things

 

[sixteen-bit]

oh Enchanted Arms

Let's change my birthday

 

[Murkas]

His sexuality isn;t really unambiguous though. The developers had oto come out and say it post release for people to finally accept that Kung Jin is gay.

I'm sure he tells a female fighter that calls him cute that she's barking up the wrong tree.

Then that Raiden cutscene too so it's not super ambiguous. It's kinda there.

 

[Jawmuncher]

Unambiguous?

Obviously gay but held back by a cowardly development team/publisher without the courage to actually stand up for us?

I agree with this

 

[ZeroX03]

I don't recall

Spoiler

Ellie showing a romantic interest in any male characters

in TLOU, so I think this would count. However, I do consider Left Behind to be DLC (and thus a part) of TLOU, of which Joel is the main playable character. This could change in TLOU2, though.

Technically it got a stand alone release so it's kind of separate.

But I suspect TLoU2 will fit all the criteria with ease.

 

[SolVanderlyn]

Can't wait for people to post their non-canon projections all up in here.

Leon from FE Echoes is very obviously gay. Stated outright. It's not beaten over your head (aside from him chasing after Valbar) and it's treated as just another thing in life. Nobody really questions it either. Certainly no Makoto from Enchanted Arms.

Edit: Don't EVEN get me started on Ike. Ike is the poster child for the problems I have with projecting orientation on characters. It downplays the authenticity of platonic friendships and makes them into something they really don't need to - and shouldn't - be.

 

[Kinsei]

The chick from overwatch?

That was revealed via a tie in comic and there's literally nothing suggesting it in game.

 

[Crayons]

Coming Out on Top is not just a porn game.

I must've been playing it the wrong way then

 

[Reset]

Unambiguous?

Obviously gay but held back by a cowardly development team/publisher without the courage to actually stand up for us?

Ike? He isn't gay otherwise how would you explain this

 

[Grettir_the_Swole]

Gene is gay????

There were lines in here and there that made me think he wasn't totally hetero. It's been a long time since I played it but I distinctly remember a ton of dialogue that blurred the lines between stereotypical gay behavior in Japanese comedy (Think the Cuckoo guy from Twilight Princess and Hard Gay) and a gay male who's confident, yet not flamboyant, in his sexuality.

 

[shiba5]

The main character of Prey has a relationship with one of the female NPCs - so if you choose to play as a female main character, I guess that counts.

 

[biezel]

I'm pretty sure

Spoiler

Kian

in Dreamfall: Chapters is gay, if I remember correctly. I don't remember if he explicitly says it, but a few conversations leave little room for doubt.

 

[Zedark]

Unambiguous?

Obviously gay but held back by a cowardly development team/publisher without the courage to actually stand up for us?

Why Ike? I haven't played Radiant Dawn, so maybe I missed something, but at least from Path of Radiance I never got that impression.

Spoiler

Don't get me wrong, fan fiction is composing itself in my head as we write, but I don't see any signs for it in the game.

Edit: Although now that I think about it, he is pretty dismissive of female flirtation, so maybe, though that's the only hint I can think of, and not especially convincing to me.

 

[Deft Beck]

Unambiguous?
Obviously gay but held back by a cowardly development team/publisher without the courage to actually stand up for us?

Chris Redfield feels like he's pretty single-mindedly focused on his mission most of the time, to comedic effect.

Aren't Vanille and Fang

Spoiler

sisters, technically? At least in a communal sense.

And before someone mentions Kanji, he's just a confused teenager. That's the whole point of his character arc. The spinoffs just riff on that because it's lowbrow Japanese comedy.

 

[SolVanderlyn]

Ike? He isn't gay otherwise how would you explain this

Fffff we need a game about Priam and the future of Tellius

 

[Lights and Waves]

Why Ike? I haven't played Radiant Dawn, so maybe I missed something, but at least from Path of Radiance I never got that impression.

Spoiler

Don't get me wrong, fan fiction is composing itself in my head as we write, but I don't see any signs for it in the game.

Ta da: https://lgbtqgamearchive.com/2016/09/05/ike-and-soren-in-fire-emblem-path-of-radiance/

 

[royox]

Unambiguous?

Vanille and Fang are non-blood sisters that grew together. It's more clear in the japanese dub of the game.

 

[Zoator]

There's plenty, but mostly indies. Japan has the entire yaoi genre, where you are most often a guy dating another guy.

But, outside of niche games, I don't think it's often all that interesting of a primary character trait or source of major character conflict, unless it's a very narrative focused game with heavy LGBT themes. It can feel like tokenism or playing to stock tropes. I would rather see a gay character who is more than that.

I would be open to seeing more gay main characters and playable characters in general, as long as their whole character doesn't revolve around that.

(Disclaimer: I am a gay male)



Coming Out on Top is not just a porn game.

While I agree that tokenism and gay tropes would be bad, I don't think they are at all necessitated by having a gay main character. There are countless games with unambiguously straight main characters that don't make a big deal about the character's sexuality. There's no reason a game can't star a gay character that simply has a same-sex romantic interest without making the game "about" the character being gay. It wouldn't even be terribly difficult to write.

 

[loli pantsu]

My vote goes to Commander Shepard.

 

[Taruranto]

Then again, EP pushes Maya more and P2 doesn't have put much emphasis on romance, but still. Ultimate the game don't have a "canon" pairing, but they definitely wrote Tatsuya as bi.

Why Ike? I haven't played Radiant Dawn, so maybe I missed something, but at least from Path of Radiance I never got that impression.

Spoiler

Don't get me wrong, fan fiction is composing itself in my head as we write, but I don't see any signs for it in the game.

If he has an A Support with Soren/Ranulf they journey together in the end, and there are some suggestive scenes (I think some of them require you to import PoR save). He doesn't get any ending with any girl.

Chris feels like the poster projecting himself on his husbando, though.