How "gay" is this game going to be?

['Araturo]

Hold your horses. Not going to be like one of those threads where people fall over one or two LGBT easter eggs in a game or where people complain about homosexuality when they have all the choices to not engage in that (that was a "controversy" around BG3...).
I don't mind gay characters and all that, I think it can spice up a story...
...However. We all know that stories in which is becomes the sole focus point are just plainly bad.
I saw the game has the LGBT tag, the literal first thing the game does is demand pronouns, the first character you meet is a they/them and the game being heavily inspired by D&D, a community with a lot of overly sexual LGBT fanfics. Those are all the usual redflags for it being one of those horny teenage fanfics.
Does anybody know more about the themes in this game. Will it actually be funny stories about adventures and what not or is it going to be all about the "romance"?

[Firef4ng]

Just speaking as someone who has played the demo repeatedly, at least so far, nothing suggests that there would be any sort of overt romance focus. They primarily show gender inclusive dialogue, and while I think it would be natural to come across a budding romance or two in a tavern full of adventurers drinking, the emphasis seems to be more on individual character development and their relationships as an adventuring party (mostly non-romantic). Fable, feeling starved of any new experiences might explore sexuality, but it would be to the benefit of their character development especially as a potential bard since it is a highly relatable subject or a very "human" experience, but again I don't think that is the focus of this game.

[Bunger]

If you think asking for your pronouns is not a good sign, then I doubt the game is for you

[XenoNecroCoproPhile]

Considering myself THE REAL GAMER I was a bit taken aback by the pronouns from the start, without really looking at the tags and everything else before that. And it's good, because the game's visual style is still awesome, it hooked me in the first place. At the very least, I plan to play through the demo version to the end one way or another, and the aforementioned little things won't stop me from roleplaying them, like the fact that my bartender just wants to make money and can't keep all the information about his clients in his head. But he can keep it in his notebook.

[The One Free Man (SOS団)]

If the game was inspired by [VA-11 Hall-A] or [Coffee Talk] for that matter and are taking notes from it then any romance elements are going to be between the customers and not someone actively hitting on the player an vice versa... you got [Demon Speakeasy] for that

[XenoNecroCoproPhile]

As expected, more empty worries than anything really dubious. I wonder what the release version will bring to the table.

[The Queen Salis]

Gay people exist. Non-binary people exist. They deserve to be portrayed in media as plainly existing. Get over it.
They're not there to "spice up a story" for people who "don't mind them" and also assume that EVERYONE agrees with them (which is just really bloody rich of you).

Originally posted by 'Araturo:

...However. We all know that stories in which is becomes the sole focus point are just plainly bad.

no, "WE ALL" don't "KNOW" that.
YOU think that and project that OPINION on the whole world, apparently.
But that's what it is. An opinion. YOUR subjective opinion. And you're welcome to have it, as long as you don't assign it to literally the entire population of planet Earth.

So far, the game has relaxing aesthetic, compelling lore and delighfully charming characters.
How "gay" will it turn out to be? Don't know, don't care. If the writing quality keeps the standard, I will eat it up and that's that.

[Stahlfrau]

I held my horses, and I feel lied to. If picking pronouns is a red flag for you, then you are not that different from "those" threads. And if you think that stories that focus on queer stuff are bad, then either the problem is with you, or you haven't seen the good ones.

[Giritto]

This is a valid question, you worded it a bit bad tho


Kind of wanted to know the same thing, upon some small research, I found one of the devs on Reddit and apparently it is inspired on Monster Prom for style and humor (along with Coffee talk for the vn and making drinks part), and that MP is heavily reliant in the dating aspect, and that this game won't have that, so at least there won't be romance involved

But they also say "The game takes place in a high fantasy world and focuses on friendship, found family and finding your community like a good DnD campaign" and it feels like it's gonna lean heavily towards LGBTQ ppl's experiences and lives, I mean, The Matrix for example is one huge trans allegory (both script writers were trans as well), and I'm all in for it, but I'm not particularly a fan of it when it's too much "in your face", because then it leaves the "made for everyone to enjoy, but with a message underneath" zone to a more "made for a specific community" type of thing, a community which I acknowledge I'm not a part of, so I'm not the target audience for the game anymore

I'll probably wait for a full release and watch or read a few reviews to know whether to buy it or not

['Araturo]

Originally posted by Synesthesia:

This is a valid question, you worded it a bit bad tho


Kind of wanted to know the same thing, upon some small research, I found one of the devs on Reddit and apparently it is inspired on Monster Prom for style and humor (along with Coffee talk for the vn and making drinks part), and that MP is heavily reliant in the dating aspect, and that this game won't have that, so at least there won't be romance involved

But they also say "The game takes place in a high fantasy world and focuses on friendship, found family and finding your community like a good DnD campaign" and it feels like it's gonna lean heavily towards LGBTQ ppl's experiences and lives, I mean, The Matrix for example is one huge trans allegory (both script writers were trans as well), and I'm all in for it, but I'm not particularly a fan of it when it's too much "in your face", because then it leaves the "made for everyone to enjoy, but with a message underneath" zone to a more "made for a specific community" type of thing, a community which I acknowledge I'm not a part of, so I'm not the target audience for the game anymore

I'll probably wait for a full release and watch or read a few reviews to know whether to buy it or not

Aye, that's the kind of insight I was looking for... It has not taken away my worries, but we'll see once it releases

[Jothaka]

Thanks for the insight Synthesthesia,

from what I've played it really focuses more on the characters and how you influence their stories instead of their sexualities. I like the VA-11 Hall-A mechanic of mixing drinks to change their story and the quest crafting could go in interesting directions, depending on how much freedom there will be in the full game.

I've played the full demo and maybe it was just the german translation of they/them that felt a bit weird to read for me, will probably try it in english the next time.

[Ignosius]

Originally posted by 'Araturo:

the literal first thing the game does is demand pronouns, the first character you meet is a they/them

I'm perfectly fine with queerness and LGBT, but this pronoun stuff and "they/them" nonsense is just obnoxious.

I'm not supporting any games that are pushing for it. This will be a pass from me. Thanks for the info.

[LunarSlayer]

Originally posted by Ignosius:

Originally posted by 'Araturo:

the literal first thing the game does is demand pronouns, the first character you meet is a they/them

I'm perfectly fine with queerness and LGBT, but this pronoun stuff and "they/them" nonsense is just obnoxious.

I'm not supporting any games that are pushing for it. This will be a pass from me. Thanks for the info.

lol, lmao even

[Shadowfox]

Originally posted by Ignosius:

Originally posted by 'Araturo:

the literal first thing the game does is demand pronouns, the first character you meet is a they/them

I'm perfectly fine with queerness and LGBT, but this pronoun stuff and "they/them" nonsense is just obnoxious.

I'm not supporting any games that are pushing for it. This will be a pass from me. Thanks for the info.

i disagree especially in a fantasy setting because in fantasy you can have genderless races like rock people or races with both sexes or even races where there form is ever changing.

[Ignosius]

Originally posted by Shadowfox:

Originally posted by Ignosius:

I'm perfectly fine with queerness and LGBT, but this pronoun stuff and "they/them" nonsense is just obnoxious.

I'm not supporting any games that are pushing for it. This will be a pass from me. Thanks for the info.

i disagree especially in a fantasy setting because in fantasy you can have genderless races like rock people or races with both sexes or even races where there form is ever changing.

I agree that fantasy settings have genderless races and shapeshifters. These aren't new concepts in fiction. I disagree with referring to one of these creatures as a "they" because it's pointlessly confusing.

We've had no problem calling these beings he/she/it for all of English history and no one was offended. Since these are fictional creatures, you can't exactly offend them either.

The only reason there is this push for gender neutral language in fiction is because of the people in the real world who want it used for themselves. It's an attempt to normalize its usage.

Since I don't support its usage in real life, I also oppose its usage in fiction.

[LaChouette]

WE had no problem calling them "it". I doubt those creatures, if they were intelligent, would be fine with a pronoun that's used to describe things or non-sapient beings. And in the context of the game, those creatures are not fictional. They're as real as all the other NPCs we meet. The text we're reading is from their point of view and from the point of view of other creatures that interact with them.

As for the gender-neutral, singular "they", it's been used for literally centuries. Shakespeare used it. Dickens used it. And sure, it's an attempt to normalise the singular "they". But until just a few centuries ago, "you" was only plural. However, if I were to say that you, specifically you Ignosius, are uninformed on the matter, you would not bat an eye to me using "you" to address a singular person. Languages evolve. Usage changes. Singular, gender-neutral "they" is only confusing to you because you're stubbornly set in your ways and refuse to accept it as a thing.