How Gaymes are Representing and Including Gaymers

While this may seem uncommon or something few would focus on, there is actually quite a rich network of gaymes -- and the games meant to encourage and entice gaymers to play. GaymingMag.com has an ongoing list of which gaymes are coming out that offer such player opportunities. The list provides release dates, which offer options that may be intended more for adult players, and which platforms they are able to be played on. According to GaymingMag.com, "It was only last year that we tried our utmost to highlight all of the queer games being released, and we quickly were overwhelmed at how many people came to view this list every single day. It quickly confirmed what we'd always known: queer video games and the people behind them aren't just things we need, but are wanted as well."

The Washington Post reports, "In 1999, developers for The Sims displayed a prototype of the game at a booth at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), the world's leading gaming and tech convention. In the game, players simulate a virtual life as they build their own avatar, meet friends and lovers, and create a home. Patrick Barrett, a gay man, trained the AI that determined the characters' romantic relationships in The Sims.

"Barrett had been working with old code. He wasn't aware that at the time, his team had decided to limit the game's romance options to heterosexual interactions. So, when the expo simulation showed two women getting married, news of the lesbian characters quickly spread among E3's audience of roughly 60,000 attendees."

This was not a one-time consideration. In 2007, the Stanford University Department of Communication began studying how the proteus effect impacts gamers. This study focused on the physical appearance of an avatar, but researchers continue to study how more abstract traits like gender identity, sexuality and attitude can also impact a player's behavior in the game and, sometimes, in real life. While this study is ongoing, the world of gaming and the impact of gayming has continued to evolve.

What's Happening in the World of Gayming?

One of the biggest new changes in the world of gayming is that The Sims has now added a new option for Sims creators -- which is any player who wants to may create their own character rather than to play with premade characters. This new option is to add pronouns to the characters. Aimee Hart of GaymingMag.com reports, "In a livestream -- that has been fully transcribed via The Sims Community website -- the team at Maxis showcased a first look at the new CAS, which included a selection of pronouns that we've seen before, such as they/them/theirs, her/she/hers and he/him/his, as well as the option to include custom pronouns. Custom pronouns mean that players can include neopronouns such as ze/zir/zirs if they so choose."

The gaming platform Twitch has expanded into this space too, creating Gaymers+, "an all-inclusive LGBTQIA+ focused content creation team that fosters a wholesomely enriched community and support hub that reaches across all platforms." There, members of the LGBT+ gayming community come together to gayme and to discuss their lives and their experiences, creating a virtual space for inclusion, a shared love of Twitch, and a commonplace in which the LGBT+ experience can be discussed amongst those who truly understand and support one another.

Controversy

Queerness in video games, such as same-sex relationships, may be banned in China in the future according to the South China Morning Post. The SCMP provided insight from an internal memo tied to internal training in China's Gaming Association. Within it is stated that video games should not be viewed solely as "pure entertainment." More importantly, the video games that do get approved will have to convey the "correct set of values" that are important to the state. This includes not approving the release of games which feature subjects such as same-sex relationships, as well as "effeminate males." The memo also guides that, "if regulators can't tell the character's gender immediately, the setting of the characters could be considered problematic and red flags will be raised."

Why Gayming and Gaymers Matter

It would be easy to assume that this is a niche market or to think that this is a way that political correctness has seeped into yet another industry in our media world. However, this is quite the opposite. Rather than this being a sign of "wokeness" or a political agenda, it is a symbol of the realities of the LGBT+ existence within our overarching society. For generations of games and gaming, all characters were either animals or white males (sometimes either were tasked to save a white damsel in distress). Over time, as the gaming industry realized that Black and non-white players existed, the characters evolved to resemble players. Later, the industry again evolved to offer options for female characters who were strong and capable, in response to understanding how many women partake in game play. Now it's the LGBT+ community's turn to see themselves represented in games.

This is a great example of adaptation within an industry. Not only must media companies recognize who their audience is, they must be willing to change the appearance of their products to allow each interested person to see themselves and to feel valued while engaging. Interviews with celebrity gaymers highlight how commonplace the interest is in playing games that offer inclusion while spotlighting independent (or indy) gaymes show where smaller companies and groups are expanding the industry. In addition, interviews with individual gaymers allow any LGBT+ gaymer to feel seen, valued and a part of something much bigger than themselves.

The Washington Post reports, "The ability to express oneself in a video game can help an LGBTQ+ person feel more confident in their actual life. Much of this comes down to the proteus effect. Named after the Greek mythological deity known for shapeshifting, the proteus effect is when people in virtual environments -- video games, chat rooms and so on -- begin to adopt characteristics from their virtual representations. Just as the mythological Proteus can take on many forms, so too can gamers try new identities, faces and lives."

This allows for all involved to experience video games in which they are included and wanted, two key emotions that every industry shows always encourages further product engagement and further sales.

Photo credit: Pixabay

Click the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleagues.

The opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author and/or subject(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillage.com/MyersBizNet, Inc. management or associated writers.