I was searching for threads on this topic because it was on my mind and Aletheia’s recent review made me think of it anew, noticed this one, and then…saw it was me who started it. So apparently I’ve been thinking about this subject for 8+ years, which is honestly wild.
Calling players who like playing romances!
Assuming a game allows you to pick the gender your character’s into romantically, how do you feel about a situation where you can have a shift in feelings?
I’ve been poking at a choice set in which a player can specify that while their character is only currently interested in men/women, the player is potentially interested in a story about their character falling for someone they didn’t expect to - whether that’s “I’ve realised I’m bisexual”, or “I’m into men/women [and maybe still see myself as straight/gay?] but this woman/man is the exception because I’ve fallen so hard for them”, or similar.
I’m still also including a choice that’s “I’m only into men/women” which gate off unwanted advances and remove options for players to make an advance with incompatible romanceable characters. This is because there are a fair number of points at which characters may make the first move and I don’t love repeatedly saying no to incompatible characters when I’m playing.
At the moment I’ve got a choice set that reads something like:
#Men only.
#Women only.
#Men only, but who knows if that might change?
#Women only, but who knows if that might change?
#Anyone.
#I don't know yet.
I don’t think I love the current wording: what I’d really like is to be able to clearly demarcate the character’s certainty in their orientation and the player choosing a potential romance story, but I’m not sure if that’s possible. Or maybe I’m just overthinking?!
I’m not straight or gay myself, and would like to frame it in a way that’s respectful and also clear!