9/12/2023 0 Comments New mass effect game![]() Though the original Mass Effect leaves an imperfect legacy, its contributions are undeniable. The formulaic nature of the romances, as well as the fact that Shepard is canoodling in a workplace, are causes for legitimate concern However, I put it to you that it is only because of the path paved by Mass Effect that we are able to look at romances in games and demand more sophisticated and nuanced treatments of human relationships and sexuality. The formulaic nature of the romances, as well as the fact that Shepard is canoodling in a workplace, are causes for legitimate concern. Thankfully, these prayers would be answered in Mass Effect 3, where Kaiden would become romanceable for male characters, alongside Cortez, who remains one of the most underrated NPCs in the trilogy as far as I’m concerned. It read: “my Shepard is still waiting for his prince”. I remember, with amusement and sadness, a banner common on the Bioware forums at the time used by those who wanted a bit of gay Shepard in their lives. Bioware has claimed that a gay relationship with Kaiden, one of the Normandy crew, wasn’t even planned – a sting gay men must have felt when playing the game. Only one queer romance option is available to Shepard in the first Mass Effect, and though groundbreaking at the time, the lack of a similar option for male Commander Shepards was conspicuous by its absence. This is not to say that the relationships in Mass Effect are without problems. Bioware added two new gay characters to the Normandy crew: specialist Samatha Traynor and shuttle pilot Steve Cortez. By 2012 the political landscape had changed sufficiently to ensure that the kind of backlash seen on Fox News four years earlier was unlikely to repeat itself to the same extent. With Mass Effect 3, however, active queer representation was back on the menu. The fact that Mass Effect endured such harsh scrutiny demonstrates the bravery BioWare showed with its first entry in the series Though the Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC did allow Shepards to continue their romance with Liara, the enthusiastic scientist introduced in the previous game, it appears that some of the bravery had been stifled. You could be murdered by a pansexual serial killer or have a creepy relationship with your secretary, but that was about it. There were no gay male relationships and a very limited scope for lesbian romances. Yet, it is fair to say that BioWare seemed cowed somewhat in Mass Effect 2. The game was, in some senses, outwardly political – not only in its assertion that video games could be about relationships and sexuality, but also in its portrayal of a lesbian relationship as valid and legitimate. The fact that Mass Effect endured such harsh scrutiny demonstrates the bravery BioWare showed with its first entry in the series. In January 2008, Mass Effect famously became a talking point on Fox News, The network famously used the fact that the game has tasteful sex scenes as an opportunity to both sling mud at the medium, and to voice their homophobic “concerns” about lesbian sex scenes in the game.
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