Riot, are you even physically capable of designing a queer character?

Juna·11/18/2016, 12:58:03 PM·2 votes·961 views

Or even just HINTING at it? ANYTHING would do for a start, Overwatch hasn't been out for half a year and they already have you beat with plans to announce who is queer in the lineup. It might not seem important to you, but it IS important to us. Especially after the recent election.

We're an enormous untapped market, but you're too afraid to even imply Caitlyn might have had a girl for an ex, or that Varus is bi in the vaguest way. No transgender characters (I'm looking at Jinx, the quintessential angry anarchist trans girl!), nothing - except outright gay jokes in the existence of Taric. His skins, his voice, his hair, the recurring joke that he is gay. Because ha ha ha ha ha.

Do yourself a favor and catch up with the times. We exist, we want to see ourselves in video games, and we don't want to be the butt of your "lol fabulous!!" jokes. We want a little respect.

20 Comments

TyrekGoldenspear11/18/2016, 1:04:40 PM13 votes

Riot isn't and shouldn't put in characters just to check in a box and fill in an archetype just because people like that exist.

They develop a character first, story and kitwise, their quirks or habits aren't a major concern at the moment of inception.

Also you seem to think that a character's orientation defines them, or it is super essential to know. It isn't.

Jinx isn't trans btw, and why does the recent election have anything to do with how Riot wants to add in another group of people that make up less than 2% of the population, which isn't an enormous market by the way. You aren't the butt of any jokes, and if you want to see a gay joke look at old Taric. New Taric is Fabio.

Point is, adding in characters like that isn't "catching up with the times", it's just making characters just for the heck of making them, and they will be flat and 2D.

SrbLud11/18/2016, 1:28:08 PM8 votes

This era of entitlement amuses me. It's going to be a downfall of this society.

Colgate Gator11/18/2016, 4:46:49 PM6 votes

Shhhhh....

No, we don't need you to push your real life issues into a videogame, and I should let you know that most Champions don't have their sexuality specified in the game, so any can be anything. Now please stop requesting for Champions to be holding a rainbow flag just so you can feel comfort gvien by a bunch of pixels.

ModEchoing11/18/2016, 1:19:42 PM6 votes

A quick google search turns up this link which says "More specifically, 1.8 percent of men self-identify as gay and 0.4 percent as bisexual, and 1.5 percent of women self-identify as lesbian and 0.9 percent as bisexual." It dates to 2014 - I highly doubt too much has changed in the makeup there over two years.

Which means that a champion catering to that approximately 2% isn't really hitting some sort of enormous untapped market.

The internet's bigger than Tumblr.

Maximum Morde11/18/2016, 1:19:38 PM5 votes

How does what they stick their genitals into matter to the game?

Next people will be wanting a champion that sexual identifies as an attack helicopter. Corki doesn't count because he doesn't identify as one, he is just attracted to them.

13743411/18/2016, 1:40:05 PM5 votes

I'm gay and could not care less about the sexual orientation of some fictional characters in a video game (a MOBA at that) that only exist as lines as code. Congratulations, you fell for Blizzard's pandering with Overwatch. Doesn't mean Riot is required to pander too

Requiemsfire11/18/2016, 4:36:44 PM5 votes

Leave it to the headcanons. Why's their sexuality important when there's a grander story to tell? Why's it relevant to Ryze's quest if he's really a gay blue man?

no mechanics ape11/18/2016, 1:24:48 PM3 votes

Why does it matter? These are characters in a video game, they shouldn't hold any more or less significance if Riot implied any form of sexual orientation.

Bobo11311/18/2016, 4:33:32 PM3 votes

I personally think that part of the issue is that someone's gender identity or sexuality HAS to be a defining characteristic of someone these days. It comes across as rather forced, and it is included to appease token crowds, and nothing more. It isn't solving anything. So, I say this with great trepidation as I venture into the uncharted territories of "obligatory minority sob story stagnation." However, before you go and say, "holy hell - this guy is insensitive, bla-bla-bla," I am not exclusively referring to a specific kind of minority; racial, sexual, religious, class, age, ability, etc., but rather the issue that someone's so-called "afflictions" define them.

For instance: if a character in a movie these days happens to be in a wheelchair, half of that character's plot development is about them being disabled, or dealing with what that entitles. You can still have a handicapped character in a game, but never elude to how or why they are that way, and give them a PERFECTLY normal storyline. They are NOT the wheelchair. Drawing attention to it only alienates people further, and creates this divide that people feel they have to scream across. It will continually grow wider the more people piss and moan about it.

This can also be attributed to the role of LGBTQ in modern media. The second we stop treating this sort of thing as "special circumstances," and just make a character whose sexual orientation or gender identity isn't their important trait, it will become the norm. . .

Big Lincoln11/18/2016, 1:21:57 PM2 votes

I don't understand why a token character would be so important for you. If Riot just slaps on "oh, X character is gay" or trans, how does that represent you properly or enhance the character? There's not any struggle with the fact of who they are; are you only relating to them because you can project yourself onto them?

and what's the election got to do with this? Trump is pro-LGBT rights; he shouldn't worry you.

Jorencice11/18/2016, 1:34:21 PM2 votes

{quoted}

Or even just HINTING at it? ANYTHING would do for a start, Overwatch hasn't been out for half a year and they already have you beat with plans to announce who is queer in the lineup. It might not seem important to you, but it IS important to us. Especially after the recent election.

We're an enormous untapped market, but you're too afraid to even imply Caitlyn might have had a girl for an ex, or that Varus is bi in the vaguest way. No transgender characters (I'm looking at Jinx, the quintessential angry anarchist trans girl!), nothing - except outright gay jokes in the existence of Taric. His skins, his voice, his hair, the recurring joke that he is gay. Because ha ha ha ha ha.

Do yourself a favor and catch up with the times. We exist, we want to see ourselves in video games, and we don't want to be the butt of your "lol fabulous!!" jokes. We want a little respect.

Queers are 3.8% of the total population wouldnt exactly call that enormous.

And honestly shame on blizzard for bowing to your demands.

Sexuality shouldnt matter in the slightest.

They are warriors not gossip girls.

ADC5LUT11/18/2016, 4:41:18 PM1 votes

@op most video gamers are breitbart subscribers just don't even bother.

iHeim 111/18/2016, 1:42:31 PM1 votes

ezreal, taric, GUH AYYYYY, ILLAOI is a transgender monster, heimer is jewish

Blue Collar Bear11/18/2016, 1:01:57 PM1 votes

I actually believe the content of sexuality is against the summoner's code. People have been penalized for talking about sex and sexuality in public chat. I'd need a Riot response to confirm, though, since I'm a scrub.

Chamuel8511/18/2016, 1:00:17 PM1 votes

I mean that I don't think that it is funny or a joke that Taric is gay. I'm not sure riot thinks so either. I believe that Riot reinforces that Taric is gay with his skins, VO, and gfx, not that they do it because it is funny. I'm not sure it is on Riot that you think Taric being gay is a joke.