Sya is a character who is open and uncertain about her transition. There is, however, an inherent problem in depicting trans and gender-nonconforming people only as sexual objects. I’m personally deeply fond of Serendipity, finding her funny and charming, and there’s nothing wrong with sex work. David Gaider, the lead writer, has admitted that Serendipity was meant to be a drag queen, but that the distinction is moot due to perceptions and the series’ history of depicting trans people as jokes. Billed as a premium option in The Blooming Rose brothel, Serendipity is nevertheless treated as something of a “surprise” and a joke. Two years following the first game, this Dragon Age sequel fares only a little better. A divine ring was granted to him that enabled him to perform “female actions,” and he’s described as behaving like a “ sullen brooding goddess.” Wearing long, flowing robes and having a feminine body, Gwyndolin could be a Souls representation of a trans woman, or he might be canonically another “ boy dressed as a girl.” The interpretation is left open. Gwyndolin is described as having been raised as a daughter. The dimming world you inhabit never gives you the full story, only scraps of lore. This is in part down to how Souls uses ambiguity like a veil. The subject of Gwyndolin’s gender is contentious. It’s a mixed bag, she is a good character with a poor portrayal.Ģ4. An ending depicts a character reacting with upset and disgust at having lost his virginity to her. However, there’s more than one jibe about Erica not being a “real” woman. Whilst she’s empathetic, likable, and a well-rounded character, she has known the other characters since high school and they seem to have no outward issue with her being trans. Your mileage varies on how well this works, but I often find that hidden gender stories walk into sexist territory as well as transphobic territory.Įrica is a trans woman and waitress at the Stray Sheep, the bar frequented by Catherine ’s main character. The rationale provided is that after being bullied and teased for being weak, Chihiro assumed a feminine identity to allow for his weakness.

A character declares that she wishes she’d killed Chihiro for being a cross-dresser. Sadly, this relies heavily on transphobic “ she was really a he” stereotypes. The player doesn’t confirm that Chihiro is a boy until after his death, when his body is examined by Sakura. Chihiro Fujisaki - Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc (2010)Ĭhihiro is another in a long line of characters who aren’t trans in canon, but who play on trans tropes and play with gender ideas. When given options for someone to sleep with, you can select “surprise me” and be given a masculine dwarf in a dress.Ģ2. There are a number of same-sex romances in Origins, but your only exposure to trans characters, romantically or otherwise, is through sex workers in The Pearl, a brothel. In a game and series that is notable for its romantic inclusivity, an area in which Dragon Age consistently dropped the ball prior to the third game is in its depictions of trans people. There are no characters that first appeared in movies or other media.Ģ1. I have avoided listing characters who don’t originate in video games.

Once again, this list is by no means exhaustive. It’s also increasingly a time of indie video games making waves in the wider gaming community, which allows for trans and queer developers to make their mark. There are many bad apples in this area of LGBT+ representation unfortunately, but there is a clearer understanding of what makes someone trans and what does not. That isn’t to tell you all those depictions are good ones. Depictions are more clear cut, with mainstream acceptance clearly having an effect on the education involved in these depictions. That is to say, we have less and less of the experience where characters are considered trans based only on interpretation. That’s when a lot more confirmed trans characters start to crop up. That said, once we escape the 2000s and all that came before it, things do start to improve. It has been a rocky road and continues to be one, complicated by misinformation or conflicting ideas. Welcome back to part two of The History of Trans People in Video Games! I suggest catching up on Part One if you haven’t already, but as I said there, the depiction of trans characters in the gaming industry is a complex one.

This article series comes with a blanket content warning for transphobia and transphobic language.

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