Dragon Age: Why We Can't Have Nice Things

Talos

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ha gay GIF
 
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Bald Brah

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BG3 does have relationship consequences. If you romance certain characters it locks you out of others. I did Laezel first time because she basically jumps on you at the gate. Locked out of shadowheart and Karlach. Did shadowheart second. She locks you out of Karlach even though she's open to a lot of freaky stuff like the drow 4some. Worst "sex scene" ever BTW. And the one I was looking forward to the most.
 

Penance

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Except it isn't a challenge in that situation, it's a prerequisite that is determined before you ever start playing the actual game. Your point might stand if there was a difficult and hard to find way where Miss Hotty McGothpants will agree to scissor your female character even though she only goes for male characters normally, for example.

Baldurs also makes some relationships harder to fully finish. Shadowheart is probably main example - she doesn't throw herself at you like a lot of the other characters do and you basically have to do a bunch of correct things/choices and find some special items in acts 1 and 2 or you basically will get locked out of it when act 3 rolls around. That's a better way of doing it: Your actual gameplay actions during the game determine whether or not you can unlock it with the character, not what you decided to make during character creation before you even get to play the game.
It should be both. Arent these the kind of people that puts so much emphasis on sexual identity? Yet they make everyone pansexual to waive away any trouble of actually writing a compelling story and literally just have the character serve as a maturation object.

No amount of dialogue choices and shiny objects should lead to being able to fuck outside a characters sexual preference if they were written well.

Unless you are suggesting we be able to rape NPCs?
 
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Valderen

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The reason they made every NPC pansexual is because those people cannot deal with "rejection", even in a video game. So no matter the gender they chose to play as, they will not face rejection because the NPC doesn't swing that way. It would be very offensive if an NPC doesn't like your character. :)
 

Cybsled

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The reason they made every NPC pansexual is because those people cannot deal with "rejection", even in a video game. So no matter the gender they chose to play as, they will not face rejection because the NPC doesn't swing that way. It would be very offensive if an NPC doesn't like your character. :)

That's part of it as well I suspect, in addition to player fantasy. Even in games that lock certain character romances to specific requirements based on whether the player is male or female, you inevitably find mods (where applicable) that bypass that since there is a demand for it
 

Burns

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That's part of it as well I suspect, in addition to player fantasy. Even in games that lock certain character romances to specific requirements based on whether the player is male or female, you inevitably find mods (where applicable) that bypass that since there is a demand for it
There are cheats for every remotely successful game ever made. Does that mean all games should just put a god mode check box on the start page? Should people who then complete those games without cheating get extra achievements for doing so? No, because when a gaming company disables achievements for cheating, there are mods out there to "fix" that...
 
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Tuco

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I don't give a shit about romances but I think having different NPCs have different preferences that highly bias their romance would be preferable. Such that some NPCs will flat out reject the wrong race/sex, others prefer different combos and some don't care.

This is doubly so if they flagrantly state their bias. Trying to hook up with Wyll as a dwarven male and getting laughed at or having to play every card perfectly in order to bang Karlach as a gnome would be $$$.
 
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Palum

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I don't give a shit about romances but I think having different NPCs have different preferences that highly bias their romance would be preferable. Such that some NPCs will flat out reject the wrong race/sex, others prefer different combos and some don't care.

This is doubly so if they flagrantly state their bias. Trying to hook up with Wyll as a dwarven male and getting laughed at or having to play every card perfectly in order to bang Karlach as a gnome would be $$$.
Sorry, that would involve writing. But generally I hate this shit in games. I play an RPG to kill orcs not play a dating sim.
 
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Lanx

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The reason they made every NPC pansexual is because those people cannot deal with "rejection", even in a video game. So no matter the gender they chose to play as, they will not face rejection because the NPC doesn't swing that way. It would be very offensive if an NPC doesn't like your character. :)
these garbage games are just shitty dating sims with swords and mana
 

Tuco

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Sorry, that would involve writing. But generally I hate this shit in games. I play an RPG to kill orcs not play a dating sim.
I was thinking about this the other day, despite really enjoying the games that preceded DA Veilguard I think it's evolved to be a subgenre of "relationship RPG" that just isn't marketed to me. Even if I was excited about Veilguard if I wanted to do all the quests I'd dread the inevitable "tour" of camp where I have to listen to all the life stories and play counselor or whatever.
 
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Gavinmad

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It was novel idea back when it was just a relatively insignificant little extra part of the game, like romances giving you a dialogue option for automatic success in redeeming Bastila in KoTOR or freeing Aribeth from Mephistopheles' control without even needing her true name in HotU. As soon as they started making it a major part of the games it rapidly grew out of control. Hell even though Mass Effect 2 is commonly regarded as the zenith of Bioware's legacy something like 75% of the game is accumulating, romancing, and ensuring the loyalty of companions.
 
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Caliane

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yeah, it was real refreshing to go back to might and magic, wizardry, temple of elemental evil, etc, and just have none of that shit at all. party did their jobs like professionals!

pillars 2 was kindof neat where the party did gain favor with each other. and, certain party members could romance each other.
 
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Tuco

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I think this kind of game is better as more of a hands-off action game where companions are able to express their personality with less control from the player. A traditional CRPG where a player slowly works through combat situations in turn-based gameplay just takes time away from the core of the game, which is listening to NPCs talk about LGTBBQ bravery.
 
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yerm

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I think this kind of game is better as more of a hands-off action game where companions are able to express their personality with less control from the player. A traditional CRPG where a player slowly works through combat situations in turn-based gameplay just takes time away from the core of the game, which is listening to NPCs talk about LGTBBQ bravery.

Its hard to incorporate the full lghdtv spectrum in just 2 companions so hopefully they will force plenty of mandatory diversity in your main character as well.