Popularity Contest

Bonnie Ruberg's written a piece for Joystiq about Rockstar's Bully controversy. An excerpt:

By now, we all know about Jimmy Hopkins' boy-on-boy kissing adventures. A few
voices have leapt out in predictably outraged protest but, for the most part,
the gaming world has been strangely accepting of Jimmy's bi-curiosity –
surprising in a community where a normal evening on Halo 2 (you know it's
happened to you) usually includes watching a preteen with a Xbox Live headset
shoot ammo into your lifeless corpse while shouting, "You're dead, homo!"

I've also been surprised at the general reaction of the video game community. But really, here you have Rockstar--the coolest kid on the block because they make xtreme games about car-jacking, prostitutes and gangs--and then you have Jack Thompson--the most hated man in all of videogamedom--crying "gay sex!" Who's side are you going to choose? The cool kid, totally.

Not that I think that this is going to stop any of the homophobic talk on XBox Live or in living rooms across the nation. And not that I think Rockstar had hopes of curing the rampant homophobia among gamers.

Also, you might want to hop on over to Bonnie's blog--that's where discussion of the piece is taking place. A warning: you might have to dodge and parry some heterosexual privilege in the comments.

When Silver Suns Have Golden Moons

So I have a confession. I'm playing a X-box game, and kind of enjoying myself. And worse still is that its Fable. This is a game that I totally lambasted when it came out. No female playable character, the lenght is really short, it's on X-box--the usual complaints. But now things have changed.

My brother got himself a new 360, so I got the leftovers. I think because I came into Fable with very low expectations my hopes weren't crushed when I started playing. The best part of the game, by far, is the ability to be queer. I get to chose my sexuality! I no longer have to be forced into the status quo! I can marry my same sex partner, and stroll through the town in my dress with pride. And the fair citizens will cheer for my life choices and high reknown, not knowing that it is I who is breaking into their homes at night and stealing their potions. And it warms my heart that after a hard day of slaying hundreds of Hobbes, I can come home and make love to my wife. Wait a minute, Wife?! I married a dude, game!

So here comes the disappointment: I, too, fell into the Fable trap of high expectations like so many others. I thought that I would enjoy the same benefits of a het relationship. I was wrong. The first thing that pissed me off was that the game continually refers to the love of my life as my wife. How hard would it have been to program the game to change the text depending on the gender of my partner? And here's a thought, why not just call him my partner--it works both ways. It just gives a weird, "this choice was not our focus when we made this game" vibe. A feeling that is furthered by the fact that I don't get a wedding ceremony for my same sex partner. Would that have been so difficult? I just would have liked something, it didn't have to be a wedding, but some cut scene that shows that we are now together, and that this marriage is just as valid as the heterosexual one. I was disappointed after these realizations, but I was still proud that I just married a guy.

So naturally, I wanted to bask in the glory of my newly changed stat. Oh more disappointment, so much disappointment. What was waiting for me when I check my status of sexuality?...GAY. I'm Gay. If I married a women I would be Heterosexual. But now I'm gay. Instead of using the opposite term of homosexual, Lion's Head thought it was best to use a slang term. (A term I was called through my childhood and adolescence.) I wouldn't have cared if the other option was straight, but no, they use the scientific name for that. But me, I'm gay. So there it is. So close but so far away. Well, at least I can be Bisexual.

I have to say that I am very impressed that Lion's Head added same sex marriage into the game. In a game based around the choices you make, its only natural to allow for more than one sexual preference. I can't think of many other games that allow this, and have it be such a large, interactive part of the game. I just wish that they would have put more effort into the "gay" experience.

Heterosexim 101--A questionnaire

I received this handout today from my Gender & Culture class and thought that I'd share.

1. What do you think caused your heterosexuality?

2.When and how did you first decide you were a heterosexual?

3. Is it possible that your heterosexuality is just a phase you may grow out of?

4. Is it possible that your heterosexuality stems from a neurotic fear of others of the same sex?

5. If you have never slept with a person of the same sex, is it possible that all you need is a good gay lover?

6. Do your parents know that you are straight? Do your friends/co-workers know? How did they react?

7. Why do you insist on flaunting your heterosexuality? Can't you just be who you are and keep it quiet?

8. Why do heterosexuals place so much emphasis on sex?

9. Why do heterosexuals feel compelled to seduce others into their lifestyle?

10. A disproportionate majority of child molesters are heterosexual. Do you consider it safe to expose children to heterosexual teachers?

11. Just what do men and women DO in bed together? How can they truly know how to please each other, being so anatomically different?

12. Despite all the societal support marriage receives, the divorce rate is spiraling. Why are there so few stable relationships among heterosexuals?

13. Statistics show that lesbians have the lowest incidence of sexually transmitted diseases. Is it really safe for a woman to maintain a heterosexual lifestyle and run the risk of disease and unwanted pregnancy?

14. How can you become a whole person if you limit yourself to compulsive, exclusive heterosexuality?

15. Considering the menace of overpopulation, how could the human race survive if everyone were heterosexual?

16. Could you trust a heterosexual therapist to be objective? Don't you feel s/he might be inclined to influence you in the direction of her/his own leanings?

17. There seem to be very few happy heterosexuals. Techniques have been developed that might enable you to change if you really want to. Have you considered trying aversion therapy?

18. Would you want your child to be heterosexual, knowing the problems that s/he would face?

Get on the Bandwagon

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, there is controversy stewing over Blizzard banning a GLBT friendly group. I'm glad that this has become an issue, that people are weighing opinions and are discussing identity politics, but the more I read, the more I feel that a lot of people have a hard time realizing heterosexual privilege.

Full disclosure: I do not play World of Warcraft. Therefore, I don't know the game, the atmosphere of the game, the politics of the game. I read and hear about it, but know nothing first hand, which is why I initially didn't want to post about this. However, I am familiar with how people generally act on gaming message boards and chat rooms. I know the language and assumptions that are thrown around, and know specifically that "yr so gay," "fag," and worse, are run-of-the-mill insults. Frankly, I don't think we'll magically see a change of heart any time soon.

Therefore, many people complain that a GLBT-friendly guild is openly declaring that other guilds, or generally that the world of WoW, is less than GLBT-friendly--or worse, homophobic. Well yes, GLBT-friendly guilds act as a "safe" place: a buffer zone from idiotic comments and harassment. It's also a place for community. It feels good to be around people who have the same interests as you, who have gone through similar life experiences. There's an instant bond. Frankly, Blizzard might be right that a GLBT group might incite unwanted harassment, but it's a hell of a lot easier to deal with harassment, which will occur anyway, when you're with a group of friends. Strength in numbers and all that.

There's another argument being tossed around that says that people need to leave their real-life identities behind when they play videogames. When you're privileged--say, you're white, straight, male--it's easy to leave behind your identities simply because you are society's norm. If you don't belong to the white/male/heterosexual group you are constantly being reminded that you're deficient, less-than, weak or dumb. You're not the default. I constantly think about how I'm a woman. It never leaves my head. However, if you've ever heard about how someone who's skin color isn't white is constantly reminded how they aren't white, you might catch my drift. If you're white, is race or the color of your skin something that you're always thinking about?

I can honestly say that I don't, and that's a privilege of mine. The same goes for sexuality. You can't just check it at the door, and in WoW, even though it might be beyond the scope of the actual game, people pick each other up, characters get married or "have" sex. Therefore, sexuality is an issue.

It's too bad that the members of the Stonewall Champions feel that they have to sue Blizzard over this issue, and I'm bracing myself for the inevitable backlash from people who aren't sympathetic towards GLBT rights. In short, because of our culture's history, it looks bad. However, I applaud them for sticking their necks out. Social disobedience gets attention, and if anything, suing Blizzard keeps this issue from being ignored--it's going to keep GLBT rights in the spotlight a little longer. Hopefully what this does is to keep people thinking about it--after all that's one of the few ways towards progress.

***
Also, in regards to those who think that GUN isn't racist: it's a game that glorifies killing Native Americans. Yes, free speech is sacred, but don't defend a crappy game that recycles the American naivete that Native Americans deserved to get slaughtered.