14 DAY TRIAL // Lucien Soulban, one of the main writers who have worked on Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon, says that at the moment openly gay protagonists are not used in video games because publishers believe they might negatively impact sales, despite no evidence to support this assessment.
Speaking to the official Ubisoft blog the developer believes that entertainment like movies and games might require more time to create a character that is gay without being perceived as threatening by the audience.
He explains that, “I think the real question is, When are going to get a gay/lesbian AAA hero(ine) who isn’t a one-off joke? You look at Javier Bardem in Skyfall, his character’s sexuality was total shtick to satisfy one scene. Otherwise, he was a narcissist with mommy issues, and a pedophile to boot.”
Soulban goes on to explain why the use of a gay antagonist in Skyfall was not well handled and says that he expects to see video games do a better job in the near future.
He adds, “either we’ll see a bait-and-switch like the original Metroid with Samus Aran where we’ll find out damn near after the fact (PS: And Dumbledore was gay), or it’ll come out of left field with Rockstar, Valve, Naughty Dog or Telltale, perhaps. But when it happens, I hope it’s a serious take on it and not played up for jokes.”
The writer also highlights the fact that there are gay characters that are included in titles like the Mass Effect franchise, Fable and The Elder Scrolls IV: Skyrim, even if they are not the protagonists of the story.
BioWare has recently commented on how it handles genre roles and relationships in its own titles, and gamers will probably be able to choose the way their characters in the coming Dragon Age: Inquisition handle their sexual orientation.
Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon was a spin-off for the open world shooter that focused on classic mechanics and a ’80 aesthetic that featured actual dragons that were able to shoot lasers out of their eyes.
It’s unclear whether publisher Ubisoft plans to make Blood Dragon a separate franchise or whether it will explore other titles linked to Far Cry that will use new universes and core gameplay concepts.
Rumors suggest that a full sequel, Far Cry 4, is already in development for the PC, the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony, with a full reveal set to take place later during 2014.