Okay.
The Shadow Heritage DLC for Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey has caused a huff online in some circles when players found out you’d be forced into a straight relationship. The core of the content establishes that either Kassandra or Alexios has a kid so as to pass down the bloodline.
Now, I’m not and expert in ancient Greek video games, but flipping through by old middle science textbook I’m seeing that it takes a man and a woman to bump uglies to make a gross baby human.
But apparently the people over at Ubisoft can no longer tell the stories that they want to tell for fear of offending people that probably don’t even play their games. Look, I’m all for being inclusive, respectful and aware of your audience. What I’m not okay with is when they dictate the stories you can/want to tell.
I have gay/lesbian family members, have LGBTQ contributers writing for us here at GAMBIT, and have supported all manner of causes for those who once were considered outcasts in out society for one reason or another. But this is just stupid.
The creative director Jonathan Dumont has now apologized for telling a story where the characters have a baby saying:
“We want to extend an apology to players disappointed by a relationship your character partakes in. Alexios/Kassandra realizing their own mortality and the sacrifice Leonidas and Myrrine made before them to keep their legacy alive, felt the desire and duty to preserve their important lineage. Our goal was to let players choose between a utilitarian view of ensuring your bloodline lived on or forming a romantic relationship. We attempted to distinguish between the two but could have done this more carefully as we were walking a narrow line between role-play choices and story, and the clarity and motivation for this decision was poorly executed.”
A lot of the complaints do have some merit as Ubisoft did make it a point to promise you could make your own romantic partners in the game. But what if you’re bisexual and like the idea of having a child someday and this story element works for you? Or what if you’re straight and are okay with this move?
Look, all I’m saying is that when you remove a storytellers ability to tell a story (in a singleplayer, narrative driven game mind you) you end up with a game and story that means nothing. When you try to please everyone you end up pleasing nobody.
Tell the stories you want to tell. If they are good stories then people, no matter what their gender, race, or political affiliation will play and enjoy them.
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