To those of you claiming that "woke" killed Bioware, you don't know what the frak you are talking about. BioWare was a pioneer in LGBTQ+ inclusion within Western RPGs, evolving from early same-sex options in games like Baldur’s Gate II and Jade Empire, to fully written queer main characters, explicit romances, and transgender/non-binary representation across the Dragon Age and Mass Effect series.
For those of you who claim you've played their games, but we know you haven't actually done so, here's a timeline of LGBTQ+ at a glance from BioWare games.
Early Era (2000–2005): Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003) featured Juhani as an early, semi-hidden lesbian romance. Jade Empire (2005) included same-sex options but faced editorial pushback or censorship in some markets.
Mass Effect Trilogy (2007–2012): Mass Effect (2007) sparked media controversy over a brief alien-human romance with Liara (playable as female Shepard). Mass Effect 2 expanded options, and Mass Effect 3 (2012) offered full same-sex romances for male and female Shepard, including crewmate Samantha Traynor and Steve Cortez.
Dragon Age Series (2009–Present): Dragon Age: Origins (2009) allowed bisexual/same-sex flings with select companions. Dragon Age II (2011) made nearly all main party members bisexual/pansexual. Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014) introduced Dorian Pavus as the studio's first fully gay companion and Krem as a prominent transgender character.
Later Titles (Andromeda and The Veilguard): Mass Effect: Andromeda (2017) scaled back queer options at launch, whereas later projects and studio leadership continued emphasizing expansive identity options and diverse characters.
Beyond that....
Writing & Advocacy: Lead writers like David Gaider championed authentic queer storylines, making non-straight identities a core part of fantasy and sci-fi worldbuilding rather than a joke.
Industry Influence: BioWare's commitment helped normalize LGBTQ+ characters in mainstream AAA video games, though critics and fans have also debated past missteps, missed opportunities, or inconsistent handling of bisexual representation.
(a simple Google search gives you the above, and you can go deeper if you like).
I've been playing their games since the VERY beginning. Get out of my timeline you fake-ass LARPers.
To all Mass Effect fans:
Share this manifesto, use the hashtag, and tell the world about your favorite Mass Effect memories.
Let's spread the word and bring our community together to celebrate our love for this incredible saga under one banner!
#MassEffectIsAlive
In an age dominated by technology, in which efficiency and profit often take precedence, it is so important that we continue to cultivate a spirit of contemplation and allow time and space for beauty. Such an attitude will greatly help humanity, especially young people, to discover the ability of art to uplift and reveal the depths of the human spirit and our openness to the divine. Contemplation presents a marvelous opportunity to encounter the God who is Beauty.
New marketing strategy:
> make a good, interesting game
> hire a trans VA
> have it go viral because transphobes crash out
> LGBTQ+ people and allies push back
> profit
This is HUGE.
Around midday yesterday, for the first time ever, renewables supplied more than 80% of demand on Australia’s main electricity grid.
But despite this...
1/3
It's the mid-to-late 1990's. You spend the car trip home trying to read the manual for the new game you got by streetlight as turning on the map light is illegal. You try to figure out how to chuck a sickie the next day.
POV: It’s the early 2000s and you’re walking through the video game aisle at Best Buy.
PS2, Xbox, GameCube, PC games… rows of cases you’d stare at forever while trying to decide what was worth spending your money on.
Sometimes browsing the aisle was almost as much fun as bringing a game home.
3 women 👩🏻👩🏼👩🏽 have been killed in the last 24 hours in NSW by male violence as reported by The Age. I have had enough. All men should have had enough. If 3 men had died in 24 hours from one punch or acts of terrorism the nation would be in arms.
Big fan of seeing all the scalpers cry over the fact that Pokémon produced so much of the anniversary set that they can’t make a profit off of it
Womp womp