Xbox Series X|S: The 6 Best LGBTQ+ Games

Overwatch 2

People have been interested in the world of Overwatch ever since its first reveal trailer, which showed the heartwarming history of the game’s main female fighter, Tracer, in an animation style similar to Pixar. Because of how popular these character reveal videos were and how much attention was paid to mascots in general, Overwatch got a lot of different kinds of players. This is reflected in the game’s gameplay, which is based on different jobs within a team-based setting. This makes the game accessible to people who might not like other shooter games.

Popular side content has shown that a number of characters. Including the game’s mascot, are just as diverse and bright as the game’s visuals. Tracer is a lesbian and is in a happy relationship with her girlfriend Emily. This was shown in a Christmas comic in which the two kiss after giving each other gifts.

Soldier 76, whose gay roots were also shown in a comic, is another character who has been shown to be LGBT+ in public works. He was married to a man named Vincent before he realized. That his job responsibilities were more important than his marriage. In a short story, Pharah told her close friend Baptiste that she was attracted to women. In interviews and social media posts, Blizzard said that Baptiste and Lifeweaver were bisexual or pansexual. The former wasn’t too shocking, since the characters’ voice lines to the rest of the cast sound flirty.

Apex Legends

Apex Legends is easily one of the most LGBTQ+ battle royale games on the market. From the beginning, it has had a wide range of LGBTQ+ characters on its list of gun-wielding legends. Each of these characters has a long backstory that shows why they decided to take part in the Apex Games, a televised competition where people are urged to fight to the death in a high-stakes deathmatch. In the first group of characters was Bloodhound, a hunter who didn’t have a set gender and who looked into their gender identity after getting over traditional family values.

Balgalore, a lesbian soldier, had a crush on one of the other female characters in the game, and Gibraltar, a gay scientist, learned how to be caring and helpful by saving his boyfriend from a mudslide. Updates have kept adding more participation to the game, so that’s not the end of it. Catalyst is the second trans character in the game. She was made with the help of the charity GLAAD and is a great example of someone whose gender doesn’t define who they are. There was also a comic about a lesbian romance between Loba, Valkyrie, and the main character, Bangalore. Social media posts also showed that Fuse is gay and has a boyfriend named Bloodhound.

Mass Effect Legendary Edition

Mass Effect made a lot of noise in 2007 because it was a big science-fiction story where every choice could change the world. People were more interested in the fact that same-sex and cross-species relationships were possible because conversation choices often led to a lot of intimate scenes between the spaceship captain, who was controlled by the player, and their crew. The Legendary Edition is a remaster of a trilogy of linked games that makes it easy for relationships to grow over the course of more than one game.

There are too many gay, bisexual, and lesbian characters to name them all. But their presence may have been the biggest push for queer characters in the gaming business. And most of these examples still work. There are a lot of well-written personal stories about love interests that give a lot of depth to each character’s wants and problems. Focusing on alien species with high levels of intelligence helps teach the strange idea of relationships that don’t fit into a box for people who want to try new things.

Borderlands (Series)

With its striking, colorful art style and rebellious way of making worlds. The Borderlands series paints a surprising picture of how people live on different planets. It has a cast of vault hunters whose stories, designs, and names are always different. Over the course of the series, there are at least ten LGBTQ+ characters who are well-rounded and often get more attention in different games. This makes it possible for later games to show a wide range of characters.

Borderlands’ examples go further than those in other games. Because they show identities and uses that are almost never seen in games. For example, Maya is asexual, so she doesn’t have any sexual lines. Lor, who changed gender over the course of multiple games, and FL4K, a playable non-binary robot that was created by a non-binary employee at Gearbox, are two other unique cases. The series is known for its direct writing, which makes it almost impossible for characters to hide any part of their personalities or identities. This makes it easier to understand what these traits are.

Telltale’s The Walking Dead

People often think about themselves and say what they think in a clearer way when they know they are about to die. Knowing you are about to die gives acts a new sense of urgency. In a zombie apocalypse, it would make sense for a lot of people to come out. Since the chance to make friends and feel good about life would be there every day.

Telltale took this method when making the world for their story-driven horror games, which have won a lot of praise. The Walking Dead’s main character, Clementine, is bisexual. This means that she can fall in love with both male and female NPCs, which is a good start.

In terms of a more complex gay story, James tells everyone in the last season that he’s gay. In earlier episodes, James told Clementine that he used to be in a relationship. But he didn’t know how she would respond. This scene only happens if you don’t respond to a heated argument earlier in 8 Ball Pool game, which builds trust in the “coming out” story.

Hades

Based on the sexualized world of Greek mythology, Hades is the story of a son who wants to get away from his father and the chaos that he runs in the underworld. The overprotective father calls on the help of other gods to keep Zagreus in his place. These characters all have lively personalities that are explored as each god is beaten for the first time, showing their less aggressive sides. These conversations are what set Hades apart from other roguelike games. And it’s safe to say that the game matches the fluidity of ancient Greek society.

Dusa is one of Medusa’s heads, and she is shy and lonely because she is split from her host. She’s very nice and likes Zagreus’s company a lot, but when asked about dating. She says she’s on the asexual side, which might be because she doesn’t have a body. The two end up becoming friends with each other. You can also go on dates that are not sexual if you want to. Megaera is careful and serious, and she doesn’t know what her past is with Zagreus. This leads to a lot of interesting interactions that show a risqué side of the community at work. Thanatos is a moody gay god who is hard to get to know at first. But he falls for Zagreus’s fiery, passionate personality because he has traits that Thanatos doesn’t have.

The great thing about Hades is that it doesn’t put a dating gate in front of these gay traits. These gods and many others like them have a lot of power and don’t have to give in to social forces. Instead, they proudly show off their differences in one of the most positive portrayals of LGBTQ+ society in modern media.