Credit: Wandersong – When you Bard the world Bards with you
Valentine’s Day is a complicated holiday for me. On one hand, it brings tasty heart shaped treats! On the other, with those treats comes an onslaught of heteronormative marketing and oddly strict gender roles. If you too are feeling the heteronormative heat, may I suggest cooling off with a good game with LQBTQIA+ themes? Below are some of my favorite games organized in two categories: Play As A Gay, and Queer Representation. Now go forth — be gay, play games!
Stardew Valley – Play As A Gay
Available on: PC, PS4, XBOX One, Switch
How’s that old saying go?
“Every group of queer friends harbors a secret, shared fantasy of living together on a sustenance farming compound.” So true, @JuliaFtacek. So true. With the newish Stardew Valley co-op mode, you can live out that dream in pixel form. Choose your character’s gender and the gender of your potential partners. Each of your friends (up to 4 players total) can create their own cabin on your queer compound, take turns doing farm chores and romancing the townsfolk. Honestly, what’s gayer than building and maintaining community?
Night In The Woods – Play As A Gay + Queer representation
Available on: PC, Mac, Linux, PS4, XBOX One, Switch
Night in the Woods is a heart breaking (and heart mending) story about mental health, economic crashes, and the value of life. Play as Mae, a pansexual bass player trying to catch up to her peers after dropping out of college. Rekindle your friendships, solve mysteries, and DO CRIMES! Three of the four main characters are queer, yet all of them will win your heart.
Tacoma – Queer Representation
Available on: PC, Mac, PS4, XBOX One, Linux
Tacoma, the follow up game to Gone Home — another incredible queer love story I’ve written about before — is a single player exploration game set in 2088. Play as Amy, a sub contractor tasked with investigating the TACOMA space station three days after it was hit by meteor shower that damaged the oxygen tanks and communication systems. Use corrupted A.I. data to figure out the fate of the onboard crew, replaying segments of their last days with augmented reality play back. The diversity of the crew is noticeable right away, and the little world building bits you uncover as you snoop through the station bring depth to each character. Three of the six main characters are in lovely queer relationships. Casual, quality representation with depth — rare and beautiful.
Dream Daddy – Play As A Gay
Available on: PC, Mac, Linux, PS4, Switch
Play as a single dad new to the gayborhood and in the mood for romance in Dream Daddy. Go on first dates, indulge in dad humor, and help your Manda Panda adjust to a new school. A perfect Dad 4 Dad dating simulator that will have you blushing and swooning. One of my favorite games of 2019!
Monster Prom – Play As A Gay
Available on: PC, Mac, Linux
If you weren’t out in high school, this might be a fun way to retcon your prom experience AND court sexy monsters. Monster Prom is a humorous multiplayer dating simulator that allows you to pick your gender and the genders of your romantic interests. From the games’ website: “Monsters don’t like boys or girls, they like monsters. The game experience is unaffected by gender or sexual orientation, since finding love is already hard enough.” The romancing mechanic can be difficult — I’ve never been able to get a date for prom — so maybe this game is hard, or maybe I have no game. We’ll never know.
Wandersong – Queer + Non-Binary Representation
Available on: PC, Mac, PS4, XBOX One, Switch
Play as a non-binary bard, trying to save the world with the magic of music. An endearing tale about hope, perseverance, and loving yourself. Wandersong includes multiple examples of happy, endearing queer love. A great game for those that want a boost of hope in their lives.
What are your favorite games with LGBTQIA+ representation? What games make you feel good about love? Let me know in the comments below, and as always thanks for your precious time!
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