BioWare would have gone under if not for EA, part of the reason DA2 was rushed

Your first point has not much to do with what I said. I said that representing lgbtq characters “right” to EA might be corporate speak to catering to straight gamers. Look it up. Lgbtq characters being written largely for straight fantasies of lgbtq people is a thing that permeates all media not just video games. This also gets to your last question. In media lgbtq content is often put in media only when they want to moralize to straight people about something where as straight characters don’t have that limiting baggage. I’ll get to this later again but an example from both DA and MEA is Dorian’s personal arc and Gil respectively. These types of lgbtq characters designed for straight people to learn a lesson can be good, but it is debatable whether they should burden the romance plots. And it gets into the issue having your only lgbtq characters be there to teach lessons to straight people being boring, lazy, and crap. 

Your second point is assuming intent matters. We assess things like video games by largely what they contain inside because most people will never know the context. Hence I think the EA mandate of do LGBTQ stuff “right” has to evaluated by the content of BW games. DAI was fairly good. MEA was a horror story and the whole time LGBTQ players asked about LGBTQ characters and romances we got misleading information that was sometimes wrong and the old maxim of “it has to make sense” which was used to justify no gaylien and no squaddie. That “make sense” mandate/excuse sounds too much like EA wanting LGBTQ stuff done “right” when no one can say for certain, given the source material, what they meant. It also makes people wonder if they are really writing lgbtq content that is enjoyable, original, and good or for the purpose of soapboxing some issue to straight people. Or maybe we should require all straight characters be written to remind us gays why straights are people too. Because I need to be reminded. 

I wonder if they consider the Blackwall romance a success. They spent a lot of resources on a love interest that barely anyone pursued.

There's that.  But I'd also like to see the romances develop more over the course of the entire game.  Little asides, bonus conversations, and such.  As it is, they are increasing feeling like "press flirt button for sexitimes", and that just feels shallow.

I liked how in DA2, I could invite Merrill to move in, how that alters her codex entry, and other companions remark on your relationship (I think Anders does this as well?).

I like how in DAO, the "bark" you get when you click on a romanced character actually changes.

I like how Josephine lets you win at Wicked Grace if you are in a romance with her.

Heck, I even like how a couple of DAI romances could get married in Trespasser!

These are not big CGI events.  It's a bunch of little things scattered across the story.  Someone earlier said that "sex exists", well, that's true.  But it's not the only thing that exists.  There's a thousand other steps that lead up to it.  And many people take their time to reach "the money shot"  Months, years, sometimes a religious figure or a judge makes things official first.  But there's still those thousand smaller steps to take, which not likely to be as expensive as mocapping sex scenes, that can be inserted into the game to simulate a developing relationship.

Widest audience needed for women to feel betrayed? Chances would have been super slim if he was racegated

Dragon Age: Origins was actually the one marketed with Marilyn Manson.

Origins was also marketed via chavvy booth babes at this event in London;



Seriously, what were they thinking?

I imagine a lot more people would have romanced him if Solas and Cullen hadn't been added in. They sort of sucked up all the attention of the straight ladies.


I saw that. Kinda disappointed. I hope people took screenshots.

Sifr MD's enthusiasm for "Ser Beefcakes" brings me endless joy.

Wasn't there super early DAI concept art with a dwarf Warden, and that character eventually became Blackwall? I agree, I would've liked to have seen that.

EA is pretty much over-demonized.

As Dr. Zeschuk, God-Emperor love him, said in 2013: "The best analogy I use, in a positive way, is EA gives you enough rope to hang yourself."

He certainly has some fans.  Some fiercely loyal ones.

AND he's one who has an option to have sex or not (you are not required to do the "walk of shame") so that's another plus.

On an unrelated note, I'm guessing by your avatar that you're also anticipating Deadfire?  

Yeah, I either leave him to his fate in Oralia or have him spend his life in servitude (which unfortunately results in him becoming a Grey Warden anyway pretty much negating that choice).

Same, especially the banter videos where she cosplays Blackwall with the fake beard.

Wasn't the Dwarf Warden character from some concept art or survey information that got leaked? I seem to vaguely recall something like this being on the old BSN, although the mods quickly took the images down and closed the threads.

(Although sometimes leaks do get things wrong, what if they assumed he was a dwarf because of the beard?)