LGBT+ representation in games has definitely picked up steam in recent years, with indie developers in particular offering fun, authentic and thought-provoking queer games. But since the 80s the LGBT+ community have been visible in video games – even if you haven’t heard of them…
The first Sims game was released way back in 2000 and, for players of a certain age, was a way of exploring queer identity virtually. One of the best selling series of all time, they are sandbox games in which players can create a house and live out their lives as Sims. And right from the first game Sims were bisexual, able to fall in love with – and, ahem, WooHoo – Sims of different genders.
From there the series has expanded its LGBT+ representation. In The Sims 2 and 3, each Sim has a gender preference that reflects how they will react when not controlled by the player – this can change over the course of play, meaning gender preference is fluid. Most recently, The Sims 4 allows for gender customisation.
The overall choice is still binary, but within that further attributes can be customised – not just voice and clothing, but whether they sit or stand to use the toilet and whether they can be pregnant or impregnate another Sim. Fans have capitalised on these advances with mods to add further complexity to the game’s gender and sexuality options. To this day, The Sims series remains hugely popular within the LGBT+ community for its willingness to progress over time.
Read about seven other games that were pioneers for LGBT+ representation…