9Queer Analysis
Though BioWare’s fantasy video game Dragon Age: Inquisition garnered almost uniform industry praise for its immersive narrative and innovative approach to combat after its debut in late 2014, previews of a computer‐controlled adventure companion named Dorian in the months leading up to the game’s release inspired much less consistent audience reaction. In a June 2014 interview posted to the official Dragon Age website, game creator and writer David Gaider described Dorian as the “first fully gay character I’ve had the opportunity to write,” a comment that quickly aroused confusion and discussion among many of the game’s followers.1 Gamers posted messages to Twitter and online forums questioning why Gaider would overlook the various characters in previous BioWare games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003), Mass Effect (2007), and even Dragon Age: Origins (2009) who could establish romantic relationships with other characters regardless of gender. Gaider quickly clarified that these previous characters were bisexual, whereas Dorian would only ever demonstrate a sexual attraction to men. Reflecting on the confusion months later in an interview with IGN, Gaider expressed the difficulties that come with addressing sexuality in contemporary video games:
I do wish now that I hadn’t ...
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