Cyberpunk 2077's Character Creator Is Still Failing Trans People
There aren’t many character creators in games that cater well to trans people. Pronoun choice and more diverse voice or appearance options have become increasingly commonplace, but the majority of triple-A titles continually operate from a cisnormative perspective. As someone going through their transition right now, counting on games to provide an experience where I can truly be myself has become a lost cause.
I usually don’t mind this too much. I know I’m a minority in the gaming sphere, and that catering to people like me will often have toxic idiots complaining that games have become too woke, or are changing themselves to appeal to a certain political agenda or overly sensitive demographic. I know that most character creators haven’t considered trans people previously, and I know it doesn’t break the game. But the reality is the world is changing as we move into the future, hoping to become a better place for everyone who exists within it instead of bowing down to an overwhelming mass of straight white cis dudes. Get used to it or get fucked is my mantra, and I’m sticking to it.
Related: Elden Ring Has Ruined Other Open World Games For Me
That’s why Cyberpunk 2077’s character creator was so disappointing at launch. CD Projekt Red made a huge deal about a world where you could create a futuristic vision of yourself without compromise, inhabiting a body, voice, and personality that was unabashedly you. Amazing - the sort of inclusivity I’d been waiting for. The reality was far more restrictive. You could slap a penis on a female avatar and a vagina on a male one before switching around the voice options, but beyond that the opportunity for gender non-conforming people to express themselves in Night City was minimal.
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