Designing Romance and the ‘Playersexuality’ Debate

Love, Romance, Identity, and Player Perceptions of Baldur’s Gate 3 and the Dragon Age Series

Abstract

Players of role-playing games have become increasingly interested in romantic narratives as part of the play experience. These romantic possibilities with preprogrammed in-game characters can be an exciting part of play, giving games more depth and allowing players to feel more connected to game content. This qualitative project applies content analysis to the Dragon Age videogame series and Baldur’s Gate 3 as well as online conversations among players of these games to investigate how players interpret, experience, and evaluate in-game romance. I find that players’ relationship to romance in video games is complex. Romance is often also built around the idea of player agency, aiming to fulfill fantasies and emphasize player choice over representing sexualities as part of characters’ identities. This has resulted in tensions as players seek out in-game romance, selecting in-game partners, exploring facets of identity, and often pursuing realistic stories when it comes to love. While some players appreciate playersexual models of in-game romance that make characters love them at the press of a button, the desire for realism – including the inclusion of characters with their own sexualities – often undercuts desires for control.