Gender and Intersectionality

      I think that possibly the easiest way to take these sources and relate them back to a game would be to look at a game which contrasts to the material given. In the ‘Mass Effect’ trilogy, there is quite literally nothing in terms of gender and sexuality that can’t happen, including xenophilia. This diversity is something that gives the game its appeal, and while it has received some controversy over its (at the time) use of explicit sexual scenes, the fact that the game lets the character build up relationships with characters of all genders and with heterosexual or homosexual sexual orientation is a step in the right direction in terms of players becoming invested with their protagonist in an expansive RPG like the ‘Mass Effect’ trilogy.

      In terms of race as well, although the default character is a white male (or female) there is character customisation which allows people of quite literally all walks of life to imagine themselves as the protagonist - either a paragon of hope, or a ruthless renegade.

      With this task, I've found it very difficult to relate the sources back to any game that I've played. This may be because of how I've been brought up. I've been exposed to a huge variety of peoples, different cultures, different ways of thinking, and while I can and will agree that in many places women are subjugated to men and are seen as beneath them or viewed as objects of sexual desire, I personally struggle to see people who are different to myself in any other light than as equals, unless they prove themselves to have a personality or beliefs that aggressively conflict with my own.