Open Forum: Do Video Game Romances Work?

With Valentine’s Day having just been this weekend, we thought we’d kick back and reflect on the more romantic side of our chosen medium. While it’s easy to get hung up on point-scoring and hyper-violence, a growing number of video games feature romance as either a narrative device or an actual feature of sorts.

Two game series that have always stood out in this respect are Mass Effect and Dragon Age, both stemming from the creative minds at BioWare. In truth, the developer has allowed optional romances between characters as far back as Baldur’s Gate II, Neverwinter Nights, and Jade Empire. However, with a much larger audience, Mass Effect and Dragon Age have grown to become two prominent examples, allowing players to pursue their roleplaying paramores.

As Commander Shepard you can romantically engage with a small suite of primary characters in Mass Effect, leading to special dialogue options and some rather racy cutscenes. The same applies to Dragon Age, more or less, with both series also enabling same-sex relationships. Still, despite becoming a recurring feature in BioWare games, some have labeled its trademark romance system as inorganic due to how these encounters feel self-contained as opposed to being worked into the game’s core. That said, many appreciate having the option there, adding an extra layer of dynamism to BioWare’s player-centric plotlines.

When it comes to in-game romances, the RPG genre has its fair share of power couples. Square Enix can claim much of the responsibility here, making love a vein that runs deep throughout the Final Fantasy series, bringing characters together including Cloud and Aerith, Squall and Rinoa, and fan favourites Tidus and Yuna. Naturally, the suggestively named Kingdom Hearts series is no different, chronicling the complicated love triangle between protagonists Sora, Riku, and Kairi.

It’s these colourful examples that have perhaps stuck with me the most. However, in more recent years, our perceptions of romance in video games has continued to morph and expand. It isn’t always overt either, as the Uncharted series has continued to prove over the years. Despite there being an evident chemistry between Nathan Drake and Elena Fisher, their relationship became an emerging yet somewhat downplayed subplot. Tying in with the game’s lighthearted approach to dialogue and characterisation, interactions between Nate and Elena were largely conveyed through cheeky one-liners and the occasional moments of peril. Naughty Dog proved equally as subtle in building relationships with The Last Of Us. Although it’s never clearly stated, a romantic bond exists between Joel and fellow survivor Tess.

Another, more recent example of romance being used in-game can be seen in The Witcher III. However, instead of gradually gaining the trust of one particular character, players can quite easily sleep around with whoever they fancy, whether they be a core character or the subject of a sidequest. Geralt certainly likes to get about and will no doubt – for some people- perfectly symbolise the transient nature of modern-day relationships.

For Tef video game romances have come a long way but they still lack maturity compared to other mediums. This is, in part, due to the clunky animations carted out whenever two characters start necking, making for some “Ken and Barbie-like hilarity”. Still, he commends the recent work of Campo Santo in their attempt to illustrate the past life of Firewatch protagonist Henry, a 15-minute intro that many have compared to Pixar’s Up.

Tuffcub largely agrees, having found the freeform romances in games like Fallout 4 and Skyrim almost laughable. Looking back on Mass Effect, he also recalls Shepard’s terrible, terrible attempts at courtships through the medium of dance, making for one of the gaming’s most cringe-worthy moments to date. Poor Shep. Interestingly, when referring to on-screen relationships that succeed in feeling organic, he picks out Nathan Drake and Elena.

Finally we have Kris who simply isn’t convinced that the quality of writing in games is enough to deliver a genuinely romantic plotline. That said, he acknowledges that video games themselves have become a powerful conduit, linking millions of players around the globe and sometimes being responsible for the blossoming of real-world relationships. From multiplayer shooters like Halo to MMOs such as World of Warcraft, there’s no denying the effect video games have in connecting people who share similar interests.

We’ve had our say, so now we pass it over to you. Are video game romances at all convincing and if not, then why? If you’re on the other side of the fence then be sure to tell us your favourite gaming hook-ups.