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Facebook makes it harder to abuse its 'real name' policy
Facebook may not be dropping its "real name" policy in the strictest sense, but it's definitely taking steps to prevent abuse of that guideline. It's testing fake name reporting tools that require you to explain why you believe someone is acting shady, whether it's identity theft or something less sinister. In theory, this prevents hatemongers from easily giving the boot to transgender people, stalking victims and others for whom a name change is practically vital. In short, it won't be possible to simply hit the report button and walk away.
Facebook lets you specify any gender you want
Facebook already has a range of gender options for those who don't fit neatly into male/female categories, but it just took that accommodation one step further. Much like Google, Facebook now lets you specify any gender you want -- you're not limited to the social network's definitions. As before, you can choose who sees that sexuality in case some of your visitors are less tolerant than others. The move won't please those upset with Facebook's real name policy, which sometimes makes people use names that are out of sync with their sexual identities, but it's at least a step in the right direction. [Image credit: Facebook]
Gay, transgender players restricted in 'League of Legends' tourney (update)
As eSports continue to grow so too will the walks of life who participate. That's something that a League of Legends tournament organizer in the Philippines has seemingly failed to realize with the announcement of its upcoming "all feminine" event dubbed The Iron Solari. In Garena Philippines' outline it says that it's having open discussions with members of the LGBTQ community about whether or not gay or transgendered women in particular should be allowed to participate. Why's that? Fears of an unfair advantage. Yes, really.
Google Plus lets you define your own gender
Facebook gave its gender non-conforming users a better way to express themselves early in the year, and now it's Google's turn. An update to Google+ rolling out over the next few days will let you type in a custom gender for your social networking profile instead of having to settle for "other" -- you won't have to constantly explain yourself just because you don't fit into the male/female binary. You can also choose a pronoun, and it's still possible to limit who sees your gender. This is a small tweak to the code, but it should make a big difference if you haven't been comfortable with your G+ identity so far.
OKCupid test lets you choose nearly any sexual identity
If you don't conform to historical definitions of gender or sexual orientation, online dating can be tough. You frequently have to shoehorn yourself into a category where you aren't comfortable, and you'll probably get many unwelcome advances. OKCupid should soon have a fix, however: it's testing an update that dramatically expands the range of identities you can associate with your dating profile. You can declare yourself as gender non-conforming or pansexual, for example, rather than having to choose from binary options like male/female or heterosexual/gay. The site is only showing the new options to a subset of its users and hasn't said if or when they'll be available to everyone, but it might not be long before you'll have an easier time finding partners that accept who you are. [Image credit: Alamy]
Alabama lawmaker naming new anti-discrimination bill for Apple CEO Tim Cook
Tim Cook has been making waves with his recent increased focus on civil rights issues, specifically with regards to the LGBTQ community. In October, the CEO spoke out about his home state of Alabama's slow progress with regards to LGBTQ rights. Now the only openly gay lawmaker in the state is naming a new discrimination bill after him. Rep. Patricia Todd, a Democrat from Birmingham, has announced the "Tim Cook Economic Development Act" banning workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation. Todd tried to get a similar bill passed in 2011 but it never made it out of committee discussions. In an interview with the Anniston Star, Todd explained that despite claims from Alabama's governor Robert Bentley that LGBTQ citizens are protected under the federal Civil Rights Act, many Alabamans live in fear. "I hear from teachers all the time who are terrified that they'll be fired because someone will find out that they're gay," she said. Todd said she hasn't spoken to Cook about her decision to name a bill after him. She said she plans to call her bill an "economic development act" because anti-gay attitudes and policies in the state are driving high-tech companies away from Alabama. "Most big fortune 500 companies have already put anti-discrimination policies in place," she said. "It's a question of recruiting. Workers want to know they're coming to a place where they're protected." Cook has yet to comment on Todd naming the bill after him.
What you need to know about Facebook's battle with drag queens (update)
Maybe you've seen RuPaul's Drag Race, the flagship show on Logo TV, where men (dressed as women) compete to become America's next drag superstar. At the end of each show, the lowest-scoring competitors "lip sync for their life" in order to stay on the show another week. Now, some drag queens are fighting for their social media lives.
Dragon Age gets Dorian, a gay guy with a 'stache of magic
BioWare writer David Gaider believes his personally penned Dragon Age character, Dorian, may be "controversial in some corners," but "a fully realized character to fans in the end." Dorian, a gay mage from Tevinter, joins the cast of Dragon Age: Inquisition having rejected the ruling hierarchy of his homeland.
GaymerX president on LGBT convention closing: 'We're still here'
LGBT-focused gaming convention GaymerX will be no more after this year's GaymerX2, being held July 11-13 at the InterContinental San Francisco hotel. But Toni Rocca, president of GaymerX and organizer of the con, isn't sad. Rocca told Joystiq she and the GaymerX organization did something new, something no one was doing two years ago, when the con was first announced. She's proud of what the GaymerX convention accomplished, and what's more, GaymerX as an organization will continue forward. This isn't the end of GaymerX, but a new beginning.
GaymerX2 will be final year for LGBTQ-focused con
A tweet from the official GaymerX Twitter account has announced that this year's GaymerX2, scheduled to take place in July of this year, will be the final year for the convention. The convention, which began just last year, was an event primarily focused on LGBTQ issues in gaming. "Based on feedback that we've gotten, the new focus towards diversity in the industry and budget, GaymerX2 will be the final year for the con," the GaymerX account posted. It appears that the latter of those may be one of the biggest contributing factors; the account also tweeted that, "the size of our event and the amount of money we were losing to put it on became too much of a burden to keep at this pace." Not all is dead and gone, however. The GaymerX account wrote, "we may one day do other, smaller events and we don't want to say gaymerX is forever gone." Joystiq has reached out to the GaymerX organizers for further comment and clarification. We will update if we hear back. [Image: GaymerX]
GaymerX2 funded, upcoming event to feature WWE guest Darren Young
All-inclusive gaming convention GaymerX2 met its funding goal in the first 48 hours of its recently launched Kickstarter campaign, securing July weekend dates for the upcoming San Francisco event. Launched last year, GaymerX is an LGBTQ-friendly expo celebrating diversity and inclusivity in gaming. Along with a series of panel discussions, this year's convention will feature a gaming space curated by IndieCade, a multi-musician concert, and a guest appearance by Fred Rosser (WWE Superstar Darren Young). The event will also host a public wedding, following up on a proposal accepted during last year's GaymerX. Organizers note that tickets will likely sell out prior to the event, making the Kickstarter project a reliable way to reserve entrance badges. Though the convention's initial funding goal has been met, continued backer support will fund additional bands, celebrity appearances, and game tournament prizes, among other announced stretch goals. [Image/Video: GaymerX]
Facebook now lets you specify a custom gender in your profile
Many in the queer community identify themselves through genders that don't fit into binary male and female definitions, but social networks typically don't allow for that kind of nuance. Thankfully, Facebook is more accommodating as of today. You can now specify a custom gender as well as a preferred pronoun. If you're not always comfortable with sharing that gender, you can limit who sees it. Facebook isn't accounting for every aspect of gender -- you still have to describe family relationships in binary terms, for instance -- but this is an important first step.
Flameseeker Chronicles: The greatest Guild Wars 2 love story ever told
I enjoy the Twisted Marionette fight, and I'm looking forward to smacking some wurms if I can ever make it off the overflow servers, but what I really love about Guild Wars 2's latest content release, The Origins of Madness, is its emphasis on characterization. Some of you probably think my cheese has slipped off its cracker for finding a mini-instance in which NPCs chatter at each other the most charming part of an update, but I am what I am. I feel a little less alone in this since I'm not the only one turning cartwheels over it. A recent ArenaNet developer livestream contained a reference to the relationship between Marjory Delaqua and her partner, Kasmeer Meade, as a "love story." For those of us who had already picked up on their affection for each other and were hoping to see them become a couple officially, this was very exciting, and their interaction in the current release has shown them growing closer. But why are Kas and Jory such a big deal? They're just a pair of NPCs, right?
How The Sims got its same-sex relationships [update]
Update: While Graham originally called out lead engineer Jamie Doornbos as the one responsible for same-sex relationships in The Sims, it was actually one of the general engineers, Patrick J. Barrett III, who added it in. The article has been updated accordingly. The Sims was one of the earliest mainstream video games to include actionable same-sex relationships when it launched in 2000. Rather than being a concerted effort on the part of developer EA Maxis, the equal-opportunity Woohoo (a euphemism for sex in the game) was implemented by engineer Patrick J. Barrett III – an openly gay man who had a reputation for getting the programming done. "He just did it," said David "Rez" Graham, The Sims 4 lead AI programmer and a panelist at EA's GaymerX panel on creating more LGBT-inclusive experiences this past weekend. "He just went in there and it was a thing one day" and "nobody really questioned it, which was cool."
Clearing the 'hump of assumptions' in making LGBT inclusive games
A "hump of assumptions" can stand in the way of creating and including lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender characters in video games today, said David Gaider, lead writer for the Dragon Age series at BioWare. Speaking on an EA-populated panel at GaymerX in San Francisco today, Gaider and colleagues addressed the importance of heeding the demand for diversity and, more plainly, "reflecting humanity" in modern games. Hesitation over tackling LGBT issues, Gaider said, can come from pessimistic assumptions made – both by creators and marketers – about how the audience will react. One of BioWare's earliest gay characters, Juhani in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, was practically snuck into the game. "I think for a long time it was just assumed that nobody would accept it," he said. "That's what the mentality was. It's not like we went and tried to ask permission or anything - we kind of hid it. She never says, 'She was my lover.' She just says, 'We are very close.'" Not explicitly addressing the topic, however, "seemed like a very obvious exclusion" to Gaider. BioWare's next role-playing game, Jade Empire, was less subtle in its depiction of a same-sex relationship, and it faced far less resistance than the team had assumed. There was no long conversation after the team asked, "Why don't we just make the romances available to both genders?" According to Gaider, "that was the whole conversation."
PSA: Last day for GaymerX pre-registration pricing
Today marks the final day for pre-registration pricing to GaymerX, "the first LGBT gaming convention focused on the queer geek culture." Taking place next week on August 3rd and 4th, the event will be held in San Francisco's Japantown district. Speciality event pricing offers access to "all panels, dealer's room, gaming rooms, a Saturday night dance, and convention areas" for $45. After today, passes will be available for $60 at the convention. VIP passes are also available, including the normal registration incentives along with access to a VIP party on Friday and a t-shirt commemorating the event; however, VIP passes will not be available at the event. Special guests at the event include GLaDOS voice-actor Ellen McLain, game designer Anna Anthropy and more. Joystiq will be at GaymerX, covering the event and basking in the warm glow of inclusion.
