YURI AND YAOI IN ONE GAME? A QUESTION

Hello there! Hope this question isn't too out there, but I like both yuri (stories of two women in love) and yaoi (stories of two men in love) and was wondering: These two genres are already so niche, that if I combined them, would I essentially be making a game that almost no one would want to play?

Would it help those who are only interested in one category if I had you choose at the start of the game which couple (the two girls or the two guys) you wanted to primarily follow, with the other couple being side-characters if you didn't choose them? Then I could do almost two different stories in one game.

Just curious, as I sometimes come up with game ideas that, I fear, only really appeal to myself XD

author=SnowOwl
I would say that for most people, those two niches does not mesh with each other at all.

Yeah, that's what I was afraid of XD

author=SnowOwl
Ofcourse, it depends on how how much is shown. I could play it if it didn't show any of the sexual stuff, I guess.

It wouldn't be very sexual. It would be more focused on romance.

author=UPRC
Can't you say gay/lesbian? Probably less effort than typing yuri/yaoi and then explaining what they are in brackets.

Good point! ^_^ I'll alter it to that.

author=Kylaila
I'd play it. I don't dislike either, but most of the time they aren't pulled off well, especially yaoi.
(which kills practically any interest I have in yaoi. My fault for hating most female-orientated ways of storytelling, and drawing.)

Embric of Wulfhammers castle had lots of lesbian love and was simply a masterpiece. So yeah, definitely. Would it focus on the romance or would it have other strong points as well?

The romance would only be part of the focus, and I'd try to have other high points as well. And I have to agree on Embric of Wulfhammer. That game was great! :D (if you don't mind a little sex and nudity ^_^ )

author=UPRC
I'm not bothered one way or another if they're included in a story, as long as it's well written. There are people who will write then into stories just for the sake of having it there, like it's the trendy thing to do or something, and it often feels sort of hokey and tacked on. As long as it's fleshed out and the interactions between the characters are believable, I say go for it.

author=Red_Nova
Personally, if I see yuri/yaoi as a major selling point, be it in a game or anime or whatever, then that tells me the focus of the piece is purely on the yuri/yaoi, and not on the overall quality. I would pass it up even if it turned out to be good.

So long as it's written well and not exploited at all, I wouldn't care. If you're doing that kind of stuff to be edgy or just for the sake of it, then I wouldn't play it. I would like to play a game with yuri/yaoi in it. I would not like to play a yuri/yaoi game. If that makes any sense at all.

I think this is all pointing me in a good direction, that being that I should be focused on making a good game with good, well rounded characters, and the fact that the characters are gay should be incidental, and not the selling point of the game. That makes a lot of sense, and also means I should possibly change how I think about creating games.

author=Liberty
Just write fucking characters. Write real characters. Don't make the focus on their sexuality except when it's important to character development or the plot.

That's a good point, but I don't understand how making a game about romance undermines that. It's hard to find romance that caters to same-sex couples (and is of good quality), and the RPG genre's no exception (tho companies like Bioware are making some progress in that field).

author=Liberty
People are more than just a walking set of genitalia. They're more than who or what they want to have sex with. Don't make it a definition of their character - rather make it a part - just one part, no more important than any other except when it comes into focus.

Like being a blonde doesn't matter unless you're sneaking into a town where there are no blondes and you'd stick out a mile. Make it a trait, not a definition.

I completely agree, and it's not my intent to write stereotypes. I want to write good characters that aren't defined by their sexuality, and I'm trying hard to do just that. Perhaps the terms I used are too synonymous with pandering and poorly written characters?

author=Desertopa
The purpose being what?

The purpose being to tell stories about couples in same-sex relationships in an RPG setting. I don't intend it to be trashy or pornographic in the least. I just personally like those sort of romances, and don't see them often in games.

author=Ratty524
I still understand your position, however, since convincing people who aren't necessarily like-minded on the matter to play your game is difficult. Perhaps you could simply downplay the homosexual factor. Make it part of the game, but don't shove it in the player's face. You'll already be making something tolerable and convincing by making a game where people's homosexuality isn't the loudest aspect of the game.

This is good advice. I'm considering just making the game with the focus on the story rather than the romance, and just let the romance speak for itself rather than be the focal point. I've still not decided, but you make a very good point.

author=Housekeeping
You're definitely going to isolate part of your potential audience, but you're also going to appeal to a niche demographic that's looking for those types of stories; I think that there's probably no crossover appeal for gay and lesbian stories; they're really appealing to the same basic demographic (unless you're talking about a porn game, which is very likely not the case unless your sensibilities have changed over night, haha). If a gay/lesbian romance is what you want to write, that's what you should write.

People have gone over the important stuff: treat the characters with nuance and give them depth outside of the relationship--don't let the relationship itself define them, which is a trap of romances in general. It's also very easy for a game like this to become preachy. I just watched a French thriller on Netflix called Tell No One that handled a lesbian relationship really well; it was there, it felt natural, the characters had distinct personalities, the relationship itself was nuanced and not perfect for the sake of it, and no one made a big deal of it.

Thanks, Housekeeping ^_^ My main position from making games is "Make something that you'd want to play yourself" but I also want other people to enjoy them, too. I think I can find a middle ground, where I do what I want to do but others can enjoy it too.

author=Isrieri
I'll only ask one question: What else is the game about? What's the plot, and what are the sort of characters have you planned out thus far.

This is a future project, one that I won't be attempting until I've finished all my current projects. It's a sci-fi adventure centering around a crew of a spaceship. I'm still solidifying the characters, but you'd be playing as the four people in charge of combat and keeping the ship safe. I'm thinking of trying out having them as pilots, who control space fighters, machines, or giant robots, as the idea of having separate stats for the pilot and the machine (and you make the machine better by upgrading it rather than leveling it) is appealing to me.

Still, most of this is just in my head at the moment, so I can't give a lot of details ^^;;

author=CashmereCat
I'm pretty sure she's talking about Luxaren Allure.

Actually, the story for LA is already done (though not all the dialog has been fully written) so it's too late to add stuff to it now XD

author=CashmereCat
Unity, to be honest, just write about whatever you want to write about. I don't usually seek yuri or yaoi literature or games at all and yet I enjoyed Luxaren Allure thoroughly. I think adding a gay romance in the game won't make it any better or any worse in and of itself, if anything it just breaks new ground which is always a good thing. And if people are turned off a game because of the gay themes, then who cares? Lol. If you want to include it, then do. Don't be afraid to just because you don't think people will enjoy it. If you enjoy it, then others probably will too.

Thank you! This means a lot to me. ^_^

author=Gourd_Clae
Libby, Cashmere and a few others have pretty much shared my opinion on this.

I'd be all for playing this game though! I don't see anything wrong with your beginning idea for the game being "I wanna make a yaoi/yuri crossover gam!" as long as it grows from there into developed characters, good gameplay, pretty gam or whatever does the topic justice.

I also have a ton of faith in you as a writer. I've played your gams, and they're really cool.

Thank you so much! ^_^ I'm so glad you've enjoyed what I've done so far, and I'll work hard to keep improving!

I think the takeaway from all of this may be "Write what you want, but make the focus of the game, well, being overall a Good Game and maybe don't focus on making it from the point of view of 'Hey! Look! This game has gay characters and they do romance!" and instead just tell a story.

I still think that there's a place for stories that specifically focus on types of romance (heck, Luxaren Allure and one more game I'm working on have it) but maybe I'll mature as a storyteller if I don't focus so heavily on those parts? I'm not 100% sure, but you've all given me a lot to think about. Thank you all ^_^