Originally Posted by mrfuji3
Oh boy, is it time for the playersexual conversation again? It has been a few months by now...
Originally Posted by Lady Avyna
I think romance character options being player sexual is the best way to go. That way no one feels limited to who they can romance because the one they find attractive happens to be gay or straight. This is an issue that happened with BioWare regarding Dragon Age: Inquisition where a lot of female players wished they could romance Dorian as a female because Dorian is that cool but were unable to as he happens to be a gay character. As for the romance in BG3, it's not limited to sex, you can go on a date.
So, for Dorian, iirc a fairly big part of his backstory was that
he didn't want to marry his [female] betrothed and his father attempted to use blood magic to change his sexuality and do his "familial duty". This is obviously an allegory for shock conversion therapy, etc.
This is intrinsically tied to him being gay, and without it this specific aspect of his backstory (and resulting effects on his personality, relationships, etc) wouldn't exist. Following that logic, characters having a preferred sexual orientation can add to their characterization and potentials for storytelling. In this specific example, people who went through similar experiences might identify more with Dorian, which is good, no?

With playersexual companions, you gain the flexibility that everyone can romance anyone. However, you lose the possibility of the above characterization, since companions are presented as effectively bi/pan. Alternatively, they're presented as a specific sexual orientation but (unexplainedly) make an exception for the PC, which some would argue breaks immersion.

Are your (and are others') thoughts that the gain in romance options from the companions being playersexual *outweighs* the possible loss in additional characterization/stories?

(basically what @Zerubbabel says)
Originally Posted by Zerubbabel
I don't think it's a problem per se, but there is something to be said for each character having their own sexuality to make them feel more like real characters rather than romance cutouts waiting for you to approach (which, ultimately, they are, but it's nice to hope for greater suspension of disbelief).
HOWEVER, I think inclusivity and breadth of choice for everyone may far outweigh one's desire of realism in characterization, so this is fine by me if handled well.

In regards to Dorian's character development, it has to do with his sexuality. Whereas making a character player-sexual or bi for that matter, the writer can focus on other things that matter to that character besides their sexuality. You get to focus more on them as person rather than what gender they are attracted to.