With a dominant Astarion and an neat and romantic Astarion, and the whole thing doesn't open up or connect in any way.
They could add dialogues to the 2nd sex scene in the 1st act to indicate Astarion wants to try out some kinkier things with Tav and ask if they are into it. If someone didn't get that scene (they slept together for the first time during the party) it could happen as a new scene where he randomly invites you for another night (like in Lae'zel's romance) and you have this conversation. They don't even need to make a new sex scene.
The fluffy and vanilla Astarion and sexy and dominant Astarion just don't work well together. As melgreg said earlier, the fact he loses his kinky bone completely is inconsistent. It honestly looks like he feels so emasculated by Tav making his life decisions for him that he doesn't dare/feel confident enough to express his sexuality. Unless, that's the message they want to convey, which is not what I'd call a "good" ending.
Originally Posted by Sereda2
I know Larian said in interviews that they want the player to know they’ve made a bad choice if they ascend Astarion and they want us to regret it, but I don’t think railroading us like this is a good idea, especially when it's a topic as sensitive as abuse within a relationship.
Did they actually explicitly say they want you to feel bad for playing as an evil character and/or romancing an evil character? Because if they're so much into moralising, maybe they should start making games with a moral message for children instead. This is supposed to be a dark fantasy RPG for adults.
Originally Posted by Sereda2
Want to play consort to a powerful vampire without seeing your avatar portrayed as a scared and helpless victim? Not happening. I can’t help feeling a little judged here.
Let's not forget about Haarlep who engages with you while your partner watches with clenched fists and can do nothing about it. Apparently, abusing your partner is cool these days.
Originally Posted by Seramina
I do wonder what's next on the chopping block. Siding with Gortash maybe.
That's not a viable path to begin with, sadly, seeing how it ends. Just a wasted potential.
