I'm not in the industry so obviously I have no sway or authority here, and I'm also not sure I have the energy right now to sit through the entire talk, but one thing that really sticks out to me is the idea that "complex" relationships necessitate toxic behavior like gaslighting. I already felt like my relationship with Astarion was complex without any toxicity. Hell, I feel like my actual relationship with my actual husband is complex without toxicity. We disagree on things. We have different perspectives. But we don't gaslight or get nasty with each other.
I agree. I understand you. I watched the lecture live yesterday and, of course, "charged with emotions" for the whole day. Reality - and what they try to show under such "complex reality" in the game, the difference between the former and the latter is like between a busy street and a drawing of a child looking at this street through the window.
Originally Posted by starryophonic
Sorry, this is making me like, physically upset. Astarion doesn't need to be an abuser in order to be an interesting romance companion. The game can punish me for seeing him as my property (with Araj) or a sex object (with having sex with him after he opens up about being a sex slave, I guess? Even though that didn't happen in my playthrough), but to steamroll us with bad dialog options after ascending him feels wrong.
Astarion wasn't supposed to be any kind of abuser. And he isn't. It didn't work out, and even the "kissing" scenes don't look like proof of that, but just footage filmed by someone, a prelude to a specific genre video, someone else's video that we're shown every time we try to kiss him. It didn't happen in my walkthrough either, I myself wonder where it is in the game, and after which it could happen.
Also, it's very strange when plot consequences are expressed in the form of such "video inserts". It feels like the "choice punishment" is done by shoving the player into some kind of novelistic plot where Tav is no longer the player's character, but some other character pre-thought out and spelled out by the author. No roleplay, no player. You just become part of someone else's story, how else can you show "complex" human relationships that no one has ever shown before in RPG games? Any "innovation" requires "experimentation". It's a shame that we've become part of it all.
