The expressions were dead dove.
I have already seen more than a few new ways to HC the new kisses for ab*se RP. Many have even said Tav still looks scared, surprised, or like they're faking for Astarion because they're frightened. RP is still possible with these new faces.
So do you think the new animations allow for different ways to rp them because Tav still looks frightened in some places, or that Tav shouldn't be allowed to look scared because that would be dead dove content? If it's the second one, why are you happy with the new faces? If it's not, why should the old faces not remain an option?
I personally do not find that Tav looks scared. I think Tav looks quite neutral, with a range of mild emotion that facilitate a wide array of RP. Me reiterating others interpretation does not mean it is mine. I am simply repeating that other people who RP ab*se in the way you seem to be seeking, are still seeing what they desire and are able to RP just fine. So Larian is not squashing player agency or abuse in this patch. Having a face that can be deciphered multiple ways is much better than having an over the top dread expression with no room for interpretation.
Leaving it in the game still leaves the possibly for people to stumble onto it unwittingly. To me, this is not a question of RP. It is a matter of leaving dead dove content out of a gen audience game, where players do not go into it knowing what they're getting into.
For players who saw it as dead dove or a tragic romance, before or after Patch 6, forcing their Tav to look ecstatic wouldn't change what they see in the romance. It would just not allow them to roleplay in a way that feels appropriate or comfortable to them anymore. If the original expressions were locked behind one or multiple dialogue choices of Tav expressing fear, nobody would have to stumble into content that upsets them.
I'm sorry but calling these faces "ecstatic" is a huge dramatization of what they are. It has already mislead quite a few people who then saw the faces and realized they were not the jokeresque animation they'd been led to believe. Which, seems to be a theme with the AA path. Stating things in an inflammatory way to malign the path. I do not think they're ecstatic.
It does not matter if the choice is locked behind a dialogue path. Unless people are meta-gaming, they're not going to know how far the scene is going to go. There is no content warning. They're trusting devs not to take things too far. And what if there are players who choose those dialogue options, but do not believe the result *should* be SA/non-con? I know people who select those options for fun, but don't believe AA is an abuser. Why should they be forced to now have that RP ruined by domestic violence, for a handful of niche players? You will get what you want (things not made for a gen audience) via mods. If you want to HC being ab*sed, you still can. Others are already forming arguments as to how. You're not being barred from anything except using patch 6 faces as an argument and a talking point.
Overly exaggerated fear is unnecessary for RP. Neutral faces work best. And I think the ones in the game now are great!
