The Sims Add Sexual Orientation and LGBTQIA+ Options
The Sims will now give users the option to control their characters' sexual orientation.
The big update was announced on the EA Games blog on Friday (July 15). The new options will be available in the upcoming base game update. This followed their recent pronoun update with the ability to customize your characters' pronouns. The creators worked alongside GLAAD and the It Gets Better Project to learn how they could give adequate options.
"It is important to acknowledge that these are steps in a journey that we are still mapping out. There is much further to go, and while I can’t get into the details of where exactly we go next, please know that we are committed to continuing to improve our representation of the LGBTQIA+ community," the company wrote.
So, how does it work? The new "Sexual Orientation" panel will have attraction parameters for your Sim. The first is "My Sim is attracted to," which gives users the option to select what genders they wish to potentially have romantic interactions with, or, you can also select "none" if desired. The developer noted that they will be able to "expand this to include additional gender identities that we don't have at this time."
"My Sim is exploring romantically," is another option where users can control and decide if their character's sexual orientation shifts throughout the gameplay.
"My Sim is interested in 'WooHoo' with," is the third category where it will determine what genders your Sim would be interested in "WoHoo." You now have the option for your character to be Asexual by leaving the boxes unchecked or Aromantic by selecting the 'WoHoo' interests but no romantic attraction boxes.
The developer explained that they cannot yet create more gender options due to "technical limitations" due to the creation process of the base game, which took place 8 years ago, but are exploring future options.
Under the FAQ section, they answered the question if users could turn the new feature off. "No. While we try to give players the option to toggle certain gameplay features, LGBTQIA+ identities are a fact of life and not a toggle to be switched on and off," they concluded.
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