Howdy folks, welcome to the first of (what I hope to be) weekly posts about general design philosophies or development processes when it comes to Blood & Play. This week's topic is a discussion on customized versus defined characters in media.

The TL;DR: Reject the idea of a common default, embrace authenticity.

A Personal Anecdote

Towards the end of last year, I took a temporary break from game development to catch up on all of the games and shows I've missed over the years. I finally downloaded a popular game that I've been meaning to play ever since I heard from other fans that there was a trans masc voice actor whose work I admire who voiced in it, as well as a trans masc character in the protagonist's inner circle of friends. The protagonist is meant to be a self-insert into a cozy story focused on relationships, and the praise that was given to the level of detail one could customize their character with was glowing. Surely that would satiate my thirst for more representation, wouldn't it?

So I play.

I meet the character whose voice actor is trans; they barely make an appearance and leave just as quickly as they came.

Then I meet the character who transitions to masculine pronouns in the story; there is no segment detailing their transition beyond a summary that essentially boils down to "he came out and you accepted him."

Suddenly the game is over, and all that's left is a hollow feeling in my chest.

Now, I fully respect the studio who made this game; the production value is unquestionably high, and it contained all that it advertised on its official store pages. It is not a bad game by any means. My expectations were skewed only because of the praise of a fan who made it seem as though the trans masc representation was profound and life-changing. If anything, I'm upset that I read that Reddit thread asking for recommendations of games that contained canonical trans masc characters, because why were all the comments repeating the same handful of titles over and over again?

I don't want trans masc characters in the background, who only get a few optional hours of screen time you could blink and miss.

I don't want a customization mod that adds top surgery scars to my character because the main developers didn't remember to add it in.

I don't want a few sentences acknowledging my existence then calling it a day.

I don't want to be an afterthought.

I want a story made with people like me in mind from the very beginning.

Where Customization Shines & Fails

Player customization is a popular feature in many games, often offered as a way to immerse players deeper into the world. Modern character creators these days have gone past the simple cosmetics and gender, with some titles offering different fields such as pronoun, origin, voice type, and more depending on what's appropriate for the game. It can be emotionally rewarding to see the character you've put together walk around or even become the hero of an epic journey.

But, is character customization appropriate for every game? It certainly makes sense for an MMO so different players can distinguish themselves from each other. In single player games, cosmetics can be a side quest reward to entice players to explore all of the optional content available, or a way to express one's interests or personalities. Take Animal Crossing: New Horizon's expansive customization system for example.

Players can select their character's hair color, hairstyle, skin color, eye shape, etc. at the beginning of the game, and then purchase or design their own outfits afterwards. There's almost infinite ways a player can express themselves in New Horizons, which fits its goal of creating a relaxing game most people can enjoy. Now how about one of my favorite VNs, Cooked With Love?

Cooked with Love is a very short game where Perry has to cook and impress their date, or not. Perry has limited customization options and a choice of pronouns, and in the game they're shown to be something of an irresponsible party animal. This comedic story benefits from its short length and replay value.

Finally, let's consider the opening sequence in Deltarune.

Deltarune subverts player expectations by having them go through a very unconventional character creator only to toss out the Vessel and introduce them to Kris. This is done because Kris is very much their own person with a story and will of their own, and having players believe that Kris is their self-insert would take away from the very specific narrative being told. The player may control some of Kris' actions while in the Dark World, but in the end the player is an outside observer to the game.

So what's the difference between these three cases? Animal Crossing is an open-ended game with a loose narrative one could theoretically play forever if they wanted to, while Cooked with Love is a short narrative that doesn't dig too deeply into any singular character's past, focusing more on the active dynamic they have when interacting with one another. Unlike the other two, Deltarune is heavily plot and character-based; playing through Deltarune without the context of the story would cheapen the experience.

Does Full Player Customization Work In a Narrative-Heavy Game?

It certainly can and has in the past, but setting player expectations for the type of experience they'll have is key. Is the player-insert a vehicle for some prophecy to be fulfilled? If we were to put someone else into that role, would the same events occur and result in the same way? Now in another game, is the player-insert having a relaxing vacation with friends they've known since childhood? If we were to suddenly put someone completely different into that environment, would they even get along with this group of friends? One hypothetical is a plot-driven story while the other is a character-driven story, where the protagonist's past plays an important role in understanding the current setting.

Even if a writer tries to create a single story that anyone can enjoy, there will always be unconscious biases and nuances woven into the script, assumptions that they think their audience will be familiar with that they can gloss over. If a writer goes in with the goal of writing a story for women to enjoy, they may end up making a story that caters to straight, white American, cis women with a middle-class upbringing living on the East Coast; this may not be the writer's intention to exclude other audiences, and sensitivity consultants can help correct any potential offensive material, but in the end it doesn't change the base of the script. It would take an enormous amount of resources to create a narrative-heavy game with a character creator that takes into account every single ethnicity, nationality, culture, socio-economic status, level of education, disability, trauma, preference, etc. to truly satisfy every single type of potential player, at which point those resources would be better spent making several different games altogether.

The Need For Specific Experiences

I'm not saying that character creation should stop being a feature in so many games these days; I quite enjoy playing the occasional dress-up game every now and then myself. At the same time, I don't think a VN with wide character customization could easily achieve the same level of critical acclaim as Venba, winner of the IGF 2024 Seumas McNally Award and Game Developers Choice 2024 Best Debut Award, for telling an authentic story about a South Indian immigrant family. That's a very specific story that a small audience will have personal experience with, but it's because of the care Visai Games put into the story that has touched the hearts of so many.

This is why I want a story made with people like me in mind from the very beginning. I actually don't feel comfortable playing the majority of bishoujo or boys' love games because most games in those genre predominantly feature cis men protagonists in the majority ethnicity, yet there's something quite distressing about continuing to play otome and yuri games when I have never been able to embrace my assigned gender at birth. There's a severe lack of media that is specifically meant for queer trans masc people of color that truly speak to us about the alienation and invisibility we experience.

Inspirations for Blood & Play

I'll end this post with a few of my personal media recommendations that may have directly or indirectly inspired me when conceptualizing Blood & Play. Please heed each individual title's content warnings.

Boys Run the Riot by Keito Gaku

A transgender teen named Ryo finds an escape from the expectations and anxieties of his daily life in the world of street fashion. This personal, heartfelt, fictional story from a transgender manga creator made waves in Japan and will inspire readers all over the world!

Ryo is pressured to conform to Japanese society but rebels by wearing his PE clothes instead of a seifuku to school, then expresses his frustration by spraying graffiti. 

Content Warnings: Misgendering, Dysphoria, Unsafe Binding, Bullying, Cyberbullying

Marcus Comes Out Online & Peyton's Post-Op Visits by littlerat

A two part game series about the experiences of two college-age trans men. Very short but focused experiences about transitioning!

Content Warnings: "involves issues that trans men and trans-masculine people might face, which is a topic that can be sensitive and personal."

The Caligula Effect 2 by historia Inc., FURYU Corporation

Redo - a world without regrets.
Regret - a mysterious virtuadoll.
Those who hear her songs find themselves transported into another world. The world of Redo is a virtual world built from the regrets of many people. "If only I'd done things differently..." This is a world where everyone's secret desire to redo their lives can come true. A place where they can become the person they would have been had they chosen differently...
Redo - a dull world with no regrets, where anyone can experience a life redone.

What, you thought I wouldn't take this chance to mention the eternal GOTY of all time? I need you to look at Gin's shoes very closely. Now trust me bro. You can get The Caligula Effect 2 on Nintendo Switch or PS4/5 via NIS America or on PC via Steam or Epic Games Store.

Content Warnings: Violence, Blood, Unreality/Glitching, Possible Major Character Death, Trauma (Various)