Newsgroups: rec.arts.int-fiction
Path: nntp.gmd.de!news.ruhr-uni-bochum.de!news.rwth-aachen.de!news-koe1.dfn.de!main.Germany.EU.net!EU.net!howland.erols.net!ix.netcom.com!erkyrath
From: erkyrath@netcom.com (Andrew Plotkin)
Subject: Re: A Question of Gender
Message-ID: <erkyrathE4qA0H.3x4@netcom.com>
Organization: Netcom On-Line Services
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]
References: <32EE2A79.41C6@greenhouse.llnl.gov>
Date: Tue, 28 Jan 1997 17:02:40 GMT
Lines: 46
Sender: erkyrath@netcom.netcom.com

Kathleen Fischer (kfischer@greenhouse.llnl.gov) wrote:
> I'm trying to decide if I want the user to be able to select their
> gender (all right, hold the wise-crack remarks... this is an honest
> question!)

> I have a "nice" way of doing it that fits in well with my plot and
> happens VERY early in the game (first or second room).  However, I'm
> trying to decide if I want to do it or not.

> For those that have, was it hard to do (beyond the obvious of give
> player female (I'm using Inform)).  Was it worth it?

I haven't done it, but I'd expect it to be easy enough. However many 
places you have where the game would print a different message, that's 
how many "if player has female..." statements you have to write. 

I don't expect there would be very many, since you say there aren't many 
places where it comes up. (Er, I assume that's what you meant to type 
below.) 

> If I don't make the user pick then I will most likely go with a subtle
> female character, just because it seems there are so few out there
> (female characters... not females!)  I say subtle because there will
> probably be very places where the issue even comes up... maybe the odd
> pronoun or clothing selection. Given that, would I be better off with
> the traditional angrogynous adventurer?

Angrogynous? Yeah, I know women who get into moods like that... ah, sorry. 
Slipped out. :)

There's nothing wrong with a subtly female character. I'd make sure that 
the subtle hints are visible right from the beginning, though. (The first 
or second room, as you said.) I think I'd object to a character who was 
androgynous for the first half of the game and *then* turned out to be 
female. 

(If a character was androgynous for the first half of the game and then 
turned out to be male, I'd probably object, but only after it was pointed 
out to me. :)

--Z

-- 

"And Aholibamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah: these were the
borogoves..."
