Game developer Bioware has always featured a number of characters that the player could potentially enter a relationship with in titles such as Mass Effect and Dragon Age. However, for the company's latest title, the upcoming Dragon Age: Inquisition, the developer is taking things another step forward by introducing an exclusively gay male party member for the first time.
That character is none other than Dorian, a mage from Teventir Imperium who, aside from his sexuality, is different in a number of other ways as well. In most countries of the Dragon Age universe, mages are feared and carefully controlled. In many areas they are treated as second-class citizens with few rights and privileges due to the amount of power they could potentially wield for evil purposes. Not so in Dorian's homeland, where mages make up the ruling class.
In a character profile posted on the Dragon Age website, writer David Gaider shared some insight into Dorian's character and personality.
"He enjoys using his magic and doesn't see any reason why he should be ashamed about it," Gaider writes. "So he unleashes his full power when it's needed... and he has plenty of power to unleash, seeing as he comes from a society where mages are trained to use it rather than hide it."
Dorian comes from a family obsessed with perfection, an ideology he doesn't agree with.
"Dorian is gay—he is, in fact, the first fully gay character I've had the opportunity to write," Gaider writes. "It added an interesting dimension to his back story, considering he comes from a place where 'perfection' is the face that every mage puts on and anything that smacks of deviancy is shameful and meant to be hidden. Dorian's refusal to play along with that façade is seen as stubborn and pointless by his family, which has contributed to his status as a pariah."
Bioware always creates well-developed characters, and Dorian is no exception. Rather than solely focusing on Dorian's sexuality, it is only one aspect of Dorian's character players will discover when Dragon Age: Inquisition releases on October 10 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.
"Dorian is smart—perhaps too smart for his own good, really," writes Gaider. "He was raised in a society where both intelligence and wit are prized, where advancing yourself socially means outmaneuvering your peers, and he does so quite well... or, at least, he would if he didn't see through it all. That's left him rather jaded and sarcastic, naturally."
Just from looking at Dorian's impressive mustache, would you really expect anything less?
