Well, this is fabulous. Now that gay relationships are officially sanctioned in Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, players have gathered together to put on their own pride parade inside the virtual world of Eorzea.
The parade took place last weekend, and was organized by the Rough Trade Gaming Community (RTGC), a network that spans multiple games and describes itself as "the world's biggest LGBT guild." Players dressed their characters up in colorful to prance across Eorzea before gathering together in an ad hoc rainbow formation that you can see towards the end of the video.
Final Fantasy developer and publisher Square Enix first revealed that it was going to allow A Realm Reborn players to have gay relationships last month during E3. Rough Trade said that the FFXIV festivities, adorably dubbed the "Pixel Parade," were put on to celebrate that move for virtual equality. Tragically, RTGC also noted that the parade mourned the loss of a guild member who was murdered before he ever had a chance to celebrate with his fellow Eorzeans.
I love celebratory moments like this because, as far as I can tell, this is what any good massive multiplayer online game is all about: fostering a genuine sense of community. Also, some of the outfits on display during the Pixel Parade were almost good enough to rival those seen at the real-world pride parades that took place across the United States last month. Almost.
Take note, other MMOs: let's see some real competition for next year's Pride Month.
via BuzzFeed
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