"Super Mario Bros.: Cleaning pipes and taking names," goes the first entry. We can see where this is headed. "Two bare-chested dudes on a mission neither can accomplish without the other," is the description for Contra. Duke Nukem is a "muscled Chelsea queen." Mortal Kombat is "Likely the first and most tranny-relevant video game." And the "hands-down gayest video game of all time," oughta set a few people off.

The Gayest Video Games [Out.com via Go Nintendo]

You might remember, earlier this month, we reported the egg-on-face situation where auto-named rosters from NCAA 10's Teambuilder site, imported into the Xbox 360 version, resulted in players named "Jason XXX" instead of "Jason Gay," This was attributed not to EA Sports code but to Xbox Live filters. Microsoft stood by its filter policy.

Interestingly, among the slew of fixes in the second patch was this one: "Certain TeamBuilder teams were incorrectly being blocked by the profanity filter and showing up as XXXX, this has been corrected." This extends to the rosters, as I just tested it out myself. In fact, if you want to put "Gay" anywhere in your team name, go right ahead.

I've emailed EA Sports to ask if there was any sort of exception granted for the last name of a sports roster. I've emailed Microsoft to ask if this is a shift in policy. If there's any response, this post will be updated.

For most however, this patch will be noteworthy for 31 fixes and tweaks, ranging from the quality of uploaded video highlights to a number of AI fixes - in running backs, wide receivers, receiver routes, lead blocking, etc. The full list follows.

• Player Lock in Online Games will now move the camera behind the locked player (like Offline games)
• Greatly increased the quality of uploaded videos
• Fixed an issue with penalties on a change of possession in Overtime
• Fixed an issue where you would sometimes lose control of your player going offsides in no huddle situations
• Tuned holding chances on Field Goals and Extra Points
• Fixed a couple pass coverage issues with Wild Cat plays
• Tuned the chuck success chances to favor more neutral results. Wins and Losses are extreme and should occur less for both the offense and defense
• AI Tackle slider is now more effective
• Lead Blocking tweaks to fix some cases of pulling lineman ignoring defenders
• Fixed a few rare cases that would cause players in pursuit to run away from the ball carrier
• Tuned the CPU ball carrier to make some smarter choices
• Fixed a bug where the CPU would high step at inappropriate times
• Tuned player switching logic to give a more appropriate player
• Fixed an issue with Punts being spotted incorrectly when the punt went out of bounds
• Corrected an issue where pressing in man coverage would cause the CPU to throw the ball too early
• If the receiver caught a pass during a slip, rarely would he be ruled down after the catch (even if he got up before making the catch). This has been fixed.
• Fixed a bug where sometimes the clock would continue to run after hold on an extra point
• Forward pitches are now correctly tracked as passing and receiving yards for the players involved
• Receivers will now try and release to the appropriate side of the defender based on their route
• Fixed some problems that were causing defensive players to not always get back in time during hurry up plays
• Reduced the effect of the Run Block Slider on special teams plays
• Tuned how effective the slant route for running backs out of the backfield was
• Tuned how far away diving sacks will start from
• Fixed an online grieve with pausing the game
• Fixed a bug where using a TeamBuilder team as the away team would cause the team colors to be incorrect
• Fixed an issue where some Dynasty teams were only able to offer 15 scholarships. You will not have to restart your dynasty for this to take effect, the fix is for offline and online dynasties.
• Certain TeamBuilder teams were incorrectly being blocked by the profanity filter and showing up as XXXX, this has been corrected
• Fixed and issue where Punt was not the default selection on 4th down and punting distance
• Off-centered single digit jersey numbers are now centered correctly
• Fixed a crash in Custom Stadium Sounds when the list of files was too long
• TeamBuilder teams with & in the name can now be searched properly
• Fixed an issue where the "Online Dynasty Servers are Down" pop-up was showing up incorrectly

This patch is kind of a pity. On one hand, it means a better game. On the other - 32 fixes, on top of the earlier online roster issues - mean the consumer code that went out day one was less than acceptable,

NCAA Football 10 Patch #2 Details [Pasta Padre]

For the past week or so, some gamers and game reporters online have begun discussing the newly-released Xbox Live Arcade side-scrolling adventure game Shadow Complex in ways not intended by its creators. Stepping away from a discussion about how the game is one of the biggest downloadable titles ever made, a collaboration between a leading studio and some bright young talents, a love letter to the classic, but neglected, designs of Nintendo's early Metroid adventures, some gamers have instead debated whether buying Shadow Complex is an intolerable act of support for someone they view as an opponent of gay rights, novelist Orson Scott Card.

The debate around the game has provoked a rare discussion about whether the political, moral or religious views of people involved with making or promoting a video game — views so rarely discussed publicly by video game creators — should or would affect whether a person buys a particular title. Fun factor's got nothing to do with it. Or does it?

Kim Wong has discovered that moral views of creators do matter to him. He cannot countenance the involvement with Shadow Complex of Card. The acclaimed science fiction author has written that practicing homosexuals should not be treated as equal citizens and has described gay rights as a "collective delusion." He has supported legal movements to block laws that would allow gay people to marry.

In a phone interview this week, Wong told me: "I decided I could not in good conscience support a product of a person whose views I find abhorrent and knowingly give him money. In my everyday life I probably give enough money unknowingly to bigots or at least to people whose personal and political views I find distasteful."

Card was not the main creator of Shadow Complex. He did not conceive it nor code it. His name has been used in the game's promotion by its developers and publisher, Microsoft, to trade both on the renown for his classic novel, Ender's Game, as well his 2006 book, Empire, which was based on the same fiction as Shadow Complex: a Right-Wing-vs.-Left-Wing future American civil war crafted by members of the new game's development studio, Chair Entertainment.

Card, who has expressed his views about homosexuality in more detail than can be summarized in a sound bite, has, for years, bristled at accusations that he is a homophobe, establishing his views about homosexuality in the context of his faith as member of the Church of Jesus Crhist of Latter-day Saints, a faith, like those of Catholics, that deems the practice of homosexuality as a sin. (Card did not return Kotaku's requests to comment for this article.)

While Card's writings and efforts to ban gay marriage have sparked outcry from Wong and other gamers who say they won't buy Shadow Complex, those involved in the creation of the game had not commented publicly about this debate until now.

The Creators Speak

"Card's political beliefs sure didn't come up during the game's development," Mark Rein, vice president of Gears of War development studio Epic Games, which owns Chair Entertainment, told Kotaku. He was speaking on behalf of Epic and Chair. "Even if they had, we don't discriminate when hiring or choosing partners based on people's personal beliefs. Heck, Gears of War was made by Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, and even a few Canadians like me. It takes all kinds to make great creative games."

Game developers don't often flash their party affiliation or state their positions on ethical debates. Reporters like me rarely ask. We wind up knowing more about the moral beliefs of Hollywood stars and politicians than we do whether the person who created the year's biggest game thinks abortion should be illegal or that the Israelis or Palestinians are right or wrong. Will Wright's contributions to the Republican Party and Alex Rigopulos' to the Democrats become public in legally required campaign filings but neither the promotion of Spore nor Rock Band involves the discussion of America's Right and Left. If there is a block of Conservatives who are planning on not buying Beatles: Rock Band, I am unaware of them.

Even marginally more public statements about social issues don't seem to stir much gamer reaction. Two weeks ago at QuakeCon, programming legend John Carmack mocked the green movement and described the eco-friendly selling point of the Tesla electric car as a "sham," to little reaction and certainly no major debate about whether the next Doom he creates should be bought by those who consider themselves eco-conscious.

Yet the opinions of Card, expressed so vividly and available so readily online have generated the kind of debate that appears to be costing the developers of Shadow Complex at least a few consumers.

Card has likened homosexuality to other predispositions to sin, like those of a hormonally active teenage boy. He told Salon.com in 2000 that he found charges that he was homophobic to be "ugly." But his critics have had an easy time making that charge, given the frankness of Card's writings.

"The Church has plenty of room for individuals who are struggling to overcome their temptation toward homosexual behavior," he wrote in a 1990 essay called The Hypocrites of Homosexuality that argued that practicing gay people should not have equal rights. "But for the protection of the Saints and the good of the persons themselves, the Church has no room for those who, instead of repenting of homosexuality, wish it to become an acceptable behavior in the society of the Saints. They are wolves in sheep's clothing, preaching meekness while attempting to devour the flock."

No one from the Shadow Complex development team has said whether they agree with Card. A few years ago, the author was referred to me by Chair's co-founder Donald Mustard as a friend. But there is an argument to be made that it is irrelevant whether Chair's team agrees or disagrees with Card or is friends with him or not. That argument was made by Peter David, the comic book writer and novelist hired by Chair to script Shadow Complex, and a man who may not have much more patience for Orson Scott Card than Kim Wong.

"My disagreements with Orson's politics are hardly limited to his views on gay marriage," David told Kotaku in an e-mailed statement. "We are at opposite ends of the political spectrum on pretty much everything. Why, then, did I agree to work on the game? Because among my most cherished beliefs is that, while I disagree with everything you have to say, I will defend to the death your right to say it. [Comic book creator] John Byrne has said no end of vicious things directed at me personally; I still buy his comic books because I like his work. I never, EVER, allow someone's stated opinions to impact on whether I support his work so long as those opinions don't transform the work itself into something that I have no desire to support.

"Shadow Complex wasn't a huge paying gig for me but I took it because I thought the developers were a nice couple of kids, and I found the story of a reluctant warrior being forced to find something worth fighting for to be a compelling narrative. By the same token, all the money in the world could not have gotten me to be involved if the story was something I personally found repellent."

To Boycott Or Not?

There is no sign that the debate about Card is significantly hurting Shadow Complex's sales even if the game and its developers' reputation are taking some abuse on gaming Internet forums. Shadow Complex has scored high marks from reviewers.

"It's up to the individual to make their own purchasing decisions," Wong told me, saying he does not advocate a boycott of the game. He said it's been easy to resist buying Shadow Complex, both because of the many other games available for purchase and because of how provocative he finds Card's views. "With good conscience I can't support that, and I would like other gamers to think about this issue as well."

I asked Wong if he had ever taken a similar stance. He said he has urged friends to avoid supporting advertisers who buy time on the shows of other public figures he disagrees with, like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck. But he admits that it would be impossible to avoid supporting every product that was partially made by or connected to people whose views he dislikes. That's no reason to not take a stand here, he said: "With the limited voice that I have in the public discourse, I am choosing to voice my disapproval by not purchasing the game, as are the other friends of mine who have made the same decision."

The debate here echoes so many debates about supporting the work of socially controversial filmmakers and authors. It's doubtful whether there will be agreement about whether such debates are a sign of the gaming industry maturing or taking a sour turn. Will an expression of political views become a prerequisite for game developers in the future? Will gamers desire an explanation as to where the creators stand? Developers, writers and anyone else associated with a game might find themselves losing a possible fan — and maybe gaining another — based on the social views they express. It happens in most other forms of entertainment, whether relevant or not.

Aside from all of those options, there is another way this could be handled. Shadow Complex writer Peter David offered it: "If anyone wants to boycott the game and thus damage me or Chair while doing nothing to change Orson's opinions, that's naturally their right. Or...They can display the sort of tolerance for someone who is different from them that they feel is lacking in Orson and thus prove they're better. Your choice."

[Orscon Scott Card photo via Wired.com]

As an example, the above player was auto-named "Jason Gay" at the online TeamBuilder site. But imported into the Xbox 360 version, the player was renamed "Jason XXX." Users may manually change the name back in all modes of play into which created teams are imported, both online and offline.

The filtering, however, does make EA Sports look like it's demonizing the word, a delicate and persistent issue in online gaming. But in fact, EA's code has no problem with it; in the game, play-by-play man Brad Nessler says the name for players who have it.

Asked for comment, Electronic Arts provided this statement:

We are aware of the situation in which some auto-generated player names used online in NCAA Football 10 are being edited, due to Microsoft's Xbox LIVE language filter. EA encourages diversity in our online communities, and providing a safe place for gamers to play is a high priority at EA.

When we went to Microsoft for a comment, a spokesman acknowledged the ongoing debate and pointed to the XBL terms of use, which prohibit text in Gamertags or "other profile fields that include comments that look, sound like, stand for, hint at, abbreviate, or insinuate content of a potentially sexual nature."

Both sides gave - quite understandably - policy-based answers to what is ultimately an incremental development in this issue. NCAA 10 may not have the kind of user base that gets fired up about this, after all.

But whether or not "gay" is more a self-identifier or a term of abuse, it continues to be someone's last name. Rudy Gay. Tyson Gay. Efforts to proactively micromanage this evolving word's use may, privately, have the intended effect. Publicly, it will continue to create instances such as these, in which some major corporation wittingly or, in EA's case, unwittingly and through no fault of its own, puts its brand on the implication that the word is inherently shameful.

Microsoft says it's still exploring ways to integrate the word with its community and its TOS. But, really. As decisions go, you're gonna make it now, or make it later. Let some churlish gamer's ugly behavior speak for itself, and deal with him tomorrow. But you can take "gay" off the filter list today, and end this as a controversy.

Some people just never learn. After GamesRadar's last attempt at gay humor went sour, writer Matt Cundy has inexplicably decided to try it again. Maybe he's trying to make up for past transgressions, or maybe he's just trying to grab some readers who would be intrigued by a headline like "Men Kissing Men", but in either case, the mark has been missed again. It's not that the material is particularly homophobic as much as it is poorly executed. The attempts at humor get a bit lost in the pure blandness of the article itself and after reading it I'm left with the feeling of "What's your point?" and more importantly, what is your intended audience with this piece?

At the GDC I had the pleasure of sitting in on a GLBT (That's Gay, Lesbian Bi and Transgendered for the uninitiated) developers roundtable. One of the things discussed was how to create more visibility for gay people within the gaming community, but I don't think this is exactly what they had in mind. Unfortunately, I think articles such as this one do more of a disservice to gay people by giving the whole thing the air of a circus sideshow. Perhaps if this was written for ingestion by a gay audience it would seem a little different, but somehow I doubt it.

I'm sure there are plenty of those who'd still be shocked to learn that there are men who do kiss men, but in this age of Bully and Brokeback Mountain, I think that number is slowly dwindling. I would like to think that we have progressed to a point where this type of thing wouldn't be such a big deal, but being myself a gay man in a gamer's world, I know that it's just not the case.

In the case of Mr. Cundy's gay articles, however, I leave you with the immortal words of the venerable Mr. Quentin Crisp: "If at first you don't succeed, failure may be your style." Flynn De Marco

Sure, Marcus Fenix has been in prison, but does that mean he's gay? Or what about Frank West's cross-dressing habits? And since Kratos killed his wife and daughter, he must secretly prefer men? Gay.com (UK) is criticizing a Games Radar feature which "outs" five game characters. Says Gay.com's Hassan Mirza:

While it's reassuring to know that gamers are interested in the sexual orientation of digital superheroes, Matt Cundy's 'Are they gay?' article relies on a series of juvenile stereotypes and cliches... I can't imagine any homophobic intentions, but it can be dangerous to suggest that looking "camp" means gay, or worse, that gay men hold violent grudges against women. It's a completely misinformed suggestion.

After reading the article, it doesn't seem homophobic in its intentions, just poorly thought-out and written. Sure, the Gay.com editor might be overacting and then again, might not be at all. Pretty sure Matt Cundy feels rotten about all this negative attention being directed at him and Games Radar. If only the piece was a bit sharper, if only. Brian Ashcraft

Article Criticized By Gay.com [Gay Gamer]

Well, this is crap. Blizzard has decided, based on a bunch of hooting, red-assed baboons screaming "GIRLY MAN!" in their forums, to change the design of the male Blood Elves.

As many players have noticed, we have made a slight change to the male Blood Elf character models. In response to concerns that the Blood Elf male appeared to be too feminine, and after reviewing the model from a visual and conceptual standpoint, the decision was made to increase the body mass to give them a more substantial, masculine feel. It was also important that as members of the Horde that the Blood Elves gave the impression of strength and a more menacing presence.

Oh, bullshit. You changed it because your constituency is a bunch of capslock-riding asshats who are threatened by bishy player characters.

The reason Blood Elves were Horde in the first place is because everyone was whining about all the Horde races being ugly juggernauts. The point of Blood Elves was to inject some swish into a very physically intimidating set of races.

They're not exactly chunky now, and I do not begrudge a game company making prerelease aethetic changes, but their reasons for doing so are pathetic.

Thanks the Laenir, who pointed out the following comparison shots over at WoW Insider.

Horrible. They just look like regular humans now. Eliza Gauger

WoW Overwhelmed By Homophobes, Make Blood Elves Less "Feminine" [GayGamer]

For whatever reason, this picture of a gigantic Pac-Man with an aerated scalp gobbling up a Japanese lamp was posted on Gay Gamer. Is it gay? That's not cock Pac-Man's chomping, guys. Man, they've been slipping lately. Florian Eckhardt

Pac-Man Sign In Tokyo [Gay Gamer]

Says who? Game site GayGamer. And they've even got MTV convinced! So there!! GG's Fruite Brute and co. have created a little video piece for MTV.com's "Overdrive" entitled "7 Reasons Why Dead Rising Is So Gay." And GayGamer should know, because they're pretty darn gay. Brian Ashcraft

More Here [GayGamer]

The cam isn't too shaky, and the pelvic thrusts are absolutely authentic: could this be a tip-o-the-assless-chaps to supergreen Japanese television personality Hard Gay? God I hope so.

Game|Life says:

I've been continuing my excursion into the off-kilter world of Tingle's Rose-Colored Rupee Whatever. I bring to you this evening news that there is, in the game's second level, a character whose overtones make the green-spandexed Tingle look positively hetero.

It's Duke, the short-legged-no-shirt-overalls-straight-out-of-The Village People construction worker! Who communicates primarily by way of thrusting his pelvis.

Eliza Gauger

Tingle RPG: Gay as in Happy [Game|Life, via 4 Color Rebellion]

Over at Destructoid, a site which apparently functions as a cross-posting repository for all of our favorite amateur game bloggers, they've posted a great little overview of what might possibly be the most homoerotic game series of all time: Cho Aniki.

Cho Aniki is probably best known for being among the most arguably homosexual video games ever created, or to be objective it stars more muscular men in thongs than any other shooter ever. It's one part Hard Gay and one part Sexy Parodius whose most prominant release was on the PC Engine, which means massive sprites and great music... and lots of misplaced muscle groups. But alas, this game remains rare and weird as it was only played by a) The Japanese and b) a few amused teenage guys with part time jobs in the 90's.

Perhaps most alarming to me is that I recognize many of these scenes from my own homo-oneiric fantasies. For example, that giant Japanese hedonist puncturing a metallic sphere with a muscle-man erection? An LSD-inspired hallucination I had at a party, circa 1999, after Crecente passed-out next to me and slammed his head face-first into my crotch. Crecente, with the shaved head he sported at the time, took the place of the muscle man. Florian Eckhardt

Weird Game Wednesday: Cho Aniki series [Destructoid]

Earlier, Florian posted a fine selection from the Game Poets Society, which jogged my memory to something that will interest both game poets and GayGamer.net.

Gentlemen, I give you two works from the inimitable Everything2, the first being more relevant poetry, the second prose.

Excerpt from im in ur base killin ur d00dz by allseeingeye on Everything2.com

'im in ur base killin ur d00dz' he said
Sans-serif and blue,
left of the bobbing crosshair,
while the polygon world slipped by.

Finally,
here at the end,
we danced while the ghosts of our brothers swam in the ether betwixt us.
I clutched my gun like a lonely child and sought your heart.

'joo r a lamer',
impish and coquettetishly teased.
I feel my breath catch at the collar of my cotton t,
the tension of the hunt dancing on my skin, foxfire.
I am coming for you.
I am the Tyger Tyger, burning bright.

Excerpt from im in ur base kissin ur d00dz by Excalibre on Everything2.com

We've got a map onscreen, sir. It appears that every duty station has been deserted.

Dear Lord.

It appears that the men have congregated in the launch area, sir. It's the largest open space on the base.

Zoom in, Lieutenant. Maybe we can tell what they're doing.

Aye, sir. But I think the evidence is unequivocal. Here's a closer view.

Sweet mother of God, Lieutenant. It's obscene!

Yes, sir. I'm sorry.

Eliza Gauger

im in ur base killin ur d00dz [Everything2]
im in ur base kissin ur d00dz [Everything2]

In following with the kerfuffle following GayGamer's posting of the Top Twenty Gayest Game Characters, I bring you the rebuttal from a blogger that has a problem "with people unnecessarily labeling fictious characters as gay".

LJ user Count_Zeroor, pictured at right falling feet-first out of a portal into a White Stripes concert while evacuating a monster-fur bezoar, maintains that even though the King of the Cosmos wears a skintight unitard, has fancy facial hair, impeccable makeup, and sneezes rainbows, he's just not gay.

Same goes for Bloody Roar's Fox, who, if the Count remembers correctly, is female.

And Tingle? No, he's definitely not gay...you see, Nintendo is a family-centric company, and would never expose children to that sort of sexuality. Tingle is just "silly".

The count admits that a few on the list might be gay, maybe.

There are some characters on there that are actually homosexual. For instance, #12, Vamp from Metal Gear Solid II, does kind of work, if only because vampires do have a fair amount of eroticism attached to them. The drinking of blood and the biting of the neck has been described by not just literary critics, but by literary scholars as a [sic] erotic act, and in Bram Stoaker's Dracula (not just the film, but the novel as well), Dracula's bite causes his victim to experience a feeling of ecastacy [sic].

Not just critics, but scholars as well (literary ones), agree that vampires are gay because it's erotic when they bite you. Which I agree with, as just last night I had to ask Florian which compartment of my makeup case was appropriate for the storage of my fangs. He maintained that they should be stored with toothbrushes, et al. Eliza Gauger

I believe we posted some this super-bizarre Mario fan comic a few months ago, with the leatherdaddy-lookin' Super Bros doing all sorts of running and jumping and climbing trees. But this particular pinup I had not seen until I did my daily GayGamer check.

They have been through the tumbler, eh? So rough n' rugged. Personally, daddies don't do anything for me but I am sure some of you out there are thoroughly enjoying it. I think Luigi kinda likes being bound up. OH, and look at the 'shroom Daddy Mario is holding...a tad phallic?

But seriously, look closely at Luigi's g-strung crotch. It's flatter than a mannequin. Is this some extra layer of kink, or did the artist just turn his nose up at rendering the bulge? The world may never know. Eliza gauger

Mario and Luigi: Oh So Burly [GayGamer]

In Newsweekly, companion website to In Newsweekly, New England's largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender news and entertainment weekly, has posted a story on a new survey meant specifically for GLBT gamers, or "gaymers" as the article so coyly quotates.

The whole piece stinks of two things I hate: splitting an already disadvantaged minority (gamers) into potentially conflicting factions; and assigning previously-constructed stereotypes to the new group.

First we need to prove that homosexual gamers even exist. Yeah it sounds ridiculous, but that's where you have to start on something like this. This survey is an attempt to quantify the existence of an invisible minority.

I think this minority is invisible because who a gamer likes to boink has no practical application here, except possibly as a marketing tool. It's the same issue I have with the constant barrage of "women in games" crowing: the longer we tell each other that a gamer girl is a rare and mysterious thing, the longer she will remain so.

I'm with Dan Savage on this issue. Let homosexuality be normal. True tolerance isn't making special recognitions of your fellow gamers' differences, but simply not caring in the first place.

As a possibly self-defeating aside, I once got warned by Blizzard for saying "hey it's okay to be gay" in Barrens Chat. Amid an ocean of "stfu fagget". So now I say it every chance I get. Eliza Gauger, or possibly Gayger

Gay video game player survey [In Newsweekly]

Sephiroth and Riku get gay in the Sims 2. What is it with Squeenix fans anyway? Half of them seem to think they've been beamed straight from a homoerotic, bobble-headed universe where Riku and Donald Duck share a special, furry bond.

Free Online Survey [Survey]