twiblight:

mzthorn:

twiblight:

Now that I’ve seen the problematic issues re: rape in Origins, I can’t unsee it.

Playing the City Elf origin as a female PC without any warning was bad enough, but fine, they kind of deal with the implications and you get revenge so it’s not all awful. I loved DA2’s stance on women (i.e.: we…

Um, rape was a constant theme in DA2. Just spend some time in the Gallows, nearly every mage talks about it (partially dependent on the choices you make). And there’s the thing with Kelder. It doesn’t happen to the play character, but it’s still everywhere.

(One day I will get this multiple blog thing right.)

The thing is though, after two full playthroughs and a couple other halves of them, the stuff in DA2, while still a theme if you read into it (and yes, it’s very easy to read into it), is far more understated. Hell, not saying the word can make up for a lot when it’s a squick or a trigger, especially in the case of Kerran and Lia.

I can see the subtext, and in that specific case, it’s really obvious, sure, but that’s just it. It’s still subtext. It’s not whipping out the word constantly or blatantly. And moreover, that specific instance also has consequences that come up later in the game, it’s not a one-time, throw-away, needless mention.

And thank GOD they don’t threaten the PC with it (still side-eyeing the Tabris Origin, seriously that is…tough shit to get through when dealing with real assault). My point is, essentially, that in DA2, you have to read between the lines (some of them more obscure than others), where Origins doesn’t even bother trying.

It is not subtle, and it is not subtext. Anders flat out says, “I was never beaten or raped by a templar. That does happen, but I’ve been lucky.” and this is as ambient banter within your party. There is also no subtlety or subtext regarding the mages unfortunate enough to have caught the attention of Ser Alrik. Other than the Tabris origin, you have to take specific dialogue paths to have the conversations happen in Origins. In DA2, the only way to avoid it is to completely avoid the Gallows and all related quests in Act 2 because it is ambient banter.

twiblight:

Now that I’ve seen the problematic issues re: rape in Origins, I can’t unsee it.

Playing the City Elf origin as a female PC without any warning was bad enough, but fine, they kind of deal with the implications and you get revenge so it’s not all awful. I loved DA2’s stance on women (i.e.: we…

Um, rape was a constant theme in DA2. Just spend some time in the Gallows, nearly every mage talks about it (partially dependent on the choices you make). And there’s the thing with Kelder. It doesn’t happen to the play character, but it’s still everywhere.

A quick and dirty fix for the Jowan’s Intention quest.

Note, this just makes the quest completable without enabling the console (PC only). It does not fix the unreachable deathroot. Nor does it address Jowan’s twin or the obvious blood mage in his band of refugees.