Just make POE 2 not gender locked, simple.

I agree that (gender) inclusivity is a thing and, within a broader societal context, it certainly is important. I don't think, however, that a game that already offers characters for both genders should be considered "non-inlcusive".
There are lots of reasons why fictional characters, both in video games and other media, might be male or female (or non-binary, trans...) - the most important reason is: artistic freedom.
I personally do not feel the need to change the gender of any fictional character - not when I play that character, or read a book with a *insert-gender protagonist, or when I watch a movie/show with a *insert-gender lead actor/actress. And, in all honesty, I don't think most people would want to. Do you know anyone who didn't watch Voyager because Janeway is a female Captain? Anyone who didn't play Tomb Raider/Horizon Zero Dawn/Life is Strange because of female protagonists? If the answer to one of these is "yes", I'd suggest making some new friends XD

I'd rather they don't waste time and resources on this unless they have absolutely nothing else to do on the game as a whole. Full game, features and gameplay first, always. Ultimately, it doesn't matter if you're playing a sorceress or a wizard - GGG made a design decision and tells us that characters story, there's no need to tick boxes just because other games are doing it.

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BaumisMagicalWorld wrote:

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Thraesh wrote:

What gender a pixelated character is has no weight or bearing on whether a game is good or not.

No, but they do impact how your game is perceived. Inclusivity is a thing, seriously. Google "inclusivity in video games" and see for yourself. This is why a lot of these pro gender-lock comments make zero sense. We have proof of the opposite.

GGG wants to break the 1M player mark. They are not gonna do that if they don't try and appeal to a broader audience. Part of that is more inclusivity in games.

Look at Baldur's Gate 3 and what a smashing success it was. Inclusivity played a big part in that, too, because everyone could identify with their characters. There are literally dozens upon dozens of posts on various forums that specifically talk about this and how it affected them IRL.

The thing about inclusivity is great and I do agree that some games do well with it but in the same vein,, some games do just fine without it as well. The thing it boils down to is that some people want and some people don't.

Google search will just provide the answer to what you want to find because you are searching for that specific context. I'm sure a survey directly to, as an example, this forum would generate very different results to what a google search can produce.

What people tend to forget is that everyone has an opinion and one should not try to change the narrative to suit their own view points so that they sway people to see things how they do, it ends in conflict every time. A video game does not need to chase the narrative to be successful at all as has been showcased in a million other games

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BaumisMagicalWorld wrote:

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Waitubold wrote:

Path of Exile is just about killing lots and lots of monsters. You're comparing pumpkins to oranges, here, and it's not a convincing argument.

Right. And why would cosmetics matter this much to us, then? They are literally the driving force keeping this game alive. That does make it seem like visual identity is pretty important, doesn't it.

Aren't all the cosmetics in POE gender/class neutral already?

What are you expecting exactly? Cosmetics that are only wearable by a specific type gender? While claiming it's to appeal to a "broader audience"?

I think you lost your train of thought trying to justify an argument that's a non-issue in POE.

It's also cute you mention BG3, but what about Dragon Age Veilguard or even new IPs centered around inclusivity like Condord, to mention the most recent and notables. The last thing I want is the DEI scam gang meddling with the POE lore.

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BaumisMagicalWorld wrote:

Look at Baldur's Gate 3 and what a smashing success it was. Inclusivity played a big part in that, too, because everyone could identify with their characters. There are literally dozens upon dozens of posts on various forums that specifically talk about this and how it affected them IRL.

Baldurs Gate 3 is a smashing success because it is a genuinely good game. That's it. Naturally, the game being literally based on D&D 5th edition, it comes with a lot of options that translate to inclusivity. No doubt it would have been just as successful with just its cast of origin characters.

On the contrary there are a ton of "inclusive" games that failed hard because guess what, they were just shit and no amount of inclusivity could carry them.

A few examples:
• Forspoken
• Suicide Squad
• Dustborn
• Flintlock
• Concord (lol)
• and the most recent addition, Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Wukong was another massive success and you're literally playing as a monkey. No diverse cast, no forced inclusivity, just a good to honest amazing game.

PoE 2 will do just fine if they chose to not release additional, opposite gender classes. Period.

No. It should continue like this. Old-school is always good. It is always the best, the most beautiful, the most logical, the most appropriate. I hope GGG never feels the need to make such innovations. Believe me, these kinds of innovations accumulate and everything turns into a freak.
Less modernity, more quality. Old is always better.

I didn't even notice the genders at the selection screen. Who cares. I want to know what part of the talent tree I'm starting on so I can build effectively and efficiently. I want to know what my ascendancy talents are. You can make it a stick figure in armor because gender, age, height, skin color, religion, political affiliation, astrological sign, credit score, the car they drive or anything else just doesn't matter.

I sincerely hope this will be the last of their concerns in the first 2-3years around release. Seriously, there are much more important things that have to be made right.

D4 has all genders, yet both the game and mtx in there are horrible.

Lorewise a female Warrior doesnt make much sense to me. Also, a male Witch? Come on guys lets not get carried away here.

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Rod wrote:

I sincerely hope this will be the last of their concerns in the first 2-3years around release. Seriously, there are much more important things that have to be made right.

D4 has all genders, yet both the game and mtx in there are horrible.

Could be worse like Last Epoch.

Even shittier game AND gender locked.