4. Venom – Guilty Gear X
Surprise! Expecting another character from Guilty Gear, maybe one in a nun habit? While Bridget may be the go-to-guy when it comes to LGBT representation in fighting games, a look under the skirt will show that he doesn’t really belong. He’s just a kid in a dress whose entire time as a bounty hunter serves to prove his masculinity despite his choice of clothing, and he is not a homosexual or transgendered person as so many are quick to assume.
Venom, on the other hand, has been lurking in the shadows like a good assassin and waiting for his time to sparkle in the reflected glory of the rainbow. One of the highest ranking members of the assassin’s guild, Venom sits directly beneath his mentor Zato-1 in the power structure (and probably also the bedroom). Homosexually Interestingly, he also has a deep affection for his master, which causes him to search out his missing love once Zato’s symbiote, Eddie, takes control and sets off under its own determination, taking Zato’s body with it.
If there is a love story to be had in the Guilty Gear series, it belongs to Venom. For most of the series, the separation between him and Zato causes Venom great pain and pushes him to fight against both those who would wish to kill his love, and his own desires. Eventually forced to realize the truth that Zato is dead and that Eddie has been animating the corpse for an unknown amount of time, Venom struggles to let go of his affection without losing his reason to live. Discovering that you’re in love with a corpse has a way of damaging a guy, you know?
Eventually, *cough* after murdering some of the other characters *cough* Venom becomes a professional pool player and adopts a child. Every homo's dream!
Rarely in the story does Venom’s love for Zato cause any sort of issue in terms of prejudice or harassment from the other characters (though, it does cause issues when it makes Venom try to kill them). Indeed, Venom stands as one of the rare characters where, although his homosexuality provides a strong background plot and motivation for his actions, the “gay” aspect is far less important that the “love” aspect. Meaning, if Zato was a woman and Venom was straight, nothing would change, and ultimately that shows progression in the right direction for video games.
Sob story love aside, let’s be honest. He fights with a pool cue, which could not be any more awesome. How could we pick a kid with a yo-yo and teddy bear over that?
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Tags: Bridget, Eddie, fighting games, gay fighting game characters, gay geeks, gay-nerds, Guilty Gear, lesbian nerds, Top 10 LGBT Video Game Characters, Venom, Zato-1
