To all my colleagues in the LGBTQ+ community: Happy Pride. Being queer these days is a whirlwind of emotions, some very positive and hopeful, others less so. Our story is a story of courage and struggle, a struggle that continues to this day. And in this struggle, it is important to learn from the experiences of our queer elders, both to learn what has changed and to learn what work is left. One of those elders is legendary game designer Tim Cain, who recently released a video in which he talks about his many years in the games industry as a gay man and his journey from living in secret to living in the world.
Perhaps best known as the creator of the original Stand out When Tim Cain started gaming in the 1990s, he had an eventful career in the gaming industry. He was the project lead for PC RPGs Arcanum: By Steamworks and Magick Obscura And The Temple of Elemental Evil
In his video, Cain examines many moments of uncertainty and struggle in his life as a gay man, starting with how difficult it was to be a gay man in the ’80s, during the worst days of the AIDS crisis, and how bleak and bleak it was Media coverage at the time created an environment in which fear was silenced.
Perhaps one of the saddest and toughest moments he tells is the anecdote of a friend of a friend’s college who had to drop out after having his family’s financial support withdrawn for coming out to his father. finished his PHD studies. Unfortunately, Cain and his friend lost contact with this person after he left university.
I have never seen such a completely depressed and demoralized person. This is a person weeks earlier [was] He was super happy, totally dedicated to his studies, wanted to get a PhD in social ecology and go out and do good and no he had no idea what to do with his life and I don’t know what happened to him [we] lost contact with him. We don’t know where he went, and that kind of reassured me, “Okay, nothing’s for sure.”
It’s a painful reminder of what many of us fear when we have to face who we really are, that we don’t have the freedom to live our own lives and that we risk being cut off from people who support us decisively.
Continuing to explore the difficulties of working in environments where homophobia and transphobia can be left unchecked, Cain tells the story of a transgender colleague at Interplay in the mid-’90s who executives openly complained about and abused.
Of course, these kinds of struggles are still a reality for many of us today. And they’re hard to deal with, but they’re an essential reminder of what we’re fighting for.
Cain reflects on how things have improved over time. After he came out, the President of NCSoft said to him, “Do you have homophobia issues here?” Because if you do, just give me a call. We won’t put up with that.”
Cain goes on to describe Obsidian as one of the most open places he’s ever worked. There was only one problem when the Red Cross came to blood drives and Cain had to remind them that he was gay at a fundraiser. and therefore was not allowed to. (Outdated laws made it illegal until recently for gay men and certain other LGBTQ people to donate blood in the United States.)
“Despite the political circus,” Cain says in the video, “things are a lot better than they were, especially in the ’80s and ’90s.”
I know a lot of LGBTQIA+ people in the [gaming] Industry. They are well received in their teams. You bring a lot of interesting experiences with you. We get a lot more interesting characters in games. And everything is better. Nothing is worse than that. And I like it. And I think people kind of need to hear that.
While it’s heartening to hear positive stories of growth and change in the world, for those of us who are queer, especially trans people, things are still very scary.
Widespread transphobic laws have been passed in many states this year alone Deny trans youth access to safe, medically necessary treatmentalso existed Try And successful attempts to restrict care for trans adults. Florida is leading the way with the passage of SB254, which removes the ability for nurses to prescribe gender-sensitive care, suddenly cutting off 80 percent of the state’s transgender population from the medical care they previously received. Florida has that, by the way second highest number of transgender adults in the United States.
It’s a terrible time, but I think this month is especially important to hear from LGBT elders like Tim Cain. Just seeing others open, proud, and living the good life gives us an opportunity to reflect on what might be possible for ourselves. Cain’s story shows that it was never easy, but that societal growth and progress is possible and does take place. like dr Rachel Levine it’s me choosing to avoid despair and believe it can get better.