Pokémon Go praised for using genderless avatars
By Josh Lee
Pokémon Go
, the new augmented reality mobile game from Nintendo that is fast becoming a new worldwide craze, has been praised for using genderless avatars.
Players are asked to give their Pokémon Go avatar a ‘style’ at the start of the game. Unlike the game’s predecessors, right from Pokemon Red and Blue in 1996 to Pokemon X and Y in 2013, the mobile game no longer forces you to say whether you’re a boy or girl, meaning non-binary players no longer have to pick a gender that doesn’t match their own.
he move come after numerous petitions to Nintendo asking for future Pokémon games to acknowledge non-binary fans.
You don’t choose a gender in Pokemon Go. You simply choose your style. pic.twitter.com/YeD8YZAlyX
— AtFlea (@Flea) July 6, 2016
Oh hey shoutout to Pokemon Go for asking you to “choose a style” instead of “choose a gender”, that was cool.
— TOUCHGOAL (@imswordwitch) July 12, 2016
#PokemonGO has flexible gender expression and didn’t force me to misgender myself. So it’s ahead of most higher ed job apps I’ve filled out.
— Jesseanne Pope (@gleefullyhello) July 12, 2016
This will all no doubt be to the dismay of the US Christian fundamentalist church the Credo Dollar Ministry, which last year accused Pokémon of turning children gay.
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