Ladyhawke has been gaming since childhood, and after decades disappearing into sprawling campaigns, she has developed some fairly firm rules about where queer gamers should spend their time
DON’T: Let trolls ruin the game
“Queer people should be allowed to play whatever the hell they want. But Call of Duty? Avoid,” she laughs.
For Ladyhawke, aka Pip Brown, the problem is online multiplayer. “If you’re a woman playing Call of Duty, apparently that’s just not allowed. I follow female Call of Duty gamers because I love watching how they navigate that world, but the abuse they get is horrendous.”
Her solution? “I just play the campaign and move on.”
DO: Find characters worth caring about
The Last of Us was a revelation. “When that came out, I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is incredible.’ The second one was phenomenal too. The characters they built just got me.”
She also recommends Life Is Strange and Lost Records: Bloom & Rage for their queer characters and storytelling.
“You can tell when thought has gone into creating a lesbian character, when they’ve actually brought women and queer women into that process.”
DON’T: Assume a female lead fixes everything
Ladyhawke cannot wait for GTA VI, having grown up playing the series, but its first playable female protagonist has not silenced all her reservations.
“I watched the trailer and thought, this still feels so through the male lens. But I haven’t played it yet, so I don’t know. I love all the GTA games, but I don’t mess with the online side. Again, that’s a dark, dark place. Give me the campaign and the story mode. I can’t wait for that!”
Ladyhawke will play Auckland’s SYNTHONY Festival this coming March
