Taash Talks About Gender Dysphoria with Neve - Dragon Age Veilguard

[@frosty278]

Does this conversation really need to be 5 minutes long holy shit

[@RunninBackchic44]

I'm not trying to be offensive, but the dialogue seems a bit scattered, and the tone comes off as childish. If she identifies as non-binary, wouldn’t that imply she feels comfortable with both genders, rather than just saying, “No one wants to be a woman”?

[@PLKirby86]

Oh good lord.

[@headcollecter3000]

Why they need to add these non-issues in a videogame is the real question you should be asking.

[@somewhat-blue]

The writing in this game can be super clunky and this scene is no exception, but I think the idea is that Taash doesn’t identify as non-binary yet. I’ve known non-binary people who started off thinking everyone felt the same way about their gender that they did, and they’ll confidently say things like “well no one actually LIKES being a man/woman” or “everyone wishes they could change their gender” and then have to be gently told that no, that’s just them.

[@galaxychar]

Well no, people feel non-binary for different reasons and this is just how Taash feels about their gender. I feel like the scene could have been done better but this type of criticism reveals just how little understanding there is about this in the general public.

[@headcollecter3000]

@@galaxychar Taash is a lifeless shell of identity politics. Her entire being in the game is to condescendingly lecture the player on issues outside of the game. It's not even given any form of depth so that people could take it seriously making it look like it's mocking transgenderism by making it look like they're all easily triggered. Her entire character is writter by the HR departement.

[@BehuraStudio]

I like how the conversation keeps going even after trying to end it a bunch of times 😂

[@ThePotchili]

Dragon Age: HR Edition

[@asimhussain8716]

Good lord do I love when writers trauma dump to me their weird problems through their characters.

[@lukaskubinec9608]

I wouldn't have any issues with that if it would be written in an interesting way...but this is just bizarre 😂 99.9% dialogues with Taash is an extreme bizarre 😅

[@TheFalconerz]

"What is a woman?"

[@AcornSmokes420]

Democrats don’t know either 😂

[@henryjenkins2839]

“A miserable pile of secrets”…

[@jonquinones964]

What a shitty game how confusing this is a bunch of homosexual transgender freak show. I want my money back bitches

[@scottydu81]

@@henryjenkins2839But enough talk- HAVE AT YOU!

[@markricheard1870]

What is the Age of Consent?

[@kvu236]

this is what you get for hiring people through industrial connections not based on traditional hiring for competent people

[@markricheard1870]

Where is the incompetency here?

[@galaxychar]

Except the writer for Taash wrote huge chunks of the series prior to this including three companions in DA:I, and writes Solas who is the most important character in those two games aswell.

[@mircoles]

So they turned it into a propaganda machine?

[@juliovictormanuelschaeffer8370]

Our man should get a Medal of Honor for surviving this shit.

[@NexusKin]

Ironically, I'd actually rather be playing Medal Of Honor instead of this garbage.

[@juliovictormanuelschaeffer8370]

@@NexusKin I'd rather play The Island of Dr. Kondraki rather than this god and devil-forsaken piece of dreck!

[@MaxPowers2.0]

“No one likes to be a woman” That seems awfully misogynistic 🤨.

[@TheShanicpower]

It’s a pretty common sentence from uncracked eggs, funnily enough.

[@galaxychar]

Yeah I’m sure you’re a huge feminist and actually mean this criticism, lmao. No it is actually something a lot of women feel aswell as non-binary people. And you hear “no one enjoys being a man” a lot from people who are originally male but transition aswell.

[@MaxPowers2.0]

@ yes because feminism has brainwashed cis women into thinking womanhood is synonymous with oppression.

[@rentahikari2359]

@@galaxychar mad insensitive. “Nobody likes being white” okay maybe you don’t like being white, doesn’t mean Germans don’t like being German? Wtf😂

[@Dip-z8q]

Taash is acting more like a child than anything

[@Wilsontripplets]

I mean she is what 21? Oh and she also breathes fire in a band of treasure hunting adventures.

[@friedrichjunzt]

A very spoiled one, too.

[@gabrielegr8282]

I think being immature is part of her character.

[@Wilsontripplets]

@gabrielegr8282 that's part of it but what 21 year old was not still somewhat immature.

[@andreagrussu6778]

​@@Wilsontripplets there is also the part where they are kind of an outsider everywhere because they are not fully Qunari, not fully Rivaini, with a Mother who loves them, but is so overbearing and regretful for leaving the Qun that is not capable of communicate properly with her child. This led Taash to not being great with people and to need more time to elaborate their own issues and quite volatile. And that is because, unlike all the other Dragon age Characters, They still are not sure of who they are and what is their place in the world. (I think she is one of the youngest companion we ever had. Maybe only Sera and Alistair were around Taash's age in their games)

[@crescentwrath4126]

What? Did she just say that no one liked to be a woman? 1:17 it's just the misoginistic thing ever

[@galaxychar]

I’m sure you really care about misogyny

[@mrumbrella9961]

Almost threw up on my shirt watching this.

[@roythewolfe]

God bless for going thru this dog shit game 😢

[@RuzakyNOD]

Dark fantasy 😂

[@SomethingDiabolical-lw5nx]

The only dark fantasy here is gender ideology XD

[@nateguerra319]

Jesus Christ! I remember when dialogue was good like when Geralt Confronts baron for being an abusive drunkard who drove his family away or Commader Shepard and Wrex deciding the fate of the Krogans on the beach on Vermire. Now we get a 5 minute sermon about gender identity??? AAA gaming is cooked

[@olboe2008]

go woke go broke

[@markricheard1870]

Like the Barbie Movie?

[@xXxChiefxXx]

Why cant she be a woman that doesnt like dresses? Why does that make her less of a woman or more like a man? What an offensive, backwards and sexist attitude. All this "inclusion" is so twisted. Being a woman not into that sort of stuff at all is a bit unusual but until all this trans and non-binary stuff was being pushed so hard it never felt wrong. The problem should be the attitude of the mother who should accept her daughter. But instead we approve of and encourage that message by telling the Audience its because she is really not a woman. Beyond disturbing.

[@TheShanicpower]

Being a gender non-conforming woman and being trans are two separate things.

[@ndennant]

The problem with Taash is that she is too angsty and aggressive to really care about her problems. If the developers really wanted to educate viewers about non-binary people, they should have made her character more likeable. The petulant teenager with an identity crisis wasn't a great approach. And in my opinion, defeats the objective of raising awareness of gender issues.

[@Azraelzstorm]

Omg, Im bi, but this shit is getting out of hand. TOMBOYS EXIST!!

[@SubLordHawk]

In the mind of the woke, that calls for permanent surgical mutilation.

[@aiba5784]

they do, but like, so do non-binary ppl. no one even mentioned tomboys and Taash just doesn't align with being one.

[@JamSessionInMyMind]

​@aiba5784 not to sound offensive, but do they? I mean, people who identify as non-binary exist sure but they are still a man or a woman. I mean I can identify as a 5 dollars foot long subway sandwich but in reality I'm still just some a-hole on the internet.

[@markricheard1870]

@@aiba5784nobody cares, y’all won’t exist for much longer

[@-9-7]

@@aiba5784gender is fundamentally binary

[@Ketooey]

This scene is helping me understand why people are saying that a lot of the dialogue feels like a therapy session. It's not that therapy is a bad thing or something, it's that having characters use therapy-like language to discuss their problems, robs us of the struggle they could be portraying. It feels like the characters all have a bachelor's in counselling, so they jump to the heart of the matter, if you define the heart of the matter in therapy terms. Without seeing the struggle of how they get there, the pay off feels cheap. Just look at Dorian in Inquisition. His struggles with his sexuality and his father is easy to understand and relate to because it's couched in human terms of struggle and fumbling through it until you get to a new place. This conversation jumps too quickly to a resolution, it doesn't feel real.

[@Mohgenstein]

The director of the game heavily self inserting themselves 😂

[@sugarfreecascade371]

I have no issues whatsoever with non-binary people, but why it's so misogynistic... My Warden, Hawke, Inquisitor were all female, heck, Cassandra Pentaghast exist and no one in game ever mentioned that she looked "manly" or didn't wear enough dresses. The gender roles are different in DA that in the real world and still it doesn't excuse the "being a woman sucks, because I don't want to wear dresses". You can be a woman and dress "like a man", do "manly" things in real world, in DA is even more like a normal thing in society.

[@Kennisaurus]

Ikr I'm a tomboy and hate wearing dresses but I like being a woman, and all my previous characters in Dragon Age were women. I can't believe you can't challenge Taash on their sexist opinion, or that the mage (Neve?) doesn't either. It's also such a narrow view on how women and men are. It tells me either Taash has limited world experience, or more likely the writers do.

[@Tito_michi]

Not to mention how Cassandra brushes off the Inquisitor's playful offer to wear a dress if romanced.

[@galaxychar]

You have an option to say you like being a woman and defend that in the conversation. The “nobody likes being a woman/man” thing is a typical early sign someone could want to identify differently. It is also of course sometimes not that, I don’t enjoy being a woman tbh but I was born one and am one. Am I misogynistic for feeling frustrated by a sexist society and the gender roles placed on me? I assume some men also feel like they are boxed in and unhappy sometimes aswell.

[@galaxychar]

@@Kennisaurus​​⁠​⁠ Taash is around 19/20, so yes they have limited world experience and are just vociing their thoughts and frustrations with what is expected of them. What you’re complaining about literally exists in the game, Rook can say “I like being a woman” and defend that in response. The thing here being that Taash’s unhappiness indicates they might not be happy identifying as one not that all women have to feel that way if they’re not feminine..

[@sparkymmilarky]

This was so poorly done. These woke things are thrown into games with such little thought

[@confusedscreaming6249]

I don't know what kind of drugs the screenwriter were taking when they're writing the storyline for this game but I sure would like to know

[@underlightmusic]

Antidepressants, mood stabilizers, prescription amphetamines, and anxiolytics.

[@rentahikari2359]

“You trying to make your mother happy?” Wtf😂 Who chill, and what if I do wanna make my mom happy, what’s it to you? 😂

[@lmd7369]

The writing is so bad, I find character AI chatbot's responses 10 times better than this.

[@Roe777]

My god this isn't even writing, it's just projecting 2024 gender politics bs into a dark fantasy game ruining the tone

[@noitsbecky1278]

Obviously being a tomboy and being nonbinary are two different things, but Taash strikes me as more of the former than the latter, and I'm a little troubled by the implication that you can't be a GNC woman. It brings to mind how butches, especially butches of color, are often misgendered or degendered.

[@crimsonreaver9765]

The irony of Taash criticising Neve's attire for being feminine, but then one of Taash's heroic armours is the most revealing/"feminine" armour in the game.

[@starfox1436]

"this is stupid" You're right. The game would not be any better or worse if this scene just didn't exist. Cringe.

[@nateguerra319]

It would be a lot better without

[@SomethingDiabolical-lw5nx]

It would certainly be better without it. It wouldn't fix the game but it's so fucking lame that it makes me outright not want to support.

[@mastery7901]

I hate her. She cant accept Emmerich and calls him a 'death mage'. When Emmerich asks politely not to call him that she replies 'but you are a death mage'. So why cant my Rook say 'but you are a she then?' Plus that line about Dragon Kings, she ends up saying 'its a stupid name, it should be dragon queen.' At that moment, I wanted to throw her to Ghilanain for blight experimentation/subject. I thought I hated Sera and Vivienne, but Taash is the single worst, annoying character I have ever come across.

[@rd8819]

This would have actually been an interesting conversation to have, if it was even remotely well written.

[@trobertw]

That was a long 5 minutes

[@gogetassj9643]

Las waifus en decadencia

[@carlossabogal2970]

La verdad si viendo las wifus que hacían en mass effect este juegos todas son feas quieren tanto no encasillarlas y no destacan

[@aiba5784]

man, going thru this comment section is like peak stupidity... like "erm, sounds misogynistic to say "no one likes to be a woman!"" bro, Taash has gender dysphoria and hates being a woman and just thinks every other woman thinks the same. Ppl calling it "bad writing" have likely never wrote squat, let alone know what it's like to be a woman, trans, or queer in general. As a trans person watching this dialogue, it's good! It encapsulate some of what trans ppl go through. Loathing who society says you are vs. who YOU want to be. I probably shouldn't waste my time typing some essay out to ppl who won't listen to a queer person or a woman, but man... I hope some of you come to realize this hate is unnecessary and stops you from experiencing some beautiful people.

[@Kennisaurus]

@@aiba5784 This is bad writing though. To start with, Taash's misogyny. It's not the issue of Taash feeling as if no one likes being a woman, the issue is that no one challenges their viewpoint, no one goes "Most women like being women, Taash. Why do you think that?" That would then open the door for Taash to think about their identity. "Hmm, I don't like being a woman but women do actually like it. What makes me different?" The other part is that Taash's reasoning rings hollow, "I feel like a man" and that they enjoy more masculine pursuits, therefore not a woman. It's sexist to assume all women are feminine and any who aren't feminine must be non binary or trans. Taash has a very immature view of both masculinity and femininity. Taash could come to terms with their identity in a healthier, non misogynistic way. Then there is the issue of their mother. Shathan shows that she is trying to understand Taash, she even asks what it is. Taash doesn't explain, essentially saying non binary is being non binary. Taash could have explained what it meant. Stating that while they may have a female body they are neither male nor female. Shathan also tries to help bridge by bringing up Aqun Athlok, a Qun term meaning one who is born in the wrong body. It may not be exactly correct but Taash could have explained why instead of throwing a massive tantrum. Finally Taash is a hypocrite. They expect to have their identity and pronouns respected but refers to the necromancer derogitively by a title he loathes despite him correcting them several times. And also, most egregiously, calls a male dragon a she because it has wings, despite being corrected and saying the wings were forcefully grafted onto it. Taash is a terrible person, not because they are non binary but because they are terribly written Eta: also from a lore standpoint Taash's "no one likes being a woman" doesn't make sense because most of Thedas is pretty egalitarian save for the Qun and a few other exceptions, women are equal to men. Succession crisises in the series have been more because of lack of heir regardless of gender and not lack of male heirs. No one bats an eye at female warriors at all, the Qun, yes but Taash and their mother are ex Qun and Taash was raised in a non Qun setting which would have less strict gender roles. So Taash shouldn't be so sexist and should come to understand their identity through a different route than misogyny.

[@aiba5784]

@ i have no place to stand on the character itself, i just see ppl calling it bad writing cuz Taash is non-binary. Although I haven’t played the game, and I plan to, I can’t help but notice everyone’s “criticism” is heavily focused on Taash’s identity. It’s bad faith arguments, cuz they come from a place of hatred for queer ppl. Also, as for the “misogyny”you’re just like… not thinking to be brash about it. I literally said that it’s not misogyny, it’s Taash’s own feeling about BEING a woman, they don’t like being a woman because they’re non-binary. I remember a trans woman comedian, who I unfortunately can’t remember the name of, described gender dysphoria like having a rock in your shoe your whole life while no one else has one. It’s uncomfortable and you hate but you just think everyone else is going through it so you think it’s normal. Also, jfc, no Taash isn’t sexist for not liking being a woman. Once again, the magic word is gender dysphoria. I don’t expect ppl who likely wholly disregard trans ppl who aren’t “one of the good ones” to care to learn about what gender dysphoria is, but at least do some good faith research on it. Bc clearly u don’t understand it. Gender dysphoria isn’t a hating of the gender or sex itself, it’s the hating of yourself as that. It doesn’t feel right. Like too tight clothes or a shoe that doesn’t fit right or like sitting down in your car and the seat is too far forward. It isn’t just small things like that though, it’s who you’re told you are. And when you hate the visage yourself given, you feel your sense of identity or self feeling like nothing. However, that’s my personal perspective and it might vary with other trans ppl. And I don’t really think nor know if this will at all alter any ideas y’all have, preferably without slinging slurs and misgendering, but as a trans girl who can’t medically transition due to my age and can’t legally change me name yet due to all the ridiculous hoops trans ppl have to go thru, when I am referred to as, let’s just has “He Who Once Was” cuz it’s the first that popped in my head, it’s not like I’m upset cuz it’s the wrong name, I’m upset bc they’re essentially talking to a corpse. I truly don’t think I was living before I discovered who I was, and being referred to as He Who Once Was feels like my identity as a person is being nullified. Of course someone will turn that around to make it sound like I’m a whiny bitch or something but it’s true. Every time I’m misgendered, at least by family, it feels like a melancholic gong rings through my body. A damp, sad pang that forces me to remember when I was a basically a walking corpse. Also, I did do some research I would say to the best of my ability, Taash being “hypocritical” and being rude to the necromancer, from what I’ve read it seems Taash apologizes at some point, but I can’t seem to find anything about the dragon with grafter wings. That’s about it, just watch some trans content like Nimona, that’s a good one. Also go out and listen to trans people. All I’m here for is bc I hold an unfortunate level of hope that ppl will snap out of some delusion that trans ppl are an issue instead of people that love. Edit: Also just one quick thing, tbh, i’m at least happy to get this kind of argument from someone that refers to Taash properly. Gives me that your argument is coming from somewhere not from a place of complete hate for trans ppl. Cuz like, if u aren’t even gonna respect that character’s identity then ur likely making a bad faith argument and spewing bs that I’m not gonna listen to.

[@unodos2647]

Holy misogyny Batman

[@joareth]

The game is really fun, but i can completely understand the disagreement with scenes like this. Still not enough to not buy into a good game.

[@simpicusmaximus]

it is a matter of principle. A mediocre gameplay loop isnt enough to set aside my moral compass and support people that want to push this stuff.

[@SomethingDiabolical-lw5nx]

It's a really basic ass RPG dude.

[@kidnamedfinger2840]

lol its definitely enough to not buy it. For me, (and a huge majority of other people) dialogue is the #1 aspect in an rpg. If i wanted great graphics as a top preference i would play red dead redemption 2 or death stranding or horizon or some shit. If i wanted great gameplay loop as a top priority i would play spiderman but when i want to play an rpg i would go for games like the witcher 3, mass effect trilogy, fallout NV, bg3 etc..The common theme between these games is that they're all rpg and all have really high level dialogue

[@gogetassj9643]

Canal en decadencia

[@jeremiahkisimba5938]

Peak game

[@jensen4.042]

Is it possible to somehow avoid these dialogues or at least minimize them? Not buying and not playing does not count:)