Harry Potter video game will allow players to pick 'trans-characters': Report

A Harry Potter video game will allow the players to customize the characters to have transgender body types, titles either witch or a wizard, and a gender-neutral appearance to promote ‘inclusivity’. This comes in the aftermath of controversies surrounding writer J.K.Rowling’s stance on transgenders, her views on the increasing sexual assault and domestic violence on persons with trans identity by homophobic, and her 3,600-word essay that highlighted the dangers of trans-activism. Rowling has been criticized as ‘transphobic’ and for her  "absolutist" view against the gender roles by the people, including her fans. 

According to a Bloomberg report, the Hogwarts Legacy video game produced by Avalanche Software will now feature characters that can either be masculine or feminine in accordance with the players’ sexual orientation. The game, due to be released in 2022 by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Inc, will dismiss gender stereotypes, as it will let the gamers dress the characters as male or a female and will give liberty to house them in either of the dorms.

The developers, however, told reporters of Bloomberg on condition of anonymity that there was a pushback from management when these new features were designed but the Wizarding World still finalized on putting the transgender characters as opposed to the original writer’s views. The franchise said that the new game imitates the steps taken by many developers previously like Cyberpunk 2077 that break the barriers of gender-specific characters within the games. 

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Concept of game different from Rowling's views

Rowling, the Harry Potter series’ author, in the past expressed her differing views from the concept of the new video game as she took to her official Twitter handle to denounce homosexuality. In the process of voicing out her “opinion” the writer attracted widespread backlash from the online community and prominent Hollywood celebrities including actors Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Eddie Redmayne, for expressing disregard for the transgender community.

“I forgot the first rule of Twitter – never, ever expect a nuanced conversation – and reacted to what I felt was degrading language about women. I spoke up about the importance of sex and have been paying the price ever since,” Rowling said in response to the uproar she created on social media. However, the writer later explained that she was more inclined to the cause of women rights, and through her views expressed solidarity with the huge numbers of women who are, like herself, sexual assault survivors and she wasn’t making a statement to “gain sympathy”. 

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