Exploring beyond the binary.
All profits will be split between LGBTQIA+ charitiesMermaidsandMind Out.
Multi-user dungeons were (and still are) text-based roleplaying spaces built around chatrooms.
I am a transgender woman.
I was never a particularly masculine child, but neither am I a stereotypically feminine woman.
It was shortly after reading User that I started to experiment with playing female characters in online spaces.
I kept it secret, for the most part, as it was frowned upon in most circles.
“Many Men Online Role Playing as Girls” was a popular joke about MMORPGs for years.
I instinctively recoiled from such suggestions, especially from allegations of intentionally misleading people.
“It’s just roleplaying!”.
But the more I did it, the more comfortable it became.
When I started exploring Second Life, I had a female persona and avatar from the outset.
Sure, I still made excuses to others, and to myself, but I didn’t even hesitate.
Why would I want to be a boring boy when I had the choice?
Even then, I rejected the idea of transitioning.
I was too tall, too big, too fat.
Representation is vital and seeing myself in those trailblazing people was a huge deal.
I first came out as trans to my immediate family just a few months after my thirtieth birthday.
I spent the weekend before making a TWINE game while sorting through my feelings.
I believe it’s still out there on the internet, somewhere.
VTubers become more and more popular, legitimising and normalising the idea of virtual identities in the mainstream.
Who knows what they will look like in another forty?
