5 games perfect for National Coming Out Day
National Coming Out Day is a holiday that pretty much does what it says on the tin: it celebrates the act of coming out. A move that isn’t as clear-cut as we’d all like it to be, and something which has kept many a person trapped in the closet for years and years. As much as it is a celebration, it’s also a day where we acknowledge that there are people out there who don’t feel safe to come out yet too.
For some folks, coming out is in the little things which you can do in spaces outside of their real-life – such as through video games. Whether it be using character creators to express their gender identity, or playing their character as gay, bi, etc, video games are able to transport queer folk to a safe space that they may not have at home.
With that in mind, we’ve put together a list of video games that not only do we think perfectly captures the raw emotions of coming out, but truly goes to show why National Coming Out Day and coming out, in general, should be looked at more in this medium.
Newfound Courage
Inspired by stories like Call Me By Your Name, Love Simon, and the video game, To The Moon, Newfound Courage is an adventure game that puts you in the shoes of a gay man called Alex. Alex is just your average joe at first, but he becomes ensnared in a mystery that includes the strange cliffside town of Silverpine and The Vault.
The Vault is a mysterious institute that contains knowledge of a long-dead civilisation. It’s up to Alex to explore The Vault and uncover the truth, all while helping the townsfolk of Silverpine and wrestling with his feelings for his best friend, a young man named Jake.
Newfound Courage is available to play over on Steam.
Zen: A Gay Sequel
Zen: A Gay Sequel – also known as ZAGS – is a gay, planner-focused, stat-based, dating sim set in college where you make friends, come out and try to plan for your future. Does that sound familiar or even remotely relatable to you? Then you’re going to love this.
As you can tell from the title, ZAGS is a sequel to Yearning: A Gay Story, and much like its sequel, it focuses on finding out who you are as a gay man through a planner-focused dating sim with visual novel elements. Better yet, both games are quite lengthy, with multiple different choices and endings.
Zen: A Gay Sequel is available on Steam and itch.io
If Found…
If Found… is an interactive, visual novel game that follows Kasio McHugh – a young trans woman who returns home to Achill, Ireland after university. During her time away, she’s come to realize who she really is, but on her return, she finds out that her family doesn’t accept her for who she is and ends up running away to live with her friends.
During her time away from her family, Kasio makes some real, meaningful connections with the people on Achill. However she still struggles with coming to terms with the reaction from her family about her identity, and she eventually spirals into depression. But don’t worry, it isn’t all doom and gloom. Trust us. There’s a lot of trans happiness in this game.
If Found… is available to play on the Nintendo Switch, Steam, and itch.io.
Coming Out Simulator
The Coming Out Simulator by Nicky Case shows a story of ‘coming out’ that more than a few of us can relate to. Unlike the majority of the games already shown on this list, this story doesn’t have a traditional happy ending. Instead, we’re shown what it’s like to come out to someone and have it blow up in your face.
What makes this game so unique in comparison to a lot of other games out there is that it adds a unique element of coming out to a non-white family, which obviously has a different culture. It’s also just an incredibly touching story, and while sad, there is some hope within the game too.
Coming Out Simulator is available to play on itch.io.
Gone Home
In Gone Home, the act of exploration as you return home after a trip away acts as the ‘coming out’ of your sister, Sam and Lonnie. You play as Kaitlin who returns to an empty home and a letter from your sister, Sam telling you not to look for her. That, of course, doesn’t inspire anything positive and you search the house to find out more about what happened.
As you explore, you discover that your sister fell in love with a girl called Lonnie. However, what happened afterward isn’t explained until you find the secrets that are hidden away around the house. In more ways than one, Gone Home really helped change how we viewed ‘walking simulator’ games and how they can be used to tell queer stories.
Gone Home is available to play on PS4/PS5, Steam, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
These are just 5 of the best games to play to celebrate National Coming Out Day, but we’re always keen to hear some more. If there’s any that you think should be added next year, throw some suggestions into the comments below!
About The Author
