Wooga and June’s Journey Celebrate Pride this Month
July is LGBTQ+ Pride month in Berlin, and June’s Journey is proud! We asked June’s Journey writer Dan a few questions about why representation is so important.
🌈 Dan! Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you end up writing for Wooga?
Hi! I’m originally from the ‘sunny’ shores of Devon in the UK, but have been living in glorious Berlin for five years now. Berlin is a fantastic city for creative folks and has a lot to offer for both writers and the LGBTQ+ community. After moving here in the depths of winter and initially questioning all my life choices, I threw myself into numerous writing workshops, which allowed me to develop my craft as a storyteller through short stories and scripts. I eventually gained the experience required to land my dream job — telling stories through games as part of an amazingly talented team!
🌈 Why does June’s Journey make a point to include LGBTQ+ characters in the game?
As someone who grew up queer and deeply connected to film, TV, and video games, I can personally attest to the importance of representation. Unfortunately for me, meaningful LGBTQ+ representation was severely lacking across the board, and where it did exist it was often shallow or even harmful. As the next generation of storytellers, we have the opportunity to do a better job, to create and showcase complex LGBTQ+ characters with intricate storylines, enriching our game while celebrating the fact that there are many, many ways to be human in this world. Also, a game without LGBTQ+ characters? Doesn’t sound much fun to me :D
🌈 How has this emphasis on representation made the game’s story better?
In the same way as biodiversity in nature leads to healthy ecosystems, diversity in character representation leads to richer stories. Our LGBTQ+ characters include a bohemian artist trying to make it on the streets of Constantinople; a trans showgirl in trouble in Vegas; a pair of spies navigating heartbreak and betrayal; a gay doctor lost in the wilderness. These make for captivating stories! By putting emphasis on meaningful representation, we get to tell stories from marginalized communities that may never have been told before, while also creating complex characters which June and our players will (hopefully) fall in love with. We certainly did!
🌈 The game is set in the 1920s and 30s. What was life like back then for LGBTQ+ people?
A common misconception about the past is that LGBTQ+ didn’t exist, or if they did, their lives were miserable and closeted. This is absolutely not the case! Of course, unique challenges were faced by LGBTQ+ people which we touch upon in June’s Journey. For instance, gay men were often scouted out for espionage purposes in this period, a storyline which we explore in Volume 4 with two core characters. But while society at large could be discriminatory, LGBTQ+ people formed vibrant, non-closeted enclaves in places like Harlem, New York, and even right here in Berlin! In the 1920s, the Berlin district of Schöneberg was arguably the queer center of the world. It’s about time June visited, don’t you think?
🌈 Outside of the game, what are some things Wooga has done to support LGBTQ+ individuals?
Wooga has been a champion of LGBTQ+ rights through various schemes and events. Prior to covid ruining everyone’s fun, Wooga regularly held ‘Gaymers Nights’, delightful evenings in which LGBTQ+ gaymers and their allies could get together in a safe space to play games and share unicorn-themed beer on the rooftop. We’ve also had some great LGBTQ+ identifying speakers hosted in our auditorium, such as Dr. Adrienne Shaw, who helped put together the amazing Rainbow Arcade exhibition at the Berlin Schwules Museum, showcasing the history of LGBTQ+ representation in video games. Wooga also makes a loud and proud appearance at Berlin Pride, which we sincerely hope will go ahead in some form later this month.
🌈 Thank you to Dan and the rest of the writers of June’s Journey for including diversity in our game!
