If you haven’t yet heard about “Boyfriend Dungeon,” the queer game and dating sim, allow me to enlighten you. It’s a fun game where your “weapons” turn into twinks and then you date them! It’s cool and pretty cute. However, fans of the game have been pressing its developer, Kitfox Games, to put in content warnings concerning a disturbing stalking subplot within the “shack and slash” gameplay. Since the game is a dating sim, there are verbal references to stalking, emotional manipulation, and other possibly triggering elements of the game’s plot, which, yes, largely takes place in a dungeon. Originally, “Boyfriend Dungeon” came with no content warnings zeroing in on the troubling events and language presented in the gameplay. After fans called Kitfox to task over it, the gaming company decided to issue a new warning on August 14th to make sure players weren’t walking into a potentially triggering situation:

That’s not all: the game’s creators thoughtfully included trigger warnings for an element of the game that allows players to receive a “text from mom.” While this might not immediately seem triggering, a recent tweet points out why it’s helpful to let players know about this in advance:

That said, there’s a Devil’s Advocate opinion floating around on Twitter that’s also worth mentioning. Gaming journalist Kallie Plagge noted that using the term “trigger warning” to apply to language rather than situations can have an adverse effect:

Perhaps game designer Connie Chang put it best when noting that, in many situations, two things can be true at once, and Boyfriend Dungeon discourse is no different!

Trigger or no trigger? Find out for yourself: Boyfriend Dungeon is out on Switch and PC now.

 

Help make sure LGBTQ+ stories are being told...

We can't rely on mainstream media to tell our stories. That's why we don't lock our articles behind a paywall. Will you support our mission with a contribution today?

Once Monthly Annually

Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated