Cross-dressing

Overview

Cross-dressing is the concept of a person wearing clothing generally associated with the opposite sex, with the most basic example being a man wearing a dress. A cross-dressing individual may go as far as to adopt personality traits or mannerisms of the other gender, for various reasons. Although it is commonly associated with homosexuality, cross-dressing is not an act specific to sexual orientation.

Over the years, a number of video games have depicted cross-dressing as either a character trait, plot point, or an aspect of gameplay.

Examples of Cross-dressing in Video Games

Final Fantasy V

In Final Fantasy V, one of the main characters, the pirate captain Faris Scherwiz, is introduced as a male. Throughout the game, many male characters find themselves inexplicably attracted to Faris, until at one point in the game Faris reveals that he is actually a she.

Final Fantasy VII

In the early hours of Final Fantasy VII, Aerith suggests that Cloud disguise himself as a woman in order to gain access to Don Corneo's mansion. This leads to a sequence where the player must gather items to create a proper disguise. The player's actions determine the quality of Cloud's eventual outfit, with more mini-games and better performance therein improving the look. With the best outfit available, Cloud gains direct access to Don Corneo's bedroom.

This scene was widely expanded in Final Fantasy VII Remake, alongside changes to avoid the mockery and comedy which colored the original scene. In an interview, Remake co-director Motomu Toriyama stated that these changes were done to "[live] up to expectations", while avoiding "stereotypical depictions of gender."

Guilty Gear series

Introduced in Guilty Gear X2, Bridget was the second of two male twins born in a village where having twins of the same sex is considered to be a bad omen. Bridget being raised as a girl was the easiest option to avoid the village's backlash. As a result, Bridget gained a fondness for feminine clothing, even after leaving the village to prove that twins of the same sex aren't bad luck after all.

While Daisuke Ishiwatari stated that this was done in order to make Bridget more interesting, both the series and its fans typically played this situation for humor. In-series, characters would often mistake Bridget for a girl, only for them to be shocked when they later realized. Likewise, fans would regularly play up this appearance, to trick newcomers or joke about the sexuality of Bridget and Bridget's fans.

Perhaps in recognition of the questionable taste of these jokes, Bridget stopped appearing in new entries in the series after 2012's X2 Accent Core Plus R. When Bridget eventually returned in Guilty Gear -Strive-, time and Bridget's previous efforts had eroded the village's superstitions. No longer needing to prove them false, Bridget is left to find happiness. At the end of her arcade mode story, Bridget determines that she actually would be happier as a girl, effectively becoming a trans woman.

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4

Persona 4 contains several characters that cross-dress. At one point in the game, Yasogami High School hosts its annual "Miss" Yasogami pageant. Yu Narukami, Yosuke Hanamura, Kanji Tatsumi, and Teddie all compete as participants to comedic effect.

However, the character Naoto Shirogane cross-dresses as a part of her lifestyle. Though she desires to be a detective, she believes that she wouldn't be taken as seriously as a woman, and thus began dressing as a male and masquerading as a boy. Even after her true gender is outed to the public, she prefers to dress in masculine clothes, finding them more comfortable.

Fable Series

The Fable series of games allows players to actively cross-dress their characters. It is also an example of where cross-dressing has been implemented as a part of the gameplay. A central mechanic of the series has been how NPCs react to the actions and appearance of the player character. When cross-dressed, reactions in the original game tend to be negative, in that NPCs respond with either disgust or bemusement.

However, Fable II has 'transvestite appreciating' NPCs in its Knothole Island DLC and Fable III even features an achievement for having your character wear the clothes of his or her opposite gender.