The open-world Harry Potter action RPG Hogwarts Legacy includes a transgender character that players can meet and interact with.

Hogwarts Legacy features a transgender character that players can interact with in Three Broomsticks named Sirona Ryan. Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling has sparked considerable controversy by repeatedly making transphobic statements that she regularly trumpets to her millions of Twitter followers. Rowling’s transphobia has turned many off the Harry Potter franchise as a whole, which is a problem for the Hogwarts Legacy video game.

Following Rowling’s comments, the developers of Hogwarts Legacy distanced themselves from the author and made it clear that she was not involved in the development of the game. That hasn’t stopped some fans from calling for a boycott of Hogwarts Legacy, as some say buying the game is an endorsement of Rowling’s transphobic views. Regardless, the developers are still working to distance themselves from Rowling’s transphobic views, and have even added a transgender character to the game.

Hogwarts Legacy allows players to visit Hogsmeade, a small magical village located relatively close to Hogwarts Castle. One of Hogsmeade’s most popular establishments is the Three Broomsticks, an inn/tavern that Harry Potter and his friends visit several times in the books and movies. If players visit the Three Broomsticks in Hogwarts Legacy, they will have the opportunity to meet the owner, Sirona Ryan, who happens to be transgender.

Please note that the video below contains minor spoilers. The text of the article does not contain spoilers.

Ryan plays a minor role in some of the Hogwarts Legacy quests, but has no major role in the game beyond his position as the owner of the Three Broomsticks. By talking to him, players can learn a little more about his background. Without giving spoilers, players have the option to ask Ryan why he trusts a certain other character in the game. Ryan knew her even before the transition. They hadn’t seen each other for years, but when they ran into each other again, she recognized him immediately. “Which is more than I can say for some of my classmates. It took them a second to realize I was actually a witch and not a wizard,” Ryan explains.

The decision to include a transgender character in Hogwarts Legacy drew mixed reactions. Some praised the Avalanche for making the move, believing it to be a defiance of J.K. Rowling with her transphobic views. Others accused the studio of trying to get away with a “token transgender character”.

Sirona Ryan isn’t the first transgender character in video games, but she’ll certainly be one of the most recognizable by the end of the game, and that’s okay, regardless of why she came into the game. Time will tell how Harry Potter fans ultimately react to the character once the Hogwarts Legacy Early Access period begins on February 7th.

Hogwarts Legacy will be released on February 10th for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X, April 4th for PS4 and Xbox One, and July 25th for Nintendo Switch.

Source: GameRant