clipped from www.kombo.com

Since nearly the beginning of gaming gay characters have been utilized, though they almost always fell under the categories of villain or comic foil. These early characters were often cross-dressing, effeminate individuals whose inclusion as comic relief helped them circumvent Nintendo and Sega's censorship codes, which were modeled off the early Hollywood production codes which banned "sexual perversion."

As times changed the portrayal of gay characters softened, and by the mid-90s and at the turn of the millennium, homosexual characters were being treated with a bit more tact.

These periods of change don't last forever, though, and as the issue has receded in the public eye, games have reverted back to previous stereotypes once thought to be on the way out.

While games have the potential to stand at the bleeding edge of social and political commentary, they prefer to play it safe and put sales above message, lagging far behind their contemporaries in television and cinema.