Netrunner has even more trans representation than we thought ⧉
We’ve known for a couple years now that at least one of Netrunner’s characters, Quetzal, has dismissed gender binarism, and many have celebrated publisher Fantasy Flight Games for being so progressive. It turns out the game’s designers wrote an explicitly trans runner into the Android universe last year but didn’t make a point to call much attention to it. You can see one of the hints they dropped in the Democracy & Dogma insert above.
Former lead developer Damon Stone discussed Nero’s runner ID art in the Women of Netrunner group on Facebook:
“It's the sort of thing that the artist is made aware of in the art brief and [former senior art coordinator] Zoë Robinson took a lot of time and care working with [artist Matt Zeilinger] to get Nero just right, but beyond the way it affects their world view and how that may affect how they act and present themselves, they are us. We don't mention sexuality or gender identity or religion unless it has direct impact on the story being told, but that doesn't mean that there isn't a wide range of sexual, racial, and gender diversity that goes into the creation of them. ...
We just thought the game should reflect the world we live in. Shouldn't seem to be in your face or radical, but so few games ever bother that it seems like a substantial departure.”
And maybe it’s unintentional, but friend-of-the-site Cass Sparks recently pointed out that Terminal Directive’s new shaper ID, Ayla Rahim, is wearing a scarf that looks like the colors of the Transgender Pride flag!
Unfortunately, players rarely pick Nero as their runner. With this weekend being the last of the Store Championship season, though, it’s a good opportunity to attempt the $100 bounty put out last year challenging someone to win a store championship (or a bigger event) with Nero. The bounty is valid even if you start off as another runner ID and rebirth into Nero!