Unless you’ve been living under a rock the past month, you’ve probably heard of Heated Rivalry. And let’s be honest, you’ve probably already watched it at least twice, read the books, and bought a Boston Raiders jersey. Even homophobes can’t stop talking about Heated Rivalry. The good MAGA folks over at the right-wing site OutKick have gone through the trouble of writing an entire article baselessly claiming that Heated Rivalry isn’t actually popular and is all a liberal conspiracy (aww, they’re always so cute when they throw their little tantrums). But it’s further proof that the show is on everyone’s mind.
There is some bad news, though – rumor has it that we won’t be getting season 2 until next year. And if you’re like me, you’re going to need something horny, gay, and exciting to occupy yourself with until then. There’s already been tons of articles listing shows and movies that Heated Rivalry fans will love…but what about video games? Whether you’re looking for some games that have steamy queer romances, great gay storylines, or even just games with some chiseled man-booty, check out the list below to discover five games to keep you entertained (and aroused) until we get more Shane, Illya, and Scott in 2027.
Baldur’s Gate 3
Rivaling Homer’s Odyssey, the epic RPG Baldur’s Gate 3 will go down in history as one of the biggest, best, and most engaging video games ever made. Set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons, the game sees you assemble a team and head out on a quest to defeat the Elder Brain.
Along the way, you level up, meet allies and foes, gain magical skills, and develop hot, passionate romances. There are FF romance options in the game, and you can be nonbinary. But if you’re here because you love Heated Rivalry, you probably want to know about the juicy MM romance options. In BG3 that would be with Astarion, Halsin, and the most romantic option of them all, Wyll. You can also get skeezy with the gross, betraying Emperor. But trust me, don’t waste your love on a turd like him.
Plus, if you loved all the bare skin in Heated Rivalry, you’ll be pleased to hear that you can have your character be completely naked in BG3. Yep, you can play the entire game entirely naked. Full butt, full frontal, and if you so choose, even full bush.
Shoresy: Legends of the North
Ok, stick with me here: The series adaptation of Heated Rivalry was created by Jacob Tierney, who also developed the hit Letterkenny, and directed its spinoff series, Shoresy. Much like Heated Rivalry, Shoresy is about hockey. And it just received its own video game, Shoresy: Legends of the North.
But this isn't some standard EA Sports NHL game. Legends of the North uses hockey matches as its main game mechanic, but it also has a story to it with dialogue scenes, a character creation tool, and a great cel-shading aesthetic. It’s even got diversity (ooooohhhh spooky!) and allows players to add rainbow tape to their hockey sticks. For a hockey game made for non-hardcore hockey players (which, let’s be real…is most of us Heated Rivalry fans), this is the game for you.
Mass Effect
One of the things that makes Heated Rivalry so great is that it has a really good story, plus tons of hot sex. It isn’t just some series showcasing diversity for the sake of diversity. The story is genuinely gripping, the characters are great, and the sex is steamy. It finally feels like the queer community got a legit AAA hit show made with purpose.
In gaming, I’ve felt that same way with Mass Effect – especially Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect: Andromeda. I love supporting queer video games, but too often they’re visual novels or dating sims…which kinda perpetuates the stereotype that gays can’t play “real” games. In Mass Effect, you get the full RPG experience, with action, combat, and exploring, all while a fantastic story builds around you. Plus, in Mass Effect 3, as male Shepard you can romance Steve Cortez or Kaiden Alenko. The Kaiden romance is especially great and even comes with a sex scene!
In Andromeda, male Ryder can romance Reyes Vidal, which is a so-so romance track, and Gil Brodie, which is the one you want to go for, trust me. You can even romance the Angaran, Jaal, if you want some gay alien sex…and hey, it’s Mass Effect, so you do you, I won’t judge. Mass Effect also offers FF romance options as well.
Dream Daddy
Like I said, lots of queer games end up being visual novels and dating sims…so there was no avoiding them on this list. Luckily, Dream Daddy is not your typical dating sim. In the game, you play as a daddy who just moved to a new neighborhood full of other single daddies. Your goal is to date them all and find which one is right for you. But this is not your typical dating sim. You can have good endings with all of them, but if you’re a douche or make terrible decisions, you can have bad endings too, resulting in everything from being used as nothing more than a hookup, to falling off a waterfall, and even being sacrificed by a cult.
For Heated Rivalry fans, I recommend putting most of your effort into Craig, the sexy, athletic daddy who has a great heart…and chiseled abs. Trust me, you’ll come for the daddies, but stay for the absolutely hilarious plots and dialogue.
Dragon Age
Just like Mass Effect, BioWare's Dragon Age offers the full RPG experience with queer romance options. But whereas Mass Effect centers around space and futurism, Dragon Age dives into the realms of medieval fantasy and magic.
Both Dragon Age: Inquisition and Dragon Age: The Veilguard offer gay romance options, with Inquisition having the much hotter scenes. In Inquisition, gay romance options include Dorian Pavus and the Iron Bull. In The Veilguard, gay romance options include Lucanis, Davrin, and Emmrich. Both games also allow FF romances, and in The Veilguard, we even get a nonbinary character…but you probably already knew that since, yet again, Republicans lost their crap and threw a tantrum over it, and review-bombed the game so hard that it became front-page news and forced BioWare to abandon the franchise. Playing Dragon Age isn’t just a great experience for queer gamers, it’s also a total FU to bigots.