User:Haleth/Steve Cortez

Steve Cortez is a character from BioWare's Mass Effect franchise. He appears in the 2012 video game Mass Effect 3 as a crew member of the Normandy SR-2 and pilot of the starship's auxiliary vehicle, the UT-47 Kodiak. Cortez was designed as a potential love interest for the male version of the game's player character, Commander Shepard. The main writer for Cortez, Dusty Everman, wanted to approach the subject matter of same-sex romantic relationships with an eye for respect and authenticity, as Mass Effect 3 marked the first instance BioWare staff have written full romances that are exclusively for same-sex characters.

Cortez's story arc in Mass Effect 3 drew a varied response from critics and players, and become part of a wider discussion about the media portrayal of LGBT characters, particularly with its themes of heartbreak and loss. Some commentators drew attention to his identity as an openly gay man and person of color, and the implications such characteristics would have within the context of his military service.

Concept and design
Steve Cortez was written by Dusty Everman, who worked primarily as a level designer early in his career at BioWare. Prior to Mass Effect 3, Everman had the opportunity to write for several supporting characters onboard the Normandy in Mass Effect 2, including Yeoman Kelly Chambers who the player character Commander Shepard could have a "light, flirty romance" with. By contrast, his goal for a romance centered around Cortez was to write about a "meaningful human relationship that just happens to be between two men", and at the same time supporting the game's theme of total interstellar war and the consequent widespread loss of life.

Speaking about his writing work in a post uploaded to the BioWare blog, Everman conceded that he could not write from personal experience and that some players had concerns about a relationship with a non-player character unintentionally shifting from friendly to romantic to the player’s apparent surprise, which in his view seemed greater for same-sex romances. As a result, Everman wanted to keep Cortez grounded as a character, and designed Cortez's dialogue tree to allow players to get to know him regardless of the player character's presumed sexual orientation. Everman noted that Cortez's arc is about his shared journey with Shepard and the building friendship between both characters, which he hope would lead players to a genuine appreciation for him as an attractive romantic interest towards the end of the arc. Everman insisted that "not one word was written lightly", as he expected that his work on Cortez would be heavily scrutinized given the nature of the relationship.

Although Steve Cortez is presented as a person of color in Mass Effect 3, his initial character designs had a lighter skin color, which led to many of his scenes being dimly lit by design. Casey Hudson picked the character's final look, while artist Rion Swanson was responsible for Cortez's artwork. As the change occurred late in the game's development, there was not enough time to adjust the degree of lighting that would compliment his final skin tone. Leo Lucien-Bay served as the cinematic designer for a dance scene at the Purgatory dance club which features Cortez, which he completed under immense time constraints.

Appearances
Lieutenant Steve Cortez is introduced in Mass Effect 3 as a Systems Alliance commissioned officer who is assigned to the Normandy SR-2 for overseeing cargo bay modifications prior to the galaxy-wide Reaper invasion. He is responsible for maintaining the Normandy's armory alongside his close friend James Vega. Cortez is also the pilot of an auxiliary vehicle, the UT-47A Kodiak, and is responsible for transporting Commander Shepard's fire squad to and from the Normandy for field missions.

If the player chooses to engage with Cortez during mission downtime, Shepard discovers that he rarely takes time off from his duties and that he still grieves over the loss of his husband Robert to the Collectors, an antagonistic alien faction introduced in Mass Effect 2. Shepard may chooses to be supportive towards Cortez during their conversations: the latter eventually finds the strength to move on from his mourning in despair, and survives the crashing of his shuttle during the final assault on Earth towards the end of Mass Effect 3 story. Cortez will also develop feelings for a male Shepard, and both men will enter into a relationship provided the player decides to have Shepard reciprocate his affections.

Reception
Shortly after the release of Mass Effect 3, a YouTube video which shows an intimate scene between Cortez and a male Commander Shepherd provoked a hostile reaction among some players. Craig Takeuchi from the Georgia Straight highlighted instances of negative and homophobic comments against the game's same-sex relationship content, especially the scene between Shepard and Cortez, which were posted on several websites in their respective articles. Writing for Forbes, Paul Tassi noted the notoriety surrounding the “Mass Effect Gay Sex Scene”, but observed that it was essentially shirtless cuddling. not only does he add depth to the narrative in terms of his own storyline, but he also adds depth to others as well. Cortez is proof that queer characters can do so much more than just provide positive characterizations of gay folks in game. Romancing Steve Cortez: I really, really liked the character of Steve Cortez. He was well written, and I liked having both Shepards carry him through the journey of letting go of the death of his husband and moving on with his life. I liked that we finally had a gay male character whose relationship was presented straight up. But let me get this straight - if you take the romance option, you help a broken, grieving widower let go of the past and then - romance him right away? Did that seem wrong to anyone else? I'm not mad that there was an option to romance a gay character - but this option just seemed a little predatory to me. While there’s certainly reason to be wary of entering a relationship with a widower grieving the death of his partner in the past year, the connection is solid and built upon the dire themes of the game. It was a good move forward for the series, and the industry as a whole.