Axton in Borderlands 2

Axton entry image

Image credit: Axton. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://borderlands.wikia.com/wiki/Axton

Axton is a playable character in Borderlands 2 and one of the major characters in the series. Originally, Axton was only supposed to have flirtatious dialogue when reviving Maya (a female party member), but the developers ended up accidentally leaving this dialogue option available for any party member that Axton revives. After player feedback on whether or not Axton was supposed to be “implicitly bisexual”, Anthony Burch wrote in more pointed dialogue for Axton that in a later DLC campaign for Borderlands 2 that emphasized his bisexual identity. This led to a scene where Axton is asked what he’ll spend his riches on after securing the Vault in the Dragon Keep DLC, he states “Guns and ladies…and sometimes dudes”.

LGBTQ references in this game series:

Borderlands (2009): Mad Moxxi, Mr. Shank and Chaz, Brick, Patricia Tannis

Borderlands 2 (2012): Audio files at the Wildlife Exploitation Preserve, Sir Hammerlock, Axton, Tiny Tina, Mr. Torgue, Maya, Motor Momma, Zer0

Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel! (2014): Athena and Janey, Rose Yin, Professor Nakayama

See QRM’s entry for this game.

Citations

  1. (n.d.). List of video games with LGBT characters. Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_video_games_with_LGBT_characters
  2. Anthony Burch. (2013, August 13). Inside the Box: Inclusivity. Gearbox Software Blog. Retrieved from http://www.gearboxsoftware.com/2013/08/inside-the-box-inclusivity/
  3. (n.d.). Axton (character page). Borderlands Wiki. Retrieved from http://borderlands.wikia.com/wiki/Axton
  4. (n.d.). Axton (character entry). TV Tropes Wiki. Retrieved from http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Characters/SecondBorderlandsVaultHunters
  5. (2014, November 13). People’s sexualities in Borderlands. Reddit (/r/Borderlands). Retrieved from https://www.reddit.com/r/Borderlands/comments/2m8ezj/peoples_sexualities_in_borderlands/
  6. (2013, July 27). So, I guess Axton is bisexual [spoilers]. Reddit (/r/Borderlands). Retrieved from https://www.reddit.com/r/Borderlands/comments/1j5vsn/so_i_guess_axton_is_bisexual_spoilers/