>Alyx Vance is the same thing as modern gaming women
First impressions are important. They decide the foundation your brain will build your judgement of the character. Assholes can redeem themselves, but they must be acknowledged as assholes. They can be cynical, but they need to be expressly treated as the "cynical" one whose standoffish ways are extrapolated. To put it simply, the first 30 seconds you spend with a new character determines the entirety of your experience with the character.

So what is our first impression of Alyx Vance?

She's smiling at you when you meet her. She's happy. Your first experience with her is amicable. Pleasant, even. She expresses rage and frustration, but never at you. She's strong and helpful, but does so a complement to your efforts. She's never presented as a bad woman, or a complicated woman. She's a resistance hero that grew up hearing stories about you and is enthusiastic to work with you. There's only a hint of romantic tension after you've spent 20+ hours with her, and in the "third" game.

So when you see Alyx in the game, you're thinking, "oh wow, it's Alyx! Yay!" Not, "Oh, it's my fucktoy" or "it's the bitch that yells at me" or even "it's the carpet." It's a friend. A companion. Snarky and independent, but cares about you and what you are doing for the resistance. You can get all of that in the first 30 seconds of meeting Alyx. The way she fights, the way she talks, and tries to break the ice, or cracks jokes. Alyx Vance is a good character. She's not a complicated character, but memorable characters rarely are.

>>717552040
>Are things just going to get more lame and gay or is there any hope?
Don't play Western trash. Don't play Western AAA trash.