Nintendo Earns Award Nomination for Trans Representation in Paper Mario

Overview of GLAAD Award Nomination

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door receives a nomination for a GLAAD Award recognizing trans representation.
The 2024 remake restores Vivian’s trans identity, previously omitted in the original English version.
Competing alongside titles like Dragon Age: The Veilguard and Life is Strange: Double Exposure for the Outstanding Video Game award.

The acclaimed game Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door has been nominated for the Outstanding Video Game award at the upcoming GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) Awards. This recognition highlights the game’s representation of its notable character, Vivian, a trans-female guide who aids Mario throughout his journey.

This nomination specifically pertains to the recent May 2024 remake of the iconic title, which originally debuted in 2004. While the original game showcased Vivian as an adversary-turned-ally, the depiction of her identity as a trans woman was inconsistent across different global versions.

On January 22, the media advocacy group announced the nominees for the 36th GLAAD Media Awards. The inclusion of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door in this year’s line-up is largely attributed to the character Vivian, whose trans identity was notably omitted in the English version of the original release. While other regions acknowledged her identity, the English adaptation left out crucial aspects of her backstory. Thankfully, the remake has rectified this oversight, earning praise from the trans gaming community for its commitment to accurate representation.

Nominees for the 36th Annual GLAAD Outstanding Video Game Award

Caravan SandWitch (Studio Plane Toast / Dear Villagers)
Dragon Age: The Veilguard (BioWare / Electronic Arts)
Dread Delusion (Lovely Hellplace / DreadXP)
Dustborn (Red Thread Games / Spotlight by Quantic Dream)
Fear the Spotlight (Cozy Game Pals / Blumhouse Games)
Life is Strange: Double Exposure (Deck Nine / Square Enix)
Minds Beneath Us (BearBone Studio)
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Intelligent Systems / Nintendo)
Sorry We’re Closed (à la mode games / Akupara Games)
Until Then (Polychroma Games / Maximum Entertainment)

Facing off against nine other contenders for the prestigious award, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door will vie for recognition at the awards ceremony scheduled for March 27. In a trend observed over the years, several nominees hail from independent gaming studios, presenting a diverse spectrum of narratives. Among the fierce competition are notable AAA titles, including Dragon Age: The Veilguard, where players can develop a romantic relationship with Taash, a Qunari warrior exploring their nonbinary identity, and Life is Strange: Double Exposure, which returns fans to the story of Max Caufield, a bisexual protagonist.

Should Paper Mario win, it would represent a consecutive year where an RPG has secured this award, following Baldur’s Gate 3 winning last year against heavyweights like Horizon Forbidden West and other narrative-driven games such as Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical and Goodbye Volcano High. In 2023, Apex Legends was honored with the Outstanding Video Game award.

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