This Video Game Was a Safe Haven for Millions. Now It Belongs to People Who Hate Them.

The new owners could erase that legacy. The legend goes like this: In 1999, a programmer named Patrick Barrett joined the video game studio Maxis to help develop the video game that would become . Working from an out-of-date design handbook, he coded the game to allow for same-sex relationships--even though the studio initially decided to include queer relationships for fear of backlash. The game was demoed to press with a wedding scene at E3 1999, and during the demo two female Sims kissed. Suddenly the game was the talk of the event, and any attempt to walk queer content back would be impossible to do quietly.