Relatively early in development, I made a decision on how I'd approach Inclusivity within Chestnut Grove. I know it is a small game and when you play it, you probably don't notice it, but if I wouldn't have taken that step, I can promise you: Chestnut Grove would have looked differently.

While showing a personal experience, I wanted the game to feel as relatable as possible. I'm a cis white male, but I acknowledge that not everyone playing my game would be, so I tried to avoid anything that assumes hetero-normative values or perspectives as much as possible. I'm not sure if I succeeded entirely, but putting in that effort was important to me.

• In all character-based writing, I tried to avoid gendered pronouns or pronouns in general.
• I used gender-neutral names.
• I had but later removed character models, as they represented a more male or female character look and weren't actually important to the game experience.

Chestnut Grove is a very small game, but even in a small game, there were opportunities to make the game feel more inclusive. And to be honest: Designing it that way wasn't that hard, it was mostly a matter of being aware, saying to myself "Hey, maybe the player wouldn't feel like he's playing as a guy. Or maybe the player wouldn't have a husband or a wife. Maybe the player identifies themselves differently." I tried to make that the thought that guided me.

If you have more thoughts or ideas on this, or want to tell me how Chestnut Grove succeeded or failed on this, then I'd love to hear from you. Feel free to comment, tweet or email me.