BREASTS !

[Popo]

Because sexuality can be a very powerful thing - it's pretty safe to say that, as the old argument goes, if Lara was called Larry, the Tomb Raider games wouldn't have been nearly as popular.

Sexy can also be cool, and if people think something is cool and their friends are doing it, they'll be interested in it too - Lara was designed to capture the imagination of men in a strong sexual way and when it comes down to it, men can be pretty weak when it comes to obeying the boss downstairs.

Edit - whoops, mis-read your reply, thought you said "why". Would I buy a game for tittilation? No, real porn is much better. I'm only pointing out the apparent theory behind it.

[Chadruharazzeb]

if breasts do not enhance the gaming experience then why are the always so 'prominent' in so many games

I can't think of too many games they ARE prominent in, at least they aren't in serious games. In less serious titles they might be included for humourous purposes as they would be in a film or tv show.

[Ady]

ok then so would you buy a game that didn't necessarily appealed to you in a gaming sense but tickled your fancy coz of semi naked girls ?

No. Furthermore I'd pity anyone who'd get their kicks out of a game.

[Super Stu]

No. Furthermore I'd pity anyone who'd get their kicks out of a game.

I pity anyone who urinates their life up the wall by smoking wee white sticks several times a day.

But it takes all sorts, doesn't it? So don't be so quick to judge others.

[wicky]

so mostly your opinions are that
a) breasts do not enhance the gaming experience
b) you wouldn't buy a game based purely upon sex appeal

so therefore it is down to the game itself and if the games has it's own merits it would become popular based on this alone (unfortunately this doesn't always work as rez is fab but the sales figures don't reflect).

so again breasts what is there point in games apart from to attract bad press.

[Treble]

ok then so would you buy a game that didn't necessarily appealed to you in a gaming sense but tickled your fancy coz of semi naked girls ?

I doubt many would/do, otherwise Hentai games would be far more popular than they are if this were the case.

So, again - breasts: what is their point in games, apart from to attract bad press?

We had this discussion on the 'old' forum: there is a precedent in all forms of fantasy to present both male and female characters with enhanced sexual characteristics. Men tend to have perfectly honed bodies and six-packs and women have wasp-thin waists and perfect boobs. It's true of film, TV, comics, games....you name it.

People seem to want to view an 'ideal'. It's aspirational: just as young men wish to be as cool and brooding as - say - Collin Farrell in Minority Report, they also want the powers of Keanu Reeves in The Matrix. When you get older, you just hope you can get away with using some of their cooler lines

It's the same for women: the most popular, sexy women we can think of (at random: Nicole Kidman, Madonna, Kylie, J-Lo) sell far more to women than to men, so we can infer that they also wish to see representations of the human form (and in their own gender group) that transcend their own.

The point I'm making is that people want to see sexy fictional characters, regardless of gender and sexuality. The point you raised was different though. Certain games of late appear to be representing women to the gamer as objects (arguably, although some seem to disagree) to be leered at. This is a world away from the empowered sexuality of modern female icons in the media.

[Chadruharazzeb]

so again breasts what is there point in games apart from to attract bad press.

I don't really understand your point to be honest. Are you referring to any breasts in particular or just generalising that female characters in games have breasts?

If you're on about gratuitous tits like that BMX thing then yeah, the games so bad they have to appeal to the lowest common denominator. Otherwise I'd expect women in games to have breasts just as I would expect every human characteristic to be protrayed, like limbs, a head and a torso.

[wicky]

nah it is gratuitous tits that my point is about - whereas space channel 5 strikes the perfect balance with ulala - they are there they are normal and they are not being constantly thrown in your face (as such )

[Ady]

No. Furthermore I'd pity anyone who'd get their kicks out of a game.

I pity anyone who urinates their life up the wall by smoking wee white sticks several times a day.

But it takes all sorts, doesn't it? So don't be so quick to judge others.

I'm not judging anybody, just expressing my opinion, which I stand by.

That said, conceptually this isn't a million miles away from Hentai games, but I do fear that crude adolsecent-style sexism in gaming will only bring our oft misunderstood hobbie into more disrepute.

[SharkAttack]

nah it is gratuitous tits that my point is about - whereas space channel 5 strikes the perfect balance with ulala - they are there they are normal and they are not being constantly thrown in your face (as such )

Can you list examples of games that do throw them in your face then other than the obvious volleyball ones?

[JRMacumber]

Super Stu and Treb, you guys are my personal heroes. Thanks for not being a reactionary or a prude. You reaffirm my faith that there are actually smart people in the world.

The Point Of Big Tits In A Game: Visual Stimulation. That's it. Period. End o' discussion. Unless we're talking about a porn game, the only reason for big breasts is for the visual stimulation they provide. Is that wrong? Hardly. Games also show truckloads of very fit, very powerful men. As Treble has tried to hammer home to the deaf amongst us, it is all about showing the human ideal. Would any of us play Metal Gear or Splinter Cell if their lead characters were pot-bellied couch potatoes? No, we wouldn't. When I"m stalking down a dark corridor getting ready to hand out a beat-down, I want to look good doing it, dammit. The same thing if I'm going to be slamming a spike on the beach volleyball court. We want to see people who are in perfect health, who have physiques that we (most of us, that is) don't have. It is a form of fantasy, and it is normal and healthy. If you bothered by it, then I suggest you never read a book, never read a comic book, never watch TV, and never watch another movie.

[Concept]

Hell no, this is a case of a uppity 'critic' using violently loaded criticism, because his insecure feelings towards his pastime have come under flack.

Think 'her'.

Of course, that review quote shows that a single female critic isn't necessarily representitive of the wider female population. However, it does show because of its themes, DOAXVB helps reinforce the regular stereotypes and cliches that people have of gaming. If the medium is ever to attain a wider cultural impact, at least in terms of audience, then these prejudices have to be broken down.

Perhaps it's not even the fault of the majority of games which use sex that the rest get labelled in the same bin by potential audiences...

I just feel that games which actively encourage excessive sexual themes will always be held up as a typical example of gaming by those who dislike it, and aren't familiar with it.

While, games such as GTA revel with being thrust into the spotlight, encouraging people to question and examine the role that violence plays within videogaming, the likes of DOAXVB do something different.

They turn people away.

I know a few of you don't have a problem with this thing. You like playing games and don't give a **** about what anyone thinks of your hobby.

However, some of us know, even if we impress non-gamers with the likes of Ico, Rez, Halo, Frequency, Shenmue, Samba, Super Monkey Ball, Silent Hill, Orta...

As soon they see something like DOAXVB, all that goes out of the window.

The 'sad-lonely-unhygenic-masturbating-male-without-a-girlfriend-gamer' tag generally comes into play.

It doesn't matter how DOAXVB's use of sex comes into context of the sport (which in contrast to Beach Spikers vastly exaggerates sexual innuendo), or even how it's sexual appeal is used in terms of a teasing asethetic...

There is a place for such games. But don't expect everyone to like it, or even agree with it.

And saying that you're not 'smart' if you don't is just plain offensive really, JRM.

[JRMacumber]

And saying that you're not 'smart' if you don't is just plain offensive really, JRM.

Sorry, gov. Perhaps I should have said "sane". Or, "moderate". Or "free-thinking." Or "of the same frame of mind as myself." If "smart" is offensive, then I welcome you to substitute that word for anything I've listed above that makes you happier. I do not try to offend, but I also don't feel that this is an issue. Maybe you don't think I'm "smart" or whatever else because of my stance on it. You're free to do so.

Oh, and chalk me up as one who could give a crap what anyone else thinks of my hobby. I do not mind T&A in games, just as I don't mind it in movies, just as I don't mind it in magazine, just as I don't mind it in comics, or described in books. There isn't any hobby or art genre in the world that doesn't have something some think is offensive or degrading or world-opinion-ruining. For some, it's Michael Bay. For others, it's Danielle Steele. For some of you, it's DOAXBV and BMX XXX. I don't see the reason why people get up in arms, and so when they do I tend to look at them rather skeptically. I mean, really, like I said before, if this is what you have to worry about, count yourself incredibly lucky.

Oh, and if a more formal and straight apology is required, let me know. Right now I'm in a bit of a snippy mood, so perhaps my wording in this isn't as contrite as some would like. I live to please.

[Chadruharazzeb]

Yeah, Michael Bay is TEH SUXX0R

[JRMacumber]

LOL. That's the spirit!