Archive for the 'Editorial' Category

May 05 2009

World of Warcraft: Noblegarden, Sexy or Sexist?

Published by Chris under Editorial

From WoW Insider:

wow_noblegarden_bunny_ears We are nearing the end of Noblegarden, but haven’t discussed here at WoW Insider the most controversial part of the event: Shake your Bunny-Maker. For this achievement, you have to put bunny ears on one female of each race that is over Level 18.

The name and picture of that fictional album is undeniably sexist and degrading to women. But does that apply to the in-game actions of forcing bunny ears on appropriately "aged" females? Sutro at Feministing.com seems to think so (as do a few of our readers who wrote in about this topic). He calls this achievement "unconscionable", which is a pretty strong word.

Without a doubt, putting the ears only on female characters and having them be the equivalent of legal age to pose nude is a reference to Playboy. And Playboy, as most adults know, is a men’s magazine with naked women inside AKA smut or porn. Many people believe that all porn objectifies and is otherwise demeaning to women, even if considered tasteful as many consider Playboy to be.

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Apr 29 2009

Do Gays Not Exist in Bioware’s Star Wars?

Published by Chris under Editorial, News

From The Escapist:

Controversy flared on Bioware’s Star Wars: The Old Republic forums after the words "homosexual," "gay," and "lesbian" were auto-censored, and a moderator insisted that those terms did "not exist in Star Wars."

The story as we understand it, thus far: Players on the official Star Wars: The Old Republic community forums began to discuss how Bioware’s upcoming Star Wars MMO – and its playerbase – would handle same-sex relationships. As more and more threads started popping up about the issue, the discussion grew more heated. Eventually, forum moderators began locking the discussions.

Here’s Penny-Arcade funny take on the subject:

penny-arcade_starwars_homosexuality

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Apr 29 2009

The Role of Female Characters in Video Games

Published by Chris under Editorial

From Kombo:

princesspeachforarticleonkombo I would like to slide this disclaimer out in front of you readers just so that I can quell any early senses of anger before we proceed. I may say some things here and there that place the female sex and gender into a position that’s well below the politically correct norm. I want you to know that while I may be using these viewpoints and positions in order to further prove my argument, I know as a human being and a member of society that women are equal to men. My goal with this article is to dismantle the accepted image of females in video games and educate those that may look at their typical portrayal as normal and commonplace.

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Apr 20 2009

A Geek Love Story (in Second Life)

Published by Chris under Editorial

 

From newsweek.com:

second_life_loveLillie and Hawkins met four years ago atop a waterfall overlooking a lush green valley—the kind of magical tableau you find only in romance novels, or in sophisticated virtual universes. The two had stumbled upon each other in Second Life, the 3-D computer world where nearly a million people log in regularly, communicating via digital representations of themselves, or avatars. Hawkins’s avatar was tall (very tall: 7 feet 8), with darkened eyes and a towering white Mohawk. But it was his boots that caught Lillie’s eye: black, ornamented, dazzling. "The most intricate boots I’d ever seen," she says. Lillie, whose own avatar is porcelain-skinned, with white or black hair depending on her mood, was thunderstruck. "Heart Wishbringer" (that’s her avatar’s name) and "Joe Stravinsky" (that’s his) spent the next three weeks online together, chatting for hours via IM. Then, before they’d ever seen or heard each other’s real voices, they got "married" in Second Life, like 43,000 other couples, typing their vows while their avatars stood atop the waterfall where they first met. Then Heart and Joe stripped down to their naked digital bodies and swam in the crisp pool of water below.

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Apr 20 2009

22 Memorable Nude Gaming Moments

Published by Chris under Editorial

From gameplayer.com.au

An older article, but still a good collection of games. Enjoy!

tombraider_censored Warning: the following article includes graphic depictions of naked bodies that feature genitals that you yourself may already own and operate. That said, you may also become exposed to a different set of genitals which may be attached to your significant other – we know they look unfamiliar and strange, but don’t panic. Also, in some cases these videos will feature (crude) simulated sexual intercourse, and as a result, this article should not be viewed by anyone… anywhere… ever.

Lifesaving, litigation avoiding forewarning aside, how did this article ever get thought up? Quite innocently, actually. You see, we were happily playing the newly released DLC GTA Lost and Damned  when we were quite suddenly, quite deliberately, slapped in the face by a polygonal penis (metaphorically). We’ll show you a video of that particular incident in a second, just be patient.

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Apr 18 2009

Nudity can’t make a bad game good

Published by Chris under Editorial

From news.cnet.com:

Godfather_II It wasn’t the first time a woman has been shown nude or partially nude in a video game. Nudity in gaming dates back all the way to the Atari 2600 when Mystique, a "Swedish Erotica" video game developer, started making adult titles for the console.

Since then, nudity of some kind (breasts, buttocks, or full frontal), has remained an infrequent occurrence in the industry. The vast majority of games containing nudity have been released on the PC, but some titles have found their way to consoles (here’s a full list).

So, The Godfather II isn’t unique. But nudity played an important role in this game. In fact, it was its only memorable feature.

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