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JohnnyRancid
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I've been kind of wondering why game developers include sexual themes in games.

Violence, blood and gore has always been pounded down by critics as being too realistic and too life-like that it promotes murder and fighting and weapons. We all know at this point in our lives that it really doesn't, and the less cause and effect there is in games, such as being hit with a baseball bat would draw blood adds to the fun. Why that is, I don't know, but hitting foes with a baseball bat that doesn't draw blood seems a little boring to me.

But I remember encountering sexual themed gameplay the most when I started playing Duke Nukem around the age of 7. Girly posters and Strip clubs were a dime a dozen. It wasn't very attractive for me because I was still growing up, and even to this point in my life, playing that game on parental lock or not still has the same fun value.

Grand Theft Auto is the hot topic nowadays, some of the missions in the earlier games brought up the idea of sexy clubs and joints, but never really portrayed them as a part of the game. Then Grand Theft Auto Vice City became very controversial when it featured many women in extremely tight bikinis and swimwear, prostitution, and some missions involving a porno director and pornstar. Grand Theft Auto San Andreas swept video game critics off their feet once they found out that you could date girls and become intimate with them, and even having a sex minigame if you play it well enough.

Grand Theft Auto isn't the only one though. I did a search on the ESRB rating for sexual content and found an Endless list of games. Saints Row, The Sopranos: Road to Respect, Hitman Contracts, The Getaway, Critical Point, Shadow Warrior, Neverwinter Nights 2, Mass Effect, God of War, and way more.

I'm not being resistant to sex, I've had girlfriends and frequently visit porn sites, but I strongly prefer that it not be in my video games. I don't think there has ever been a game that would have been better if it had more hot babes taking off their tops and dancing around me. I don't know why game developers put it in their games, as it does not fuel anything fun but definitely keeping the controversy fire burning.
Old Post 05-29-08 22:58 #
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Richo Rosai
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Silent Hill 2

Also, some of my best and earliest fapping was done to videogames. Chun Li paused, Ulala in model-view upskirt mode, the Piantas in SM Sunshine...
Old Post 05-30-08 00:18 #
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Kid Airbag
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Leisure Suit Larry blew my mind when I was a kid.
Old Post 05-30-08 00:25 #
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leileilol
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You should play any of the DarkStalkers/VAMPIRE games
oddly, no controversy spurred out of that
but in the 90s it had nothing more than Animated Violence on their ESRB descriptors. There's much more than that.

Another topic of discussion is the f-word heard in so many new games lately, like needing to take civil dialogue down to a whole new level to compensate for their nu-metal halo-loving audience.
Old Post 05-30-08 00:34 #
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Captain Red
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Edit: Dammit! it was taken down. :(

Edit2: hosted here instead!

Last edited by Captain Red on 06-04-08 at 07:50
Old Post 05-30-08 02:34 #
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Death-Destiny
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The answer to this question is easy. Many people really like sexual themes, so the games sell more copies if there is sexual themes. More sex = more popular. More popular = more money. Therefore, more sex also = more money. I don't really find it detracting, but I tend to like games more with less sexuality in them. Especially in shooting games, the women would not go into danger with skimpy outfits on IRL, so it's more realistic without the sexuality. =/
Old Post 05-30-08 03:43 #
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Lüt
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Kid Airbag said:
Leisure Suit Larry blew my mind when I was a kid.
Ahaha, yes.

I still want to build one of those trams like in LSL6 I think it was.
Old Post 05-30-08 04:50 #
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Creaphis
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I'm not advocating sex in video games, but I think it's strange that people tend to be much more accepting of violence in video games than either sex or profanity.
Old Post 05-30-08 06:39 #
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Jello
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There are times when it's acceptable, and there are times when it's clearly there for ratings. Some games have scantily clad females running about because they're advertising to males, and sex sells. Some games, however use it, I believe as part of an adult theme. The GTA games I think fit this bill. They have copious amounts of violence, cursing, and sexual scenes. This seems fine, they are trying to obtain a certain level of merit that films have obtained. R rated movies have incorporated this for decades. It makes it more realistic and powerful, it incorporates all facets of human emotions, and sex is one of those. It just depends on how it's used, if it's there to immerse the player and enhance the atmosphere, then fine. If it's there for shits and giggles, then it seems tacked on. I've no real problem with sex, violence, or language in videogames, unless the game itself doesn't use these themes properly.
Old Post 05-30-08 07:19 #
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HWGuy
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Creaphis said:
I'm not advocating sex in video games, but I think it's strange that people tend to be much more accepting of violence in video games than either sex or profanity.
In the U.S. cultural mindset, there's a lot of repression concerning sex and its portrayal. There was the media frenzy over the Hot Coffee mod for GTA San Andreas. People freaked out over how it corrupts the children and whatnot. Of course, they forgot that the parents are supposed to raise their kids so that they can handle that kind of stuff or at least restrict it until they're old enough to understand and learn about it.

I think of sexual themes as similar to graphic violence in that both push against the boundaries of what the general population deems decent at the time of the game's release.
Old Post 05-30-08 08:54 #
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Siggi
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I don't see how sexual themes in games is any different to sexual themes in any other entertainment media.

However, I think the problem isn't the existence of such themes, but possibly the access. I know I played games like Duke Nukem 3D at a young age, and I don't believe it had any adverse effects on me then, but in reality had playing a game like Duke Nukem 3D effected me adversely in some way, considering most games have an appropriate age restriction, who's fault would that have been¿
Old Post 05-30-08 10:00 #
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Jodwin
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eroge
Old Post 05-30-08 10:42 #
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Janderson
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Why do they put sexual themes in literature and movies?
Old Post 05-30-08 11:00 #
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Lüt
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It can only be part of a massive international plot to annoy the hell out of me.
Old Post 05-30-08 11:05 #
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K!r4
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Or to rename you as 'Lüst'.
Old Post 05-30-08 11:22 #
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Shaikoten
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What is this sex thing and why are the kids so dang interested in it?! I was raised to be ashamed of my no-no parts like any other red blooded American, and look at me, I turned out OK. I mean there were those five murders because of my sexual insecurity, but those are no big deal, violence is cool and in line with our values system.
Old Post 05-30-08 12:51 #
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Csonicgo
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Richo Rosai said:
Silent Hill 2

Also, some of my best and earliest fapping was done to videogames. Chun Li paused, Ulala in model-view upskirt mode, the Piantas in SM Sunshine...


http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/9872/85969188es4.png

I can name a lot of videogames from my childhood that had no violence or sex in them- violence being as simple as a missile hitting a small configuration of yellow blocks resembling a ship-(there could be people on there oh no!!)
Pac-Man (Is eating a ghost violence? I don't know)
Activision Checkers (lol)
Pitfall!
Video Pinball (bumpers)
Super Breakout (bricks)
Asteroids(rocks)
Missile command (interceptions, not violence)
Plaque Attack! (hamburgers...)
Klax
Dragster (the only violence here is the ones you put against the joystick playing this game)
Decathlon (Ditto)


and many others. Of course there were "adult" games for the system I speak of but they were stupid and with a few hacks can be made completely harmless... well, except one.
Old Post 05-30-08 14:12 #
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alexz721
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I think sexual themes and violence should be present if they add to the gameplay. Take Soldier of Fortune. It's novelty was the violence. Aside from that, it was a mediocre FPS. The problem with sexual themes is that they don't often add to the gameplay (such as the XXX Doom wads for example). Someone brought up Leisure Suit Larry earlier. That's a great example of a game with sexual themes that do add to the gameplay and make it great fun.

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Old Post 05-30-08 16:13 #
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Enjay
ASK ME ABOUT FOOTBALL / STEAM / DEAD CELEBRITIES / THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT


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I think this was the first overtly sexual game I played

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cobra_...c_in_Cobra_City

Sub missions included clicking on appropriate parts of a manga-style picture of a female to excite the girl in the picture and allow you to progress to the next, increasingly nude picture until she finally "put out".
Old Post 05-30-08 17:51 #
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Creaphis
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Hentai games are way too much work for boring pornography.
Old Post 05-30-08 19:00 #
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Danarchy
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Personally I think there's too much violence and not enough sex in video games (or movies, or TV) these days. Though I don't like the typical American concept of sex that much either.

I remember Leisure Suit Larry. That's one of my mom's favorite games and I used to watch her play it all the time. That's where I learned what pimps and condoms were. My mom was happy to tell me all about that stuff. Ummm...yeah...
Old Post 05-30-08 19:28 #
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exp(x)
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I am in favor of more sex in video games.
Old Post 05-30-08 20:13 #
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Creaphis
I will deliberately take a contrary position just for the sake of writing incredibly long arguments


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I am in favor of more sex in general.
Old Post 05-30-08 21:23 #
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Snarboo
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Creaphis said:
I am in favor of more sex in general.
Aren't we all. :p
Old Post 05-30-08 21:25 #
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Haloless0320
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Richo Rosai said:
Silent Hill 2

Also, some of my best and earliest fapping was done to videogames. Chun Li paused, Ulala in model-view upskirt mode, the Piantas in SM Sunshine...


Don't forget Mai Shiranui from fatal fury and KOF
Old Post 05-31-08 02:44 #
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deathbringer
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uhhhhhhhhhh

IN B4 "lol who wants to see CGI boobiez get a g/f u tards/fags"

Anyway, sex in games is generally tame anyway, you don't even see anything. Back when i was making absurdly grandiose plans for my own GTA3-Style game to be made in some 3D game-making thing "coming out in 2005 at the latest", it was going to include prostitution where you could choose all sorts of positions and things, which calculated the cost and health restoration relative to that. You could also prostitute yourself and try and excite the client more so they'll give you a bigger tip... and of course you could also be a rent boy or do lesbian prostituting... with nudity and facials etc

BUT if the game does get made it'll be (completley, not even "block buildings") 2D and undoubtedly cut back massively because of some retarded bug that suddenly appears. So i'll just have to go for the "bouncing car" method.
Old Post 05-31-08 11:19 #
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Richo Rosai
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Haloless0320 said:


Don't forget Mai Shiranui from fatal fury and KOF


Thus the ellipses. If I were making a comprehensive list it might take all day.

That said, I've only played any of those games on Neo Geos (Neos Geo?), which I never owned, and I wasn't going to whip it out at the arcade...
Old Post 05-31-08 11:19 #
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JohnnyRancid
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Danarchy said:
Personally I think there's too much violence and not enough sex in video games (or movies, or TV) these days. Though I don't like the typical American concept of sex that much either.


exp(x)
I am in favor of more sex in video games.


Is that a joke? If not, why? I think it's pretty agreeable that simulating violence is pretty cool. But am I wrong to think that simulating sex is pretty shameful?

If people really want their video game sex, I don't mind games like Leisure suit Larry, and Adult Rated games, but the combination of violent games AND sex is stupid. Especially since it's gotten more and more intertwined over the years.

Death-Destiny
The answer to this question is easy. Many people really like sexual themes, so the games sell more copies if there is sexual themes. More sex = more popular. More popular = more money. Therefore, more sex also = more money.


That can't possibly be true. I've never once stepped into a store and bought a video game because it had a hot babe on it. I don't know if any of my friends had done that either. It just bothers me when it's in terribly unique games, especially Grand Theft Auto, which has no other (good) substitute, have to resort to adding more and more sexual content to their games. Especially when the game is called GRAND THEFT AUTO, the first thing that comes to mind is stolen vehicles, then crime, then police, then ways to handle the police. I fail to see where sex branches off from there.

I'd really prefer that games leave sex as a topic for people to go out and experience themselves. If violence went by that same rule, the world would be in some serious social unrest.

Janderson
Why do they put sexual themes in literature and movies?

If the movie is in fact, a porno, no problem. I was pretty aggravated when I saw more sexual content than violence in the latest Mike Myers Halloween movie. Sexual themes in Literature seems okay to me, since it requires people to use their imagination, so it's not really influencing the minds of young children if they read it. Unlike in video games and movies, where they do the imagining for you.
Old Post 05-31-08 18:20 #
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alexz721
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You're really just going by your own personal set of values and experiences. Some people think simulating violence is shameful and you don't. You happen to think simulating sex is shameful and some people don't. As long as people are responsible in differentiating between fantasy and reality (what can I say, I'm idealistic), I think we'll get by ok.

I guarantee you that sex sells. That's a basic marketing ploy. Sex appeal sells games, shampoos, videos, insurance, whatever. You may not be intrigued by it, but I'll bet you that a large demographic is. I bet that demographic is mostly adolescent boys, but hell, I still think a good portion of the game industry doesn't quite realize that the diversity of gamers has grown in recent years.

Personally, I'm tired of people being afraid of sex, putting it on some sacred pedestal, being ashamed of their bodies, calling it immoral. Sex is way better than violence. Don't get me wrong, I have a strange fascination with gore, especially when letting off some steam, but when it comes to sex vs. violence, sex wins hands-down. And act of pure pleasure against an act designed to injure or take somebody's life? Which would you choose? I don't particularly desire it in my games, since there are better avenues for it (say, a real woman for example), but I just think we as a culture need to seriously reevaluate ourselves when we reach the point where violence is more acceptable than sex.

As to the increased merging of sex and violence, I'll agree that there might be a bit of a problem there, but I don't think it's increased as much as you say.

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Old Post 05-31-08 19:25 #
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Danarchy
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JohnnyRancid said:
Is that a joke? If not, why? I think it's pretty agreeable that simulating violence is pretty cool. But am I wrong to think that simulating sex is pretty shameful?

I'm very serious. I hate violence. Violent movies make me physically ill and I don't like overly gory games either. It sickens me the amount that they even play on TV. On the other hand, sex is an act of love. So really when people try banning sex, I see it as some kind of hate against love. Then again, I'm probably never going to have sex, so my opinion may just be fucked up.
Old Post 05-31-08 23:19 #
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