“Sex in Video Games” @ SxSW

March 21, 2006
JACKSONWEST

While the rest of Team Gawker was busy explaining web technology and looking for techie gossip at SxSW in Austin last week, we here at Fleshbot spent our time trying to scare up some tail ... er, of the digital variety, that is. Thanks to the friendly folks at the "Sex in Video Games" panel moderated by Clickable Culture's Tony Walsh, we came away with more interactive sex tips and resources than you can shake a joystick at. After the jump, read our summary of the past and future of in-game sex as discussed by some of the experts in the field, and get sticky via a selection of links to sexy games you can play today.- J. West

Thumbnail: The Making of a Post Six Grrrl (dragonscoveherald.com)

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For you kids (and parents) who think it all started with Grand Theft Auto's Hot Coffee mod, maybe you haven't been paying much attention to sexy gaming over the years. As Kyle Machulis of Slashdong and MMOrgy pointed out, sexy games have been around since the first Commodore 64. Text-based classics like Infocom's Leather Goddesses of Phobos and graphical adventures Sierra's Leisure Suit Larry (later remade into a console version) did their fair share of titillation before 3D rendering was even possible on a home computer.

But better graphics and online play aren't the only trend driving the recent explosion in sexy titles. As Julianne Greer of game culture mag The Escapist (which will be devoting their May issue to the topic) pointed out, "The industry is growing up, [and] the people who are making the games are growing up." Republik's Spend the Night (above) is an example of a title that's looking to be more mature in its treatment of sexuality, especially since its goal, according to developer Glennis McClellan, is to cater to a market underserved by games in general: women (or, more precisely, those women who are turned off by some of the harder-edged sexuality in games like Second Life). By putting relationships before sex, it's a smart strategy in luring more women online ...where you can bet the men will be sure to follow.

McClellan comes from an interesting background, having previously worked on titles like "The Princess Diaries" and "Chronicles of Narnia" for Disney. "We're really interested in women and what women want." Many of the games "features" revolve around locking players into their characters so that Spend the Night doesn't end up resembling the gender-bending, fetish fantasy free-for-all that, say, Second Life has become known for. While Spend the Night isn't necessarily meant to be a dating venue, McClellan admits that users will probably find ways to make it happen.

The user ingenuity aspect of Second Life dovetails into another theme in the discussion—what Maschulis calls "emergent sex", or game sexuality not originally intended by the developers. As Greer explained, "It's more been play creation and hacking-in ways to have sex." Hacks to create nude characters for The Sims Online and World of Warcraft (though some don't need the additional stimulation) are good examples. With its open format and encouraging attitude toward community development of new functionality, Second Life has become a dream world of a sexual playground. Mark Wallace's Second Life Herald covers the "cyber love" scene and introduced us to the "Post Six Grrrls," avatar pinups from in-game smut mag Players Magazine. (And let's not forget about Slutster.)

When somebody from the audience asked McClellan if she though prostituion might appear in Spend the Night (as it has in Second Life, among other games), Wallace said that there'd be no way to engineer it out of a virtual world; when McClellan wondered how it might be accomplished without an in-game economy, Wallace quipped, "Via PayPal!" (McClellan shot back, "Maybe that's another business model.") But as Maschulis demonstrated with his many hacked devices, the real problem in terms of bringing the feel of sex home to gamers was the interface. "What sort of interface is going to make someone comfortable enough to fuck their computer?"

And that, friends, is the question Fleshbot will be tirelessly looking to answer. Stay tuned.

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