Can somone explain this "booth babe" thing to me?

[Phoenix Arrow]

You really need this explained?
Men like tits. It's nothing to do with games, it's the same thing they do at other shows, on billboards and newsagents usually employ young girls on checkouts. At least the place I used to work did, but then the owner was a pervert. Point is, it's nothing to do with stereotyping gamers, it's stereotyping men.
It's harmless enough really, they get paid well to do it.

 

[nicksdrago0]

I actually find them really awkward, I would just prefer a straight up pitch rather some girls trying to be all cutsey cutesy. Something about it just seems...off.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

I really don't care either way having them there or not is not going to make gaming anymore or less mature.

 

[stormcrow5]

Its be around for awile, not just Booth babes but even boat shows and car shows any big event pretty much will have some attractive gals to draw attention. I even know a few girls that like to see them strangely

 

[diddykonger]

two words for you buddy.....sex sells!

 

[Dags90]

I have to wonder why booth boys or booth hunks or whatever isn't a thing, though. Can you imagine the mad cash you would get.
It'd be like selling ice-cream in a desert.

"Booth boys" and "booth hunks" brings up a surprisingly small amount of gay pornography on an image search. Google, I am disappoint.

I'd wholly endorse the idea, it's not like games aren't already busting at the seams with meaty pecs and rippling abs.

 

[Brutal Peanut]

Game cons: This actually seems to be happening less then you think. I had gone to Blizzcon and I only actually saw two or three 'Booth Babes' and they weren't all humongous tits and chain-mail thongs. I saw more scantily clad cosplay ladies come in from the street playing Harpies from World of Warcraft, that usually requires string bikinis with carefully placed patches of feathers, and not much else.

My favorite Booth Babe was this lovely lady playing Sarah Kerrigan (I assume).

They had more regularly dressed women in jeans, black polo shirts with logos, and sneakers talking with people, handing out fliers and buttons. Whether you found them attractive or not, is up for you to decide I guess.

But being attractive and smiley is the point of the woman being hired in the first place, whether it's for dressing up as a character from the game, or just being the person behind the booth. It's to lure people over with a nice smiling pretty face, and then try to sell them something, or sign them up for something. If this was a convention based around a more female perspective, would you have been offended if they used handsome men to sit and talk with people at the booths? Probably not. This also just isn't for cons or auto-shows - I've seen grocery stores with nothing but smiley slim female cashiers. It did get more attention and not just from men. Most advertisers find that approaching smiling female salespeople, especially attractive ones, can be easier for a majority of customers and they don't even have to be dressed 'sexy' - this isn't a new concept.

As a woman am I offended by it? Not really. Takes more then a woman standing around in what is essentially a bikini to offend me, and I like looking at a pretty woman as much as anyone else, but I'm not going to buy anything, so jokes on them. My husband is the funny one. He likes to act like he isn't looking at them, and sometimes it looks like he is going to strain his eyes right out of his head trying to catch glimpses. I usually manually turn his head towards her and then say "There we go, doesn't that feel better?" lol

 

[Mr. Google]

It simply boils down to sex sells.

Booth babes bring people's attention to their booths. The more people which pay attention to the booth, the more people which may talk about the content of that booth.

And, let's face it; many people are still under the false impression that the vast majority of gamers are male. So, booth dudes don't exist --to my knowledge-- to bring in the female gamer/reporters.

False impression? I didnt realize it was a false impression that video games were mostly male. I will guarantee that over 50% of games are male. Which in turn makes it a majority.

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

however to be honest I dont feel right condemning it for some reason (probably because I hate coming off as a angrey feminiest) and I guess since I like a medium that...has a somwhat "imature" aspect to it..it feels a little hypocritical

Yeah I get the impression that I'm being somewhat of spoilsport but I can't really change how I feel and react to something. It's not really on a concious level it just makes me feel uncomfortable.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I find it amusing that there was this typo:

Every copy of The Saboteur ships with a special card that contains a code to turn on The Midnight Show, which removes the bras and pasties from some of the dancers in the Belle du Nuit.

Nothing more erotic than a stripper taking her pasties off... (though to be fair, I'd imagine they make terrible underwear...)

It's not a typo. The little things covering her nipples are called pasties. I had to find a photo that wasn't too adult.

Spoiler

 

[SckizoBoy]

Don't worry, I've also only known these as "nipple stickers".

Same, I know what they are... but this is the first I've seen them referred to as 'pasties'... a word that I typically associate with 'satisfying if a bit bland a lunch' and 'ginsters'...(!)

It's not a typo. The little things covering her nipples are called pasties. I had to find a photo that wasn't too adult.

Yah, was 'enlightened' of its contextual definition here earlier... first time I'd heard them referred as such. -_-

Oh, the joy of homonyms in English...

 

[Realitycrash]

Guys are pathetic, that's pretty much it. I know you think "No, really. People can't be THAT stupid, right?" yet, it works. For pretty much anything.

 

[Colour Scientist]

Yah, was 'enlightened' of its contextual definition here earlier... first time I'd heard them referred as such. -_-

Oh, the joy of homonyms in English...

Maybe there are strippers who use the other kind as underwear but that's probably for a very niche market.

 

[SckizoBoy]

Maybe there are strippers who use the other kind as underwear but that's probably for a very niche market.

Hmmm... I can't imagine much by way of dancing acrobatics without a rapid rate of disintegration (of one sort or another)...(!) =P

 

[tstilwell]

I know the ancient adage that sex sells, but I have always found it distasteful. I have thought the same when it is used as car shows, as well. Yes, both industries are dominated by males, but that is unfortunate if car manufacturers and game producers think so little of their consumers that they believe that the only way to attract their attention is to flash a woman's breasts at them. When I go shopping of a car, I want to know about the car. What are its features, what is its horsepower, what is the gas milage, etc etc. I don't go to a car because a pretty girl is standing next to it. The same it true about video gaming. I want to know the mechanics, the gameplay, the storyline, the subject matter, etc etc. I don't want a game because a half-naked version of Bayonetta is smiling at me. Don't get me wrong: I think there is nothing more beautiful in nature than the female form. Maybe it was the way I was raised, but that just doesn't sell me. It is a tawdry parlor trick intended to impress pubestent teens. That might have been a good selling tactic when gaming was the realm of that demographic, but gaming has evolved and gamers who were kids when Super Mario Brothers came out are now in their late 20s/early 30s. They are married and with kids of their own. We want substance, not flash.

The continued practice debases us as gamers and does not show us in a good light to outsiders and our critics.

 

[DarthSka]

It's something that overall, I just respond with an, "eh." I know that most likely, they don't give a damn about the games they're advertising. I know I'm not going to get anything from them either, and personally, I'm fine with that. Things like that are something I'd prefer to get from my girlfriend.

 

[StBishop]

And no amount of breasts make a game better.

I disagree, The Saboteur Midnight Show.

I got that game second hand...so what exactally IS the midnight show?

anyway I supose I shouldnt think too much about a game thats opening shot is a pair of almost bare tits...its acutally kind of funny early on in the game when the charachters are captured/tortued by the natzis Im almost thinking

"hold on this is a Natzi base....whats that stripper doing there?...oh shes suposed to actually be a REAL natzi officer..could have fooled me"

and that english chick too....she would be arrested for showing that much cleavige (mabye just for wearing pants too)

Here you go. [http://www.gamesradar.com/f/the-saboteurs-nude-code-before-and-after/a-2009120314187321063]

[snipped image]
What the fuck were they thinking!?
NUDE DLC!?

....
This is the kind of shit that makes me lose hope in humanity.

It's actually a good idea. You can simply not download it if you don't want boobies in the game.

OT: Meh, if they could hire disembodied breasts I'm sure they would. I don't think it's a problem, and if it is a problem, it's not only gaming cons that have it.

 

[Belated]

Oh for Petesake. Be open-minded, people. If you've got a problem with scantily-clad beautiful women, I say you need to sort out your priorities. It doesn't matter if you're attracted to them or not. If you are, you have no reason to dislike them and every reason to like them. If you're not, let them be, because there's no need to ruin everybody else's fun with your complaints. I don't get pissed off about the half-naked dudes in Twilight. (Actually, I get pissed off about the bad writing in it.)

And no, liking scantily clad girls does not make one a "basement dwelling nerd" like several ignorant people have suggested. Liking scantily clad girls merely means you have a healthy libido, as evolution intended for you to have.(And the opposite is true for girls and half-naked men.) If evolution wants me to like attractive women, who am I to question it? Any straight men in this thread who claim booth babes only appeal to nerds, are lying through their teeth. You guys can deny it all you want, but I know you like them too.

And the fact is, most gamers still ARE male. It's not a stereotype, it's a statistic. There's a difference. Stereotypes are based on truth, while statistics are the truth. Tell you what. When I can join a random game in Halo Reach, and expect half of my teammates to be female, THEN I'll believe that gamers have an equal gender ratio. But by all means feel free to add booth hunks to any gaming convention. I think that's a great idea too. Sexuality doesn't have to be such a personal, taboo thing.

 

[The Almighty Aardvark]

As someone who's been to E3, I can tell you first hand that it does get you to check out games that you otherwise would not give the time of day. Not even because I'm some socially depraved nerd who freaks out around boobies, but rather because a really hot girl with a giant scythe in full bondage gear naturally evokes curiosity. I mean there is a certain level of eye magnetism involved, and that's probably most of it, but that's not really enough to actually pay attention to what she's selling unless it's something you're already interested in. If her slut costume is elaborate and confusing enough though it'll definitely spark your interest.

If it's just a matter of getting attention, my curiosity would be equally evoked if it was a girl/guy with a giant scythe and an awesome costume. Actually, no, I would be much MORE interested. Not to mention that I wouldn't feel awkward about going to the stand.

If you haven't noticed, I'm not a fan of Booth Babes. It's a really shallow and cheap way of trying to grab attention. Plus I'm sure it does a lot to deter many clothed, female gamers who might otherwise come to the stand, people I'd much rather talk to.

 

[Lexodus]

What part of 'boobs' does not make sense to you?