Poll: Sexual content in games

Jaygee02

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May 21, 2009
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Not sure if it's a quirk of society or what, but articles like this http://videogamesrepublic.com/?p=6141 got me wondering; why is (at some times rather graphic) violence and themes like drug dealing, prostitution etc ok in games, but show a bare leg and imply sex and everyone gets all worked up?

A good example is the whole hot coffee thing a few years back in GTA... in a game like that, is something only accessible by codes/mods anyway really offensive compared to the rest of the content?

Note I'm not saying every game needs more pr0n, but is it an issue being blown out of proportion by media, or are people just more desensitised to violence and killing than other things?
 

Halfbreed13

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Dragon Age and Mass Effect pull it off respectively and tastefully. I do however get annoyed with games like ASS BLASTER 25!!!111!11 where the game suffers for sex.
 

RemSaverem

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It's the american mentality. Historically, we're more okay with Violence and less ok with sex, Europeans are more okay with sex, less ok with violence.
Frankly, I'm sick of being able to blow the hell out of people with increasingly graphic depictions of the results, but not being able to see mature sexual relationships (or even mature romantic relationships) represented in my games.
Video games can barely get away with what they show in most daytime TV. That's just wrong. We need to break away from the "games are for kids" mentality.
 

SquirrelPants

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Halfbreed13 said:
Dragon Age and Mass Effect pull it off respectively and tastefully. I do however get annoyed with games like ASS BLASTER 25!!!111!11 where the game suffers for sex.
Basically that. When it fits in, and there is a lot of emotion, and the characters involved are really in love, it's good. Especially when the scene itself is tasteful, as in Mass Effect.
 

Canadamus Prime

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Jun 17, 2009
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The same as in movies, if it's done tastefully and is appropriate to the story then fine, but if it's just thrown in there for shock value and has no real relevance then I have a problem with that.
 

Dragon_of_red

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Its exactly the opposite in music videos, you can have half naked people walking around dancing VERY suggestively, but the second one has violence it gets banned, its stupid.

But it doesn't matter in video games, they usually have warnings on the box and in the booklet and stuff. So it doesnt bother me, as long as its tasteful.
 

ae86gamer

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Halfbreed13 said:
Dragon Age and Mass Effect pull it off respectively and tastefully. I do however get annoyed with games like ASS BLASTER 25!!!111!11 where the game suffers for sex.
Basically this.

Just like with any art form it has to be done tastefully or else its just stupid and tacky.
 

Jaygee02

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Yeah it has to be tasteful and actually fit in. I hate where they throw in romance awkwardly just so it's there (like in Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy)
 

Hazy

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Sex is a completely normal and beautiful act of human nature, and if developers can find a way to work it into forms of media (In this case, Games) without being gratuitous, then I am all for it. Just as long as they don't overdo it for the sake of overdoing it.
 

QSiv

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If it fits in, the it helps the game story evolve, if it's random, then better not put it there.
 

APPCRASH

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I can't take games seriously if they have sex in it. I played Mass Effect as a female character JUST to have lesbian sex. Why? Because I can, and it was there.
 

BoxCutter

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I've written a paper on this subject. If a game wants to use sex as a tool to progress two characters relationships in a story why is it such a big deal? They do it in films. When two characters who you love, whether it be because of the story or how awesome they are, begin to show signs of affection towards one another why is it that a video game writer cannot have that mutual affection turn into something? It has never made sense to me, sex is a natural human act that arises when general affection and (more frequently I hope) when the feeling of love arises. This taboo that society has with sex needs to stop. Its turning into thirteen year old boys hoping on the internet watching exaggerated forms of human sexuality and then they carry that over into the real world because that's how they view sex, instead of their parents sitting down and talking about what the act of sex really is with them they have to resort to pr0n. And then these sort of ridiculous "controversial" issues arise.

If the sex is tastefully done in order to further an element of the story, there is no problem in my mind with it. The moment we have sex sims in serious story driven video games is where I draw the line though.


EDIT:

Kuropan said:
but as long as the game itself isn't focused solely on sex, why are we worrying about it? Games have a Mature rating for a reason, why not use it?
This

and

RemSaverem said:
I keep seeing the same argument come up. "If it fits in the story and its done tastefully and it fits certain criteria, then I might be okay with it...."

In a mature game, what's the problem with showing a mature relationship? Do you hold your "R" rated movies to the same standard? "If the kiss between Trinity and Neo is done tastefully and furthers the story then i suppose its okay, but Neo checking out the hot girl in the red dress is just gratuitous..."

I'm not saying I want porn in my video games, I just don't like double standards. People have sex. It's what they do. They have sex in various ways and for various reasons. I agree with the previous statement that sex minigames are pushing it (to a degree) only because they have not yet been done to a point where they don't feel like they're done just because they can be.
But I'm sick of the Disney representation of human sexuality, where woefully underdressed female hero has her sexuality flaunted on the box cover and throughout the game, and then _MAYBE_ gets a chaste kiss from Mr. Testosterone hero.

I LIKED the scene in Farenheit/Indigo Prophecy. Why? Because you had two characters who thought the world was going to end, that everyone was going to die (well, one of them had, but that's beside the point), so what do they do? A life-affirming activity. Something that feels good and reminds them of the closeness of human relationships, of what they're fighting for. That's not gratuitous, that fits right in with the story. If you saw it in a movie you'd react differently.

I'd like to see the "Mature" label live up to its name.
Win
 

ShadeOfRed

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Jan 20, 2008
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Well, it's already in there, what can you do? Sex in games is just fine, even if it's the sole purpose of the game. At least it knows what it's supposed to be.
 

Kuropan

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Dec 13, 2008
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Sex in games isn't my thing, but as long as the game itself isn't focused solely on sex, why are we worrying about it? Games have a Mature rating for a reason, why not use it?
 

Omikron009

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May 22, 2009
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It's fine as long as it doesn't feel forced, or put in for the shock value. Also if it's too explicit it would be creepy. Japan does not know how to implement sex in games.
 

bob-2000

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If it fits in nicely, then I totally dig it, but if it's put in there for the sake of itself, i don't like it.
If i really want sex in games, i'll just use the internet.
 

Laura.

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May 30, 2009
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Yup, as many have said before me, it's ok if it fits the story. It can really empower relationships between characters and make them more believable and deep. Of course you need an M rating for such thing, but that's the point... mature plots for mature audiences.
 

RemSaverem

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I keep seeing the same argument come up. "If it fits in the story and its done tastefully and it fits certain criteria, then I might be okay with it...."

In a mature game, what's the problem with showing a mature relationship? Do you hold your "R" rated movies to the same standard? "If the kiss between Trinity and Neo is done tastefully and furthers the story then i suppose its okay, but Neo checking out the hot girl in the red dress is just gratuitous..."

I'm not saying I want porn in my video games, I just don't like double standards. People have sex. It's what they do. They have sex in various ways and for various reasons. I agree with the previous statement that sex minigames are pushing it (to a degree) only because they have not yet been done to a point where they don't feel like they're done just because they can be.
But I'm sick of the Disney representation of human sexuality, where woefully underdressed female hero has her sexuality flaunted on the box cover and throughout the game, and then _MAYBE_ gets a chaste kiss from Mr. Testosterone hero.

I LIKED the scene in Farenheit/Indigo Prophecy. Why? Because you had two characters who thought the world was going to end, that everyone was going to die (well, one of them had, but that's beside the point), so what do they do? A life-affirming activity. Something that feels good and reminds them of the closeness of human relationships, of what they're fighting for. That's not gratuitous, that fits right in with the story. If you saw it in a movie you'd react differently.

I'd like to see the "Mature" label live up to its name.
 

KhakiHat

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Dec 28, 2008
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As said before, if it fits, ill just look away or skip entirely, 'cept in the case of X style games (X-Blades, XXX motocross; all shall be torched). Such use insults me as a man: it tears my moral self apart with the strength of the animal, a situation that me and my faith have no room for. Give me a Do Not Disturb Sign moment or a morning after, just don't try to sell me your wares with sex.