Poll: Does sex actually sell in video games?

[TPiddy]

if done tastefully

I disagree. I think the less tastefully, and more explicit, the more effective it is. If a game could get away with full interactive porn, it would blow the hell out of Halo in terms of sales.

But with current rating systems, I think the best you can hope for is the "Mass Effect" effect (stupid redundant naming). It can get people to try the game out. But if the game sucks (figuratively, not literally ) it won't matter how much sex you try to cram into it, word will get out that it's a bad game and not worth the 2 seconds of bare ass, and sales will suffer.

I suppose there is a bit of a publicity aspect to it, but I feel sorry for anyone who tried Mass Effect just for the sex scene.... considering you had to complete the majority of the game to even see it. That's a lot of time invested in something just for 2 seconds of digital alien ass.

 

[TPiddy]

Sadly yes, due to the age of gaming's core demographic.

Some companies abuse it as an easy way to sell a game, some don't. As to your example, despite never exactly having incredible gameplay Tomb Raider kept going for TEN games with no sign of stopping. Surely they wouldn't keep making them if they didn't turn a profit, right?

I'd say the same for the Dead or Alive series (are they up to 4 now? 5?) but I shouldn't judge something I haven't played- it may actually have some substance buried beneath all that cleavage.

I suppose there's a bit of truth to the profitability aspect of it. I guess that's why most games that use sex as a selling point know that they won't have a lot of sales so they have to cut production costs by skimping on other parts of the game, like gameplay.

 

[Slash Dementia]

Sadly, it helps sales. It has nothing to do in my purchases, though.

 

[Flour]

Games that are purely based on sex sell quite well. You wouldn't find the games next to Halo3, but rather in a corner where all the adult-only things are located.

 

[GloatingSwine]

Yes.

The only problem with games is that they don't have enough sex in them. Quite frankly, sex is an inextricable part of humanity, and every single other medium of fiction gets to explore and discuss this.

Games don't. And they don't because of people like you who get all giggly over it.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

When I think of the most popular games, like Halo, Gears, Metal Gear, Little Big Planet, etc.... there's no sex at all in them.

One could argue about Metal Gear.

You can see Meryl in her undies on several occasions in MGS. You have the option of looking down female characters skirts and cleavage during cutscenes in MGS4. There's also the beauty form of the B&B unit. And let's not forget EVA from MGS3 with her terrific twosome and some suggestive cutscenes, including one pretty funny one.

It's not outright hardcore sex, but still...

Oh, and about Halo, two words: Cortana porn.

 

[Crossborder]

It doesn't make me want to buy a game more, but i can imagine that it does help sell it to some people.

 

[Da_Schwartz]

Sex sells everything..in case you haven't noticed. You should go outside more often.

Oh and as far as MGS goes, I saw the option of snake looking down shirts a chartacter element, almost dirty old man not giving an F, one of the boys, a true soldier. I didn't think of it as some random perv moment, not like that whole naked snake level >.< I was more liek hey if i was snake, i'd of done the same thing.

 

[TPiddy]

Yes.

The only problem with games is that they don't have enough sex in them. Quite frankly, sex is an inextricable part of humanity, and every single other medium of fiction gets to explore and discuss this.

Games don't. And they don't because of people like you who get all giggly over it.

I don't get giggly over it at all... I just don't see a point in it... when I'm trying to save the world I don't need a pair of tits in my face. As a previous poster pointed out, when done properly, like say with love interests and storylines and such, I welcome it as an expected part of a relationship / character development.

The Ninja Gaiden Sigma six axis boob jiggle shit would just turn me off of the game, unless I heard something positive about it.

 

[TPiddy]

One could argue about Metal Gear.

You can see Meryl in her undies on several occasions in MGS. You have the option of looking down female characters skirts and cleavage during cutscenes in MGS4. There's also the beauty form of the B&B unit. And let's not forget EVA from MGS3 with her terrific twosome and some suggestive cutscenes, including one pretty funny one.

It's not outright hardcore sex, but still...

Oh, and about Halo, two words: Cortana porn.

Well, when you're looking for sex it's easy to find it, but really, none of those games have reputations built on sex.... none of the most popular games for any system do, as far as I can see.

 

[Sovvolf]

Possibly, there's a good few people who would buy a game just for sex... personally I'd say searching porn on the internet would be cheaper,easier and a lot less weird (Dude there polygons). I do wish we could see more of sex in computer games though, not out of some sick fetish but out of the fact that if we just kept putting it in games you'd have controversy at first and then people would just stop giving a shit.

Remember the banning on the first few violent games along with the controversy?, now look, there's barley a game out there were you don't kill at least one person. Viva Pinata even had killing in it. I think the sooner we start just throwing sex into games and the sooner people realise that no one gives a shit then the sooner video game writers don't have to worry about it being put into games, if they feel that it's a major part of the story then it's in if not then don't bother.

 

[Durahan2]

God too many repressed people to count haha.

Humans were built to eat, sleep, and reproduce. If it wasn't for sex humanity would have never have got to where it is today. Sex is beautiful, because it breaths new life into the world. But because I have a girl friend, a game based on sex completely is probably something I won't buy. But if it's added into lets say an RPG so you can have a greater feel for your character's relationships. Then by all means add it!

Sex will always sell, because it's one of our primal needs to reproduce. If sex games help stop rapists like porn does, then by all means make more. I'd rather have some basement dwelling masturbation addict then a rapist any day.

 

[GuerrillaClock]

It probably helps sales, but I don't care either way. I'm not going to dismiss a game as sick filth just because it has illegally large tits in it, but it's not the chief selling point for me either.

I don't understand all this moral hoity-toityness about sex as a marketing tool though. I mean, it's always been used! Why do you think there are no unattractive people in ads? Ask yourself this, if you wanted to buy an item, and there were two market stalls selling it at the same price, both right next to each other with one being staffed by an attractive woman (or man, I'm just speaking from a male perspective here) and the other staffed by an unattractive person, which one would you buy from. Of course, the majority of people would say they don't care, but deep down they would buy from the attractive woman 99 times out of 100. Why? Because as animals, we are attracted to other animals of the same species, and it just happens, and it's the reason why sex is the most effective marketing tool there is. The whole point of marketing is to appeal to as many people as possible, and fewer things are more universal than sex. It's not disgusting, it's not degrading, it's just showing us what the majority of people want to see, even if they don't openly admit it themselves.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Unfortunately it sure seems that way.

 

[CobaltBomber]

Not on its own. Unless the game is about sex.

 

[Keepitclean]

heeellllllllll no
i bought mass effect so i could effect some mass not erect my mass

 

[Bigeyez]

Do humans breath? Of course it does. Sex can sell just about anything. Slap a picture of some tits on a pile of dog crap and someone, somewhere will buy it.

 

[DrDeath3191]

It certainly doesn't hurt.

 

[feversk]

Sex sells. That's for sure. Especially in video game industry, where the target audience is still teenage boys and young adult males. But I definitely don't think that it's necessarily a bad thing, oh no. It just combines the two things I love about life.

But I don't think it has a huge impact on sales. Theoretically speaking, if some horny teenager wanted to play a game with a half-naked chick with big... blades in her hands, chances are that he would download it to avoid parental control. And he definitely wouldn't be able to buy an x-rated game.

 

[IamQ]

If you ask me, I'd say they hardly increase the sales. Sure it works, but nothing major, you probably won't notice it.