Sex in RPG's and why it fails.

[migo]

Personally, I'd rather they just imply sex. Have the screen fade to black and then a discussion afterward. Or just not have sex in the game. P3 and P4 let you date and fall in love with a character without sex. It always seemed awkward and a little juvenile to have two 3-d models make love.

Well, in GoW 3 they had the only non-tedious use of QTEs for having sex with Aphrodite.

 

[migo]

Whenever I see sex in a game I think, "Wow, [game developers], really?" It's really kind of juvenile.

But how is sex juvenile? Sure it's in a game. But do we call paintings with nudity (etc) juvenile?

Anywho

Nope, I call it porn. So, it boils down to whether or not you thing porn is juvenile... The answer is yes, it is.

So you think only kids should be involved with sex, and once you're an adult you become chaste???

 

[katsumoto03]

Whenever I see sex in a game I think, "Wow, [game developers], really?" It's really kind of juvenile.

But how is sex juvenile? Sure it's in a game. But do we call paintings with nudity (etc) juvenile?

Anywho

Nope, I call it porn. So, it boils down to whether or not you thing porn is juvenile... The answer is yes, it is.

So you think only kids should be involved with sex, and once you're an adult you become chaste???

(Lighthearted exaggeration)
Isn't that how it usually works?

 

[Vault101]

As a 16 year old.

It offends me that developers think they can stick boobs in a game, and every teenage boy from miles around will come and buy it.

Sex is used as a gimic. That's not the way real sex is. It is a continuation of a relationship, not 30 seconds of dry humping and moaning.

well it depends on how its handled/presented even regardless of how "uncanny" you find it, like the first Mass effect 1 or even 2 as oposed to God of war,

even with dragon age, you know their intentions were good even if the execution may not have been that great,

I think I tried to romance Alistair then zevran but that didnt work, though due to the plot I got the pleasure of watching him and morrigan doing it (if you could call it that) but I need to replay anyway

I remember the first time I went into this building, I thourght it was a tevern or somthing, then the lady askes "do you want to see the men or the ladies" ummmm the men I supose, so theres a bunch of men lined up....I go and choose an elf and then oh look we are in our underware? and then My charahcter JUMPS on him...screen goes black and what in gods name am I hearing?....yeah that was pretty funny, the brothel part of the game I supose is just a bit of fun

anyway I dont have a problem with the sex stuff as long as the intentions are not shameless fanservice and its not like you HAVE to do anything sex related in Dragon age thats the beaty of it...its not shoved in your face

I dont know many games to do that other than Bioware

 

[The Last Gaijin]

To be honest this isn't going to be a developers main priority so they likely wouldn't spend time on it but it could work out I guess.

 

[Vault101]

I guess I'm one of the few people who actually liked the romance options in DA:O. Maybe because I primarily focused on Alistair (I have a weakness for hot guys with English accents, ok?), and his humor always seemed to make up for the intrinsic weakness of video game sex. Yes, it bothered me a little that they kept their small clothes on (and one day, I will play the computer version with the appropriate mods), but overall, I personally found the sex scenes to be decent.

Then again, I haven't played Mass Effect (yet; still a very new gamer here), so I have no real basis for comparison. But as compared to many novels and movies that are popular these days, the PC/NPC relationships felt decent. Especially since I had to work so bloody hard to find the appropriate gifts for the right people in my first playthrough; that made it feel special when I could give it to them and hear the reaction.

I tried with aliatair too kinda....I didnt really manage to romance anyone I think that was due to the plot, I got treated to him and morrigan doing it *shudder* yeah sucks for my charachter

but I supose there was that incident at the brothel that just kinda happened, I didnt realise it was a borthel untill I saw my warden launch herslef at a man in her underware then the screen went balck and god knows what I was hearing

 

[s0denone]

"I think that programmers are far away from being able to create a simulation of a realistic sexual encounter"?
No. I think programmers of all kinds could make such a simulation.

It is just that they don't want to.
Why? Well, for one, there are such simulators. Just google "3D Sex Game" or something to the like. Other than those games, however, games have no reason to feature explicit sex scenes.

I, for one, do NOT want sex in any way shape or form, in my games. I think it is simply explicit(for the sake of being explicit) and completely unneeded.
I don't play DA:O to romance characters either, so maybe that influences my opinion.

I say people actively looking for sex and romance in games should probably hit up "Dating Sim", "Sex Sim" or the aforementioned "3D Sex Game" on google - It will satisfy all your needs, I'm sure.

EDIT:
To make it clear: Romances can be fun and good (although the vast majority aren't), but I feel (the depiction of) sex in a game is contrived and meaningless.

 

[Vault101]

I hate to seem like an attention seeker here as I posted a note on this just earlier, but don't slander Bioware and their romantic sub-plots until you play Baldur's Gate II. It's definitely the epitome example of HOW to use sex in a game.
Also, I happened to find the romantic plot for Bastilla in KOTOR very sweet, despite the sex. You really did feel the characters grow closer to each other, and when Bastilla then defeccted to the dark side, you could use your previous relationship to bring her back to see the light again, so to say.

I haven't played KOTOR but I didnt think there would be a "sex scene" was there? because I cant imagine it would have come out well with the graphics at the time

 

[GotMalkAvian]

OP, I have to agree with you. I'd like to see interactive love scenes used as another storytelling tool in games (more than just the way they work in God of War; maybe more like the Paragon/Renegade actions in Mass Effect 2). However, sex in games is still a very touchy issue, and developers are barely willing to push the envelope as far as the scenes in Dragon Age.

Look at the controversy over the sex scenes in the original Mass Effect. Now look at the scenes in Dragon Age and Mass Effect 2. It's obvious that the controversy over ME1 made BioWare tone things down quite a bit.

Unfortunately, I think gamers need to mature as a group before sex scenes in games can move further. Look at the sales numbers for a game like Heavy Rain compared with CoD: Black Ops.