Sex in video games you say? Don’t mind if we do. Whether it’s Geralt and Yennifer on a stuffed unicorn, a gorgeous dancer in GTA, or a hapless blacksmith kicking the ‘ass’ in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, sex in video games is here to stay. We all owe a big debt to one developer who has been on a crusade for years: keeping games sexy (respectfully).
Brenda Romero, in addition to being an internationally successful game developer, speaker, and Fulbright scholar, is an outstanding anti-censorship advocate. She publicly suggests that adult situations definitely have a place in gaming. I mean, if we can see that a man has cut his head off, surely some elf breasts are not going to destroy our brains. She is also fully supportive of stronger rating systems and parental supervision of young gamers.
Romero made a splash in the gaming scene with the release of Playboy: The Mansion in 2005. It’s a sim game where you play as Hef and manage the magazine and the mansion. It’s a bit cheeky, but some of the mediocre reviews of the game took away points for not being quite porn. Guess they are Hustler fans. That’s right, Romero has been criticized by pearl cutters for bringing too much sex into gaming and by Randy gamers for not making the games more intense. You really can’t please everyone.
Romero pioneered ‘Sex & A gaming conference to discuss burning issues related to the adult side of gaming and the gaming industry in general. Her work to promote healthy and open attitudes towards sexuality in games is constantly at odds with the Puritanical backwater that is American discourse. And she’s not all talk either. She was the most prominent part of a collective resignation from the International Association of Game Developers. At a party thrown by the organization there were pretty erotica dancers who made many people present feel compelled to give their creepy uncle a big hug and a kiss on the lips. Not a great vibe for a work event. The take off sparked a conversation that continues to this day. Her work over the years is the nuanced, thoughtful approach we need to bring to the issues of sex in games. And this is really neither here nor there, but it’s a fun fact: she’s married to the guy who made DOOM and Wolfenstein.
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