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The making of an AoC pinup
Any gamer of discerning tastes will know that the December 2007 issue of Playboy magazine will feature video game heroines shucking their skivvies, and that includes the deadly Keaira, close ally to King Conan. This week's Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures Friday update talks all about creating a compelling character. Finally I get to learn why there's a girl on the cover of a game about Conan. First and foremost, Keaira is beautiful, and so the initial concepts of the character design are built on that premise. She went through many iterations until she finally became the lady you see before you. Click on through and read about all the work that went into the character that has become the face of AoC.
Playboy interviews Tim Schafer, among others
Don't worry: the designer and/or writer behind Psychonauts, Day of the Tentacle, and Secret of Monkey Island doesn't take his clothes off, but Tim Schafer does share some other interesting tidbits with Playboy, specifically concerning his entrance into the game industry, thoughts on sequelitis, and how getting turned down by Atari was one of the best things to ever happen to him.The interview with Schafer is part of a series of talks with game designers, which also includes Dave Jaffe, Alex Rigoupolos of Harmonix, and Sony Europe EVP Phil Harrison (who isn't actually a game designer, but we'll forgive Playboy for the lapse because they're trying so damn hard).
Playboy shows game character digi-boobs for 4th year
Further affirming our belief that the entire human race is doomed, Playboy is publishing the fourth in their series of annual "Girls of Gaming" pictorials. Just in case you're still considering picking the issue up (it's the December one) these are not real girls playing game characters (still dorky but not as creepy), these are digital versions of characters showing off their digital bathing suit areas (just creepy).Included this year are "Keaira" from Age of Conan, "Church & Black" from Clive Barker's Jericho, "Morenn" from The Witcher, "Yoko Retomoto" from Kane & Lynch, "A'Kanna" from Conan, "Sarah Morrison" from Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa and "Whyareyou Stillreadingthislist" from Please Get Your Life Together.
Playboy teams with Quattro Wireless for mobile venture
Thankfully, the previous rumors of a Playboy MVNO have been laid to rest (at least momentarily), but that hasn't stopped Playboy Enterprises from teaming up with Quattro Wireless "to provide Playboy content on mobile phones." Reportedly, "users of the mobile site will be able to view non-nude photos of Playboy playmates and read their personal interviews," and the phone-friendly site will also lead to music, game and book reviews along with access to the Playboy Advisor advice column. The content from the standard website is synced regularly to the mobile outlet through Quattro's GetMobile platform, and as expected, you'll find lots of targeted advertisements cluttering your diminutive screen should you chose to visit.[Via SlashPhone]
Playboy plotting cellphone entry strategy?
We're as tired as anyone with MVNO madness in the U.S., and the market reality is that there just isn't enough demand for too many cellphone brands. We suspect Amp'd Mobile and ESPN Mobile kinda know about this. Anyway, is a PLAYBOYRIZR in the works from Motorola or another cellphone maker with distinct bunny-ear branding? Motorola's glossy finish fetish is said to be the look Playboy would go for in a handset, and a standard cellphone feature suite (digicam, Bluetooth, MP3) looks to also be on tap for a Playboy phone as well. More info to come as it arrives.
CGS boasts $5 mil payroll, Playboy Mansion pro-gamer draft
Hosting its inaugural player draft far from the storied sanctum of The Garden, with a paltry $5 million league-wide payroll, (an amount routinely squandered on a single signing bonus for a young athlete in another professional league,) the Championship Gaming Series continues to take baby steps toward becoming a marquee "sports entertainment" business. Still, come June 12, 60 prospects will split the riches, as they're contracted to join one of six city-based squads that will compete in a small variety of games leading up to the CGS Grand Slam and World Championships this October. Not a bad gig, eh? But what of this Playboy Mansion draft locale? If CGS is to be taken seriously, it's gotta avoid these WWEsque publicity stunts ... right? Maybe not. A lil' scantly-clad drama might be just the lure needed to hook viewers who might not otherwise tune into a glorified LAN party.
Joystiq interviews Brenda Brathwaite about sex and games
One could say Brenda Brathwaite wrote the book on sex in games -- and they'd be right. She is the author of Sex in Video Games, lead designer on Playboy: The Mansion, founder and chair of IGDA's Sex Special Interest Group and professor of game design at the Savannah College of Art and Design. Brathwaite spoke with Joystiq about next week's Game Developer's Conference, how to keep sexual content under control and the story of the year that really got her blood pressure elevated.At the Game Developers Conference this year you'll be talking about the business end of designing erotic games. What does that mean?We're doing two roundtables this year at the request of previous attendees: designing erotic games and, second, the business end of erotic games. This will give attendees a chance to really get into each issue deeply. When it comes to designing erotic games, I expect we will probably cover such things as appealing to a diverse sexual audience, incorporating fetish play, MMO design, and pitching games to existing adult stars and publishing powerhouses. There's also interest from many people in solving that M-rated issue: how can we maturely incorporate mature themes into the narrative of the play – the same stuff you'd see in an R-rated movie – without being locked out of retail? Games have certainly done it, and as our ability to tell stories in games increases, figuring out how to do it well is becoming more an more an issue. The average gamer is a guy in his 30's, you know. Shows from Lost to Grey's Anatomy feature mature storylines that we, in games, feel at risk to take.
Marketing: N'Gai and his Playboy playmate
With cocktails in cheap plastic cups -- that's no way to treat a lady -- Newsweek's N'Gai Croal challenged Playboy's Miss May '98 to Madden NFL '07 on PS3. The hotel room gaming session was part of a special event set up for media and other people of publicity.Beyond the Super Bowl simulations littering the internet currently regarding who's going to win the Super Bowl today, the video game industry also brought their marketing prowess to the big game. Croal explains, "Electronic Arts is in town for its annual Madden Bowl challenge, co-sponsored this year by Microsoft ... The Playstation folks are still in town with Playstation Oasis, a series of day-long pool parties; a penthouse gift-bag suite; and the aforementioned Challenge a Playmate on PS3."Well, it's good to know that the Colts and Bears aren't the only teams bringing their A game.
David Jaffe admits drunkenly that his PSP game sucked
David Jaffe **BLEEP**ing talked to GameTrailers.com in the Playboy Mansion about developing on the PLAYSTATION 3 and PSP. He reveals that he'd love to make God of War III on the PLAYSTATION 3, if given the chance. He also makes note of the mistakes he's made. Firstly, he states that God of War's battle system is not as good as Devil May Cry's (agreed). And he also admits that his canceled PSP project, "Project HL," was really axed not because of the PS3, but because it wasn't progressing very well:"I just **BLEEP**ed up my game on the PSP, it wasn't any good! That's true! There wasn't a **BLEEP** rumor!"The full video interview is available, after the break. Obviously, if you didn't **BLEEP**ing notice, it features some profanity.[Via Joystiq]
A Mac on the cover of Playboy
These days you can't turn on a TV, open a magazine or walk down the street without spotting an Apple product or at least an ad for one, and now it seems Apple's expanding popularity has even landed the company on the cover of October's Playboy (Zinio link, semi-safe for work). In the quest to leave their photoshopped mark on everything that adorns the magazine, Playboy (or Apple?) felt the need (or jumped at the chance) to add a personalized touch to what looks like a 12-inch PowerBook, and swapped out the Apple logo for Playboy's (let's see PowerBook laser etching pull this off).TUAW reader Travis Smith tipped us off to the appearance, and from the cover (no, we don't have a subscription) it doesn't look like this is some 'Bunnies love Macs' special issue or anything. Still, it's nice to see Apple getting some love from the Hugh and crew.
