SexAndGames
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Scalding sake: Itagaki counters sexual harassment claim
The flurry of legal blows between Dead or Alive designer, Tomonobu Itagaki, and the alleged target of his devastating groping attacks continue this week with demotions being handed out and countersuits being considered. Earlier this month, Itagaki fell into the dubious spotlight after a woman, previously working under him at Tecmo, filed charges of sexual harassment. Though it was somewhat unclear at the time, it was implied that Itagaki had been demoted and that his employers wanted nothing more than to sweep the whole affair under the rug. A Gamespot report details Tecmo's official response, which is firmly on the side of the eccentric (and occasionally drunk) developer. "The alleged sexual harassment of the former employee by Itagaki never took place, and Tecmo did not issue an unjustified notice of dismissal to the former employee." The company insists that the female employee left of her own volition following an internal investigation. Their own conclusion was that her actions stemmed from personal problems, despite the fact that she and Itagaki "mingled personal affairs with their corporate responsibilities." They were both demoted and had their salaries chopped down. Meanwhile, Itagaki is planning to launch a countersuit in order to avenge his pristine and generally likeable reputation. [Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
Sex talk: conference agenda released
The agenda for the Sex in Videogames conference has been published, and there are some interesting topics up for debate in San Fran this June. From the cultural to the technological, the conference will cover such diverse topics as cybersex, emergent behaviour, technology for realistic simulation and MMOEGs.This will definitely be one to watch; sex is becoming part of gaming as a specialist genre, as well as becoming integrated into our everyday gaming lives with emergent behaviour. As with other media before it, the human interest in sex is likely to fuel some interesting developments in games -- and not just in the field of "jiggle physics".[Via Sex & Games]
Cybersex is child's play: virtual world morals
We've already heard recently about the sexy side of Second Life, a virtual world in which the players' imaginations are more or less the limits. This article, however, shows just what can -- and does -- happen in an 18 environment where players are given free rein. Although Second Life is no stranger to kinks and perversions, some fetishes provoke far stronger opposition than others.The case in point here is age play, a pastime in which adults put on kiddy avatars and act out scenes which would, in the real world, be considered paedophilic. Thanks to Second Life's strict separation of minors and adults, everyone taking part is of age, which makes for an interesting moral debate. Is this activity virtual paedophilia, an offensive type of sexual play that should be banned lest it lead to real crime? Or is it simply an extension of the fantasy world, a harmless activity carried out in private?Sex-based virtual world Rapture Online, mentioned in the article, is playing it safe from the outset by not letting adults look like children. In SL, however, some official decisions may eventually have to be made on this front -- the simple existence of this sort of activity is enough to get some people riled up, but by infringing on users' freedoms to fantasise about whatever they want in private, the world loses some of its strength.[Thanks, Ken. Image shows items available from some of SL's kid-themed shops.]
Stimulating peripherals
Finding life a little dull? This Wired article gives a hefty rundown of a variety of gaming peripherals suitable for one purpose alone: sexual stimulation. From the much-lauded Rez Trance Vibrator to the modded SeXbox -- something we have had the pleasure of seeing first-hand -- this matter-of-fact article has it all.Teledildonics is increasing in popularity, although it has skirted around the edges of the mainstream so far. As its profile is raised, we could see some run-of-the-mill adult titles with accessories on our shelves, providing a whole new genre of games for protesters to vilify.
