Such characters are programmed with crude looping sexualized behaviors or dialogue as a way of adding an extra layer of “seedy” flavoring to game universes.ĬLIP (DISHONORED): “Hey sweetheart, you wanna play with me? You’re a lot cuter than my regulars.”ĬLIP (FALLOUT: NEW VEGAS): “You like it, huh?”ĪNITA: Unlike other NPCs that exist for purposes outside of their sexuality, Non-Playable Sex Objects have little to no individual personality or identity to speak of,ĬLIP (FABLE II): “I’ll make you wail like a banshee, baby.”ĪNITA: …and almost never get to be anything other than set dressing or props in someone else’s narrative.ĪNITA: This is the essence of what sexual objectification means. Non-Playable Sex Objects can usually be found on the sidelines of role playing or open world style games,populating the many virtual strip clubs, red light districts or brothel locations that have become almost obligatory in many so-called “mature” titles. I classify this subset of characters as Non-Playable Sex Objects. Those specifically designed as a decorative virtual “sex class” who exist to service straight male desire. However, for the purposes of this trope we’re only concerned with one very particular type of non-essential female NPC. They can be pedestrians, shopkeepers, quest givers, party members or sidekicks. NPCs can occupy a wide variety of supportive, neutral or non-combatant roles, all with varying degrees of importance or levels of engagement with the protagonist. These are figures not directly controlled by the player and whose behaviors and dialog are governed by automated scripts within the game’s code.
Sometimes they’re created to be glorified furniture but they are frequently programmed as minimally interactive sex objects to be used and abused.ĬLIP (GOD OF WAR: GHOST OF SPARTA): “Won’t you join us?”ĪNITA: In gaming lingo, the secondary characters populating the virtual environments are referred to as NPCs, short for “non-player characters” or “non-playable characters”. These sexually objectified female bodies are designed to function as environmental texture while titillating presumed straight male players.
Notice how the camera moves, how it focuses on and zooms in on specific body parts to highlight the aspects of women meant to be the most important.ĬLIP (FORZA HORIZON (2012)):“I knew you couldn’t resist you.”ĪNITA: I define the Women as Background Decoration trope in video games as: The subset of largely insignificant non-playable female characters whose sexuality or victimhood is exploited as a way to infuse edgy, gritty or racy flavoring into game worlds. The practice of using hyper-sexualized women as ornamental objects has been especially brazen in the racing game genre. And since women were largely already seen as incidental eye candy, it’s not surprising that when female characters started being introduced to more game-worlds,their roles tended to follow similar patterns. These ads contributed to an emergent culture in which women were thought of as ornamental and peripheral to a male gaming experience. In these promotional materials, advertisers are not just selling a product,they are also selling gaming as a lifestyle in which women predominantly exist as passive objects of heterosexual male desire. In ad after ad throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s we see women placed on display alongside arcade games, conflating the two and presenting them both as toys to be played with. This advertising strategy of using women and representations of women as decorative elements to try and sell games to boys and men soon became the norm for the burgeoning industry. Promotional materials for the game, however, featured a woman standing passively next to the enclosure wearing a see-through nighty with her underwear visible underneath. The coin-operated machine allowed players to fly a crude pixelated rocket ship while shooting down pixelated flying saucers. That game was called Computer Space and holds the distinction of being the very first commercially sold video game ever made.
In November 1971, the year before Atari’s Pong became a sensation, an oddly shaped fiberglass video cabinet appeared in pinball arcades in the United States. As such this particular video comes with a strong content warning and is not recommended for children.Īs always, please keep in mind that it’s entirely possible to be critical of some aspects of a piece of media while still finding other parts valuable or enjoyable.
#Can you non clip in metro last light pc free#
Too bad too ‘cause I would’ve given a stud like you a free sample.”ĪNITA: This episode includes game footage of hyper-sexualized female characters as well as extremely graphic depictions of violence against women.
CLIP (BINARY DOMAIN): “Sorry, all booked up.