Fanservice? or Art?

If you don't believe that All Art Is Angsty, then it's definitely art in Conkers Bad Fur Day. It's completely Played for Laughs. All of it, from the busty sunflower getting "pollinated", to what happens to Buga the Knut (also a rare example of male nudity).

Talking about gender representation in games instead of the fanservice like the TC was aiming for. Not saying that was a bad thing, just tried to give him a heads up in the GTA thread when he proposed the idea.

I don't see there being anywhere else for the conversation to go. The issues are deeply intertwined.

It's true. Part of the reason people have such a problem with fanservice is because of how one-sided the issue is. I think if, instead of being the standard of female Fantasy attire, Chainmail Bikini appeared in works alongside men's Chainmail Speedo, it would be hilarious instead of aggravating. It also wouldn't be nearly as standard, because if you're going to make your females look like mindless sexpots, you have to make your males look like douches too.

When "Art vs. Fanservice" is an issue, it is almost exclusively about the female body. Nobody has long discussions about whether or not Kratos's bare chest is art or fanservice, because nobody feels that Kratos walking around half-naked needs to be justified. Because Kratos walking around half-naked isn't the standard for male characters and, more than that, it glorifies him rather than objectifying him.*

The two issues are deeply entwined because it's only a question we even ask because we're trying to figure out how to respectfully portray naked women, specifically, and that's because we have so many missteps with disrespectfully doing so all the time.

edited 23rd Sep '13 9:58:32 AM by TobiasDrake

Fanservice. Nothing but.

I often believe that sex and video games are two separate realms. I don't want to have a Raging Stiffie when I play, because I may need to "clean up", which is distracting.

Note: this is partially a test post to see how borked this thread is after being deleted and put back. (Edit: My post seems to have unborked the thread. Yay.)

On topic: I think my post in the thread about video game heroes is applicable here as for why that level of fanservice exists. This does not excuse the more extreme cases, but it does explain them.

As a heterosexual male, I have no problem with a few characters that provide fanservice. It's when there aren't characters that don't provide fanservice, or the characters that do provide little else, that I start getting turned away from a work.

edited 23rd Sep '13 6:28:36 PM by TotemicHero

Why not Artservice?

Ok, pun aside, I think that either things can be done either good or bad. Overdone even. I'm quite ok with nudity as long as it's plot relevant or explained.

Nudity and lol titties as art: Statues and background in the Castlevania games, Certain boss spritework in ye olde Final Fantasy and a good amount of SMT works, That arachne boss thing from Dark Souls etc

Nudity and lol titties as fanservice: Every sex minigame in GOW ever, Dead Or Alive, etc

Nudity and lol titties as both: Bayonetta. As provocative as the game is, there's definite motive behind the fanservice, and is not merely done to give the player a stiffie.

Guys, this is not an opinion/request thread, I wanted to see a thread about nudity and or fanservice that can cross into the line of art in modern video games. I'll edit the opening post, though, to keep things more simplier. I just rushed so this type of thread could happen sooner or later, thanks to the rise of nudity and sex in modern video games. Even though i'm 15 yrs old (OMG, is'nt it?), I like to discuss the many arts and wonders of the evolving ways of naked virtual man and woman in videogames. By now, you're brain could be suffering a Mind Screw because of my lack of explaining things. Ciao for now!

To start things off: Anyone agrees on full frontal female nudity in video games like Saints Row 3-4?

@ Tobias: Heavy Rain is a bad example. While it does have shower sequences for both genders, it also has Madison walking around in her underwear for a sizeable sequence with no ties to the main plot at all, and the cringe-worthy "sexing it up" scene.

Considering there is just as much, if not more, male nudity in the recent Saints Row games, I wouldn't call it sexist at all.

On Quiet's design for MGS 5, I'm more bothered that it's just not very interesting or stylish. While I have no doubt it was done for fanservice-y reasons, I trust Kojima when he says it serves a purpose beyond that.

edited 25th Sep '13 2:42:29 AM by RTaco