The industry’s sexiest games sure know how to sell themselves!
Whether you like it or not, sex sells – and nowhere is this more true than in the gaming industry. Which is why, every once in a while, a game will dress its characters in costumes so sexually tantalizing that it will make anyone blush.
But sex as a means to sell games has itself become an art. While some developers have mastered subtlety, portraying characters in a manner that is sexy yet non-demeaning, others remain committed to overdoing the whole thing, and end up coming off as obscene.
This article, which lists the 15 Video Games That Use Sex to Boost Sales, is an exhibit of games that have relied – to varying degrees – on the sexiness of their content to draw in the crowds. Do these games take it too far? Read on, and decide for yourselves!
15. Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded
Back when point-and-click adventure games were all the rage, there was one series that was synonymous with sexy time: Leisure Suit Larry. The first game, Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards, was released in 1987.
In 2013, the game was remade and retitled Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded. Like the original, the story takes place in the city of Lost Wages, where you follow middle-aged loser, Larry Laffer, as he embarks on a most noble quest: to finally lose his virginity. We’re rooting for you, Larry!
With beautiful hand-drawn graphics replacing ugly old pixels, Reloaded has some incredibly sexy visuals… once you get past all the sleaze, that is!
14. Soulcalibur V
Sure, the long-running Soulcalibur series has been giving us some of the flashiest fighting games in the industry. But you have to admit, one of its major draws is its eclectic roster of gorgeous female fighters. Who hasn’t gazed upon the likes of Ivy Valentine without wondering how she could possibly function as a warrior while sporting that ultimate wedgie of hers? Or Sophitia, who is basically wearing the Classical Greek equivalent of Victoria’s Secret lingerie?
Soulcalibur V gets rid of many of its most recognizable babes, such as Taki and Seong Mi-na, but Project Soul made sure newcomers like Natsu and Pyrrha are just as nice (though somewhat uncomfortable) to look at – questionably impractical costumes and all!
13. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Case in point, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain gives us Quiet, a sniper who likes wearing next to nothing, despite the fact that she spends 90% of the game in the blazing heat of the dessert.
And when not taking out targets from a thousand miles away, Quiet enjoys rolling around on the ground, showering in her underwear, and jumping out of helicopters. Sexy? Yes. Does it make sense? Most probably not!
12. Skullgirls, Skullgirls Encore
It’s become an unwritten rule that if you’re making a fighting game, you must have at least one scantily clad girl in the roster.
Well, Skullgirls takes that concept and runs away with it, by having a roster consisting entirely of women – and most of them are of the impossibly, inconveniently attired variety. Seriously, Parasoul’s skirt is so short you could end up mistaking her for someone who isn’t wearing any pants.
Did we mention, though, that these girls are totally badass? Skullgirls Encore introduces males to the roster, but a majority of the new challengers are still women who’d break your jaw as soon as you look at them funny. One of them is Eliza, a bloodletting celebrity diva rocking an Ancient Egyptian motif. She’s as sexy as hell, as long as you don’t mind someone whose skeleton can literally jump out of her own skin!
11. Catherine
Catherine is one of the most intriguing puzzle games to come out in years, thanks to four things: excellent, brain-twisting gameplay; a story involving a bloodcurdling mystery; breathtaking cut scenes; and of course, hot, steamy, under-the-bedcovers action!
You play as Vincent Brooks, an ordinary man who suddenly finds himself torn between 1) his sophisticated, intelligent, beautiful, and loyal girlfriend of several years, Katherine, and 2) a bubbly, free-spirited, sexually-charged nymph named Catherine. What follows is a story of love, lust, temptation, devotion, and betrayal.
One of the sexiest games ever released – one with a twist that’ll blow your mind!
10. Tomb Raider, Rise of the Tomb Raider
Tomb Raider’s Lara Croft has been a gaming sex symbol for decades. In 2013, however, the world was introduced to the reboot, and a heroine who actually looks like a real woman, as opposed to a pair of polygonal breasts that magically sprouted a body.
Who’d have thought realistic proportions and more conservative clothing could actually be sexier? But there’s more to this new Lara than just her stunning looks. Lara’s tough, intelligent, compassionate, and adventurous, and we see all that in the game. Not to mention she’s more practical than her previous incarnations. Who in her right mind would run through the jungle wearing short shorts that look like they were painted on to her butt, when she could be protecting those long legs by putting on pants?
9. Senran Kagura 2: Deep Crimson
Ah, Senran Kagura. When your video game series is made in Japan and stars a bunch of buxom female ninjas, you know exactly what you’re getting into.
One of the most recent entries in the franchise, Senran Kagura 2: Deep Crimson, is a side-scrolling beat ‘em up exclusive to the Nintendo 3DS. You control impractically dressed shinobi warriors as they fight their way through waves of other impractically dressed shinobi warriors.
Expect a lot of uncomfortable camera angles, and weird, jiggly things that look like breasts, but behave like nothing you’ll ever find on the chest of a real-life woman.
8. Gal*Gun: Double Peace
After a while, it gets boring shooting monsters and terrorists between the eyes. So why not use your love gun to shoot girls in their erogenous zones?
Well, at least that’s what the developers of Gal*Gun: Double Peace were probably thinking when they made their game – a rail shooter that has you shooting “pheromone shots” at girls to make them fall head over heels in love with you. Why? So you can find your true love, of course! Now, doesn’t that make sense?
And what’s a game about falling in love if it doesn’t involve see-through clothing and loads of sensuous moaning?
Soon to be released on the PlayStation 4 and PS Vita!
7. TERA: Rising
Free-to-play TERA: Rising has all the elements of a classic fantasy MMORPG: hundreds of quests, crafting, grinding, and of course, warrior women in ridiculous skimpy armor.
Developer Bluehole Studio went all out designing the looks of the game’s female avatars. Its bevy of beauties range from the tall, busty and long-legged to the tiny and adorable... only those costumes leave so little to the imagination that it gets a little weird. To be fair, some of the male costumes are just as revealing.
Also, to its credit, TERA: Rising impresses with its real-time combat. In fact, it was one of the first few MMORPGs to do away with the “click on enemy till it dies” gameplay. In TERA: Rising, you have to actively dodge strikes, and your attacks need to be timed correctly to land.
It’s among the sexiest games in the industry, and thankfully, it’s also fun to play!
6. Bayonetta, Bayonetta 2
Why do we love Bayonetta? She’s a badass who knows just how hot she is.
Bayonetta is strong, intelligent, witty, elegant... and she owns her sexuality with all the confidence of a queen. She has one of the most seductive resting faces in gaming – and she wears glasses too, which warms the hearts of nerds everywhere. Did we mention she was asleep in a coffin for 500 years? We’re betting her breath still smells heavenly.
Her legs are also a mile long each, which is kind of weird. But hey, she manages to make her unusual proportions sexy, so that’s definitely a plus. And she’s got the moves and the weapons to match those killer looks. Pistols in both hands? How yesterday. Bayonetta has guns attached to her feet. And those long, luscious locks? They transform into giant demons – which must make her the terror of all hairdressers.
Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 are two of the sexiest games you can play today, and we’re glad to say they’re just awesome.
5. Blade & Soul
This fantasy martial arts MMORPG from South Korea has been wowing gamers all over the world with its stunning graphics. And by that we mean the exquisite CG environments.
Okay, we also mean the character models, specifically the women and their stimulating yet cringe-worthy wardrobe choices. These gals have got it all: unreasonably revealing costumes, skin that glistens as if they’ve just emerged from a tub of oil, extra-thick eyelashes, and voluminous, elegant hair. You have to wonder: are they getting ready for a battle, or a beauty contest?
Fortunately, Blade & Soul isn’t just a good-looking game starring uncomfortably hypersexualized women. Its battle system is in real time, and employs a combo system that brings to mind the fighting game genre. For those outside Asia who are eager to play one of the sexiest games in the industry, they won’t have to wait long to try Blade & Soul; it’s coming out in Europe and the USA in early 2016.
4. Lollipop Chainsaw
A cheerleader in a microskirt who fights using a chainsaw? Well of course you know it’s going to be about more than just zombies!
Lollipop Chainsaw is a hack and slash action game starring the smoking hot Juliet Starling, a zombie-hunting cheerleader who has a head for a boyfriend. Actually, the boyfriend originally came with a body, until she had to lop his head off to prevent his zombification. Did we mention he survived decapitation?
If that sounds ridiculous, that’s because the entire game is insane. Zombie rockers, outrageous violence, cut scenes featuring Juliet in compromising positions, and campy dialogues replete with sexual innuendos are what Lollipop Chainsaw is all about. So if you enjoy your gore which huge dollops of sex, Lollipop Chainsaw is the game to play.
3. Dead or Alive 5 Last Round
Some say the Dead or Alive series is nothing more than a jiggle physics simulation disguised as a fighting game. While that would be unfair to the series – which has produced some genuinely solid fighting titles – you can’t blame the detractors. One look at the women in the franchise’s ever-expanding roster should be enough to tell you why.
From Kasumi to Tina, these are some of the most titillating character designs in the history of gaming. And you can tell where all the money you gave the franchise by buying their games went to by how realistically those CG breasts bounce. Love it or hate it, the developers have mastered the hard science of video game breast physics.
As the latest entry in the series, Dead or Alive 5 Last Round boasts excellent visuals. But hey, when it isn’t busy being naughty, the game is actually a great fighter – one you’ll still play long after you’ve gotten over (or gotten tired of) its explicitly sexual content.
2. Scarlet Blade
There are games that aren’t afraid of exposing a little skin, of resorting to fan service every now and then to appeal to those among the audience who enjoy that sort of thing.
And then there’s Scarlet Blade.
Up to now, we’re not quite sure what Scarlet Blade (a.k.a Queen’s Blade in Korea) is about, but it seems to be a science fiction MMORPG populated by femme fatales who harbor a passionate hatred for sensible clothing. Seriously, the costumes in Scarlet Blade spit in the face of physics, and make the scantily clad women of fantasy games such as World of Warcraft look like Maria von Trapp from The Sound of Music.
Simply put, Scarlet Blade boasts an over-the-top raunchiness that’s hard to swallow. It may be one of the sexiest games in existence, but that comes at the cost of good taste. But hey, at least we can’t fault the game for not knowing its audience!
1. Dead or Alive Xtreme 3
With Dead or Alive Xtreme 3, the Dead or Alive franchise isn’t even trying anymore. Here’s a game that’s being developed for the express purpose of having you ogle 3D female body parts.
Well, okay, maybe they are trying – just a teeny bit. You see, Dead or Alive Xtreme 3, like the previous titles in the beach volleyball spinoffs, isn’t a fighting game, but a sports game! Where you just happen to have the option to dress the girls in tiny pieces of string, fabric, and sometimes, the local island plant life. These girls are practically playing in the nude, but hey, as long as the important bits are (barely) covered up, we can still classify this as sports!
Definitely one of the sexiest games coming out next year!
Thus ends our list of 15 Video Games That Use Sex to Boost Sales. Feel we left any game out? Tell us in the comments section below!
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