Oh, so THAT'S what Girl Gamers Want!
October 13, 2011 9:58 PM Subscribe
"Are you a lady? Then finally there’s a game for you! While too many games are pretending that ladies enjoy the same things as men, like shooting, building cities or exploring alien worlds, Lady Popular properly recognizes what it is that makes a true, strong, independent lady: shopping, hairstyles, and having a boyfriend."
John Walker of Rock Paper Shotgun gives a no-holds-barred review (NSFW) of the game Lady Popular.
John Walker of Rock Paper Shotgun gives a no-holds-barred review (NSFW) of the game Lady Popular.
I can confirm that this is quite a realistic game. Some bras do, indeed, cost $70,000, and when I go out nightclubbing I introduce myself to all the ladies as "Government Worker".
posted by tumid dahlia at 10:05 PM on October 13, 2011 [19 favorites]
posted by tumid dahlia at 10:05 PM on October 13, 2011 [19 favorites]
And now I have a boyfriend! His name is Car washer, and he gives me $50 a day.
Boyfriend is not how I would charachterize that relationship.
posted by Grimgrin at 10:05 PM on October 13, 2011 [63 favorites]
Boyfriend is not how I would charachterize that relationship.
posted by Grimgrin at 10:05 PM on October 13, 2011 [63 favorites]
And now I have a boyfriend! His name is Car washer, and he gives me $50 a day.
I refuse to believe, and nothing posted subsequently in this thread will convince me that this is not satire. I need to believe this for my own mental health.
posted by bleep at 10:06 PM on October 13, 2011 [12 favorites]
I refuse to believe, and nothing posted subsequently in this thread will convince me that this is not satire. I need to believe this for my own mental health.
posted by bleep at 10:06 PM on October 13, 2011 [12 favorites]
Jesus. By this game's logic we Western Hetero Males should be playing games about buying steroids, harleys, and lap dances with our pro wrestling money.
posted by cmoj at 10:09 PM on October 13, 2011 [8 favorites]
posted by cmoj at 10:09 PM on October 13, 2011 [8 favorites]
$50 for the powder room?
posted by Ad hominem at 10:10 PM on October 13, 2011 [5 favorites]
posted by Ad hominem at 10:10 PM on October 13, 2011 [5 favorites]
cmoj: That is essentially the new Duke Nukem game.
posted by tumid dahlia at 10:13 PM on October 13, 2011 [18 favorites]
posted by tumid dahlia at 10:13 PM on October 13, 2011 [18 favorites]
Jesus. By this game's logic we Western Hetero Males should be playing games about buying steroids, harleys, and lap dances with our pro wrestling money.
there are a million dating sims and Facebook games like this
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 10:13 PM on October 13, 2011 [2 favorites]
there are a million dating sims and Facebook games like this
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 10:13 PM on October 13, 2011 [2 favorites]
Jesus. By this game's logic we Western Hetero Males should be playing games about buying steroids, harleys, and lap dances with our pro wrestling money.
Isn't this Duke Nukem 3D?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 10:13 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
Isn't this Duke Nukem 3D?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 10:13 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
:(
posted by cmoj at 10:16 PM on October 13, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by cmoj at 10:16 PM on October 13, 2011 [4 favorites]
Jesus. By this game's logic we Western Hetero Males should be playing games about buying steroids, harleys, and lap dances with our pro wrestling money.
Ridiculous of course, I play games to escape reality for a little while.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 10:16 PM on October 13, 2011 [26 favorites]
Ridiculous of course, I play games to escape reality for a little while.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 10:16 PM on October 13, 2011 [26 favorites]
when I go out nightclubbing I introduce myself to all the ladies as "Government Worker".
But how much do you pay out, [GOVERNMENT WORKER]?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 10:18 PM on October 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
But how much do you pay out, [GOVERNMENT WORKER]?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 10:18 PM on October 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
Look, I'm playing it ironically, OK?
posted by Monsieur Caution at 10:20 PM on October 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Monsieur Caution at 10:20 PM on October 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
FWIW, my wife played the game for a while. She said that if anything, John Walker's review understated things a little. Take the clinic: is that, my wife wondered desperately, where you go to learn to be a nurse or something? No, that's where you go to get the breast implants and collagen injections. I think that's when she stopped playing the game.
posted by happyroach at 10:20 PM on October 13, 2011 [6 favorites]
posted by happyroach at 10:20 PM on October 13, 2011 [6 favorites]
This isn't a particularly no-holds-barred review.
posted by fshgrl at 10:25 PM on October 13, 2011 [9 favorites]
posted by fshgrl at 10:25 PM on October 13, 2011 [9 favorites]
I've been a carwasher. Worst job I've ever had. I'm not certain I made $50 a day, let alone had enough for a $50 girlfriend experience.
posted by bonehead at 10:26 PM on October 13, 2011 [7 favorites]
posted by bonehead at 10:26 PM on October 13, 2011 [7 favorites]
But the important question is this: Is John Walker of Rock Paper Shotgun the new Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of Zero Punctuation? Because I need to be sure that I'm up to date on the latest Alpha Snarker in each area of pop culture...
posted by oneswellfoop at 10:29 PM on October 13, 2011
posted by oneswellfoop at 10:29 PM on October 13, 2011
I have not yet achieved the classy two-pigtail look which is apparently more professional.
The only people I've ever seen pull that look off are marketing managers, who are typically adorable externally but with the heart of Clint Eastwood with buzzwords. Is there a part of the game where you blithely drop the responsibility for resolving a major regulatory failure created by your marketing campaign in the laps of technologies?
posted by winna at 10:32 PM on October 13, 2011 [4 favorites]
The only people I've ever seen pull that look off are marketing managers, who are typically adorable externally but with the heart of Clint Eastwood with buzzwords. Is there a part of the game where you blithely drop the responsibility for resolving a major regulatory failure created by your marketing campaign in the laps of technologies?
posted by winna at 10:32 PM on October 13, 2011 [4 favorites]
Though the 'remove clothes' button does provide a feature that usually requires the feverish efforts of modding communities to supply in other role-playing games.
posted by Abiezer at 10:40 PM on October 13, 2011 [4 favorites]
posted by Abiezer at 10:40 PM on October 13, 2011 [4 favorites]
I just registered to see if it would let me name my character Penishead. It did. Now I have to see what I can get Penishead to do. Uh oh.
posted by millipede at 10:40 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by millipede at 10:40 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
Oh my god. It's so terrible. It's just like my life. I am single and got stupid bangs at the hair salon and have no skirts and live in a studio apartment and forget to eat and have to go to the employment agency. How is this fun? This is terrible. This is not a game. This is the reason for infinite crying every day. I am putting Penishead out of her misery. Worst game ever.
posted by millipede at 10:50 PM on October 13, 2011 [94 favorites]
posted by millipede at 10:50 PM on October 13, 2011 [94 favorites]
But how much do you pay out, [GOVERNMENT WORKER]?
All the Aldi stationery you could ever desire! I hope you like Bec pens and Stapledter staples!
posted by tumid dahlia at 10:54 PM on October 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
All the Aldi stationery you could ever desire! I hope you like Bec pens and Stapledter staples!
posted by tumid dahlia at 10:54 PM on October 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
But how much do you pay out, [GOVERNMENT WORKER]?
All the Aldi stationery you could ever desire! I hope you like Bec pens and Stapledter staples!
YOU STILL DO NOT HAVE A BOYFRIEND.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 11:00 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
All the Aldi stationery you could ever desire! I hope you like Bec pens and Stapledter staples!
YOU STILL DO NOT HAVE A BOYFRIEND.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 11:00 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
I would like to know where the evil witch comes into all this. Is it some sort of metaphor for menstruation?
posted by maryr at 11:01 PM on October 13, 2011 [8 favorites]
posted by maryr at 11:01 PM on October 13, 2011 [8 favorites]
I am single and got stupid bangs at the hair salon and have no skirts and live in a studio apartment and forget to eat and have to go to the employment agency.
Uhhh I am having flashbacks to Kudos 2 just reading your summary.
Worst game ever indeed.
posted by winna at 11:06 PM on October 13, 2011
Uhhh I am having flashbacks to Kudos 2 just reading your summary.
Worst game ever indeed.
posted by winna at 11:06 PM on October 13, 2011
Being a woman in this day and age is THAT difficult...
posted by mind2body at 11:06 PM on October 13, 2011
posted by mind2body at 11:06 PM on October 13, 2011
But the important question is this: Is John Walker of Rock Paper Shotgun the new Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of Zero Punctuation? Because I need to be sure that I'm up to date on the latest Alpha Snarker in each area of pop culture...
What?
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 11:29 PM on October 13, 2011 [2 favorites]
What?
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 11:29 PM on October 13, 2011 [2 favorites]
But the important question is this: Is John Walker of Rock Paper Shotgun the new Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of Zero Punctuation? Because I need to be sure that I'm up to date on the latest Alpha Snarker in each area of pop culture...
What?
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 11:29 PM on October 13 [+] [!]
What?
(made sense to me)
posted by Sebmojo at 11:36 PM on October 13, 2011
What?
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 11:29 PM on October 13 [+] [!]
What?
(made sense to me)
posted by Sebmojo at 11:36 PM on October 13, 2011
I so want to play this to see if it's really as bad as he says. (I expect it to be about ten times worse.)
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 11:41 PM on October 13, 2011
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 11:41 PM on October 13, 2011
be care. Tim Rogers just warned us about social games
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 11:42 PM on October 13, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 11:42 PM on October 13, 2011 [2 favorites]
I refuse to believe, and nothing posted subsequently in this thread will convince me that this is not satire. I need to believe this for my own mental health.
For the sake of your mental health, don't read what I have to say. I seriously doubt it's satire. Reading this review, I realised I'd played this game before - many times. It's farmville / frontierville / etc - it's just another clone game with different graphics. The mechanics and gameplay are right out of The Formula, with the appropriate changing of the thematic dressing.
Half of the game industry right now is engaged in churning out these social-game clones because they're cheap to make, and the formula works in the casual gamer demographic. (At least it works for now, even the most casual gamers have to wise up eventually, right?)
I'd guess the target audience for this clone is 12-year-olds.
posted by -harlequin- at 11:46 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
For the sake of your mental health, don't read what I have to say. I seriously doubt it's satire. Reading this review, I realised I'd played this game before - many times. It's farmville / frontierville / etc - it's just another clone game with different graphics. The mechanics and gameplay are right out of The Formula, with the appropriate changing of the thematic dressing.
Half of the game industry right now is engaged in churning out these social-game clones because they're cheap to make, and the formula works in the casual gamer demographic. (At least it works for now, even the most casual gamers have to wise up eventually, right?)
I'd guess the target audience for this clone is 12-year-olds.
posted by -harlequin- at 11:46 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
There was one targeted at me - Zombie Mosh - and even I got bored of that
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 11:48 PM on October 13, 2011
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 11:48 PM on October 13, 2011
I don't mind the social game model, depending on the coat of paint it's clad in. What shits me to tears is when the social aspect of the game is pushed above the game aspect, especially when it is bought in almost immediately. I may be too nice for these things, but I will not bother my friends with game invites, just so I can have a slightly larger kingdom.
posted by cerulgalactus at 11:54 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by cerulgalactus at 11:54 PM on October 13, 2011 [3 favorites]
I've got them turned off on Facebook. The only social gaming I want Facebook for is for people inviting me over to play Gears of War or Left 4 Dead
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 11:56 PM on October 13, 2011 [9 favorites]
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 11:56 PM on October 13, 2011 [9 favorites]
Nobody has commented that you start the game with an IQ of 60. Seems right.
posted by radiobishop at 12:46 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by radiobishop at 12:46 AM on October 14, 2011
Nobody has commented that you start the game with an IQ of 60
And presumably this score decreases as the game progresses?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 1:03 AM on October 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
And presumably this score decreases as the game progresses?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 1:03 AM on October 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
I've been a carwasher. Worst job I've ever had. I'm not certain I made $50 a day, let alone had enough for a $50 girlfriend experience.
Oh, so just because his name is Car Washer, he is a car washer? Like, his family is part of the Washer caste, and he can't go to school and become a lawyer or something if that's what he wants to do? I think you need to reexamine some of your assumptions.
posted by No-sword at 1:13 AM on October 14, 2011 [33 favorites]
Oh, so just because his name is Car Washer, he is a car washer? Like, his family is part of the Washer caste, and he can't go to school and become a lawyer or something if that's what he wants to do? I think you need to reexamine some of your assumptions.
posted by No-sword at 1:13 AM on October 14, 2011 [33 favorites]
I've been a carwasher. Worst job I've ever had.
Curious: When you worked there, would you say all it ever did was rain?
posted by maxwelton at 1:14 AM on October 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
Curious: When you worked there, would you say all it ever did was rain?
posted by maxwelton at 1:14 AM on October 14, 2011 [5 favorites]
No-sword: You impugn the washer caste at your peril sir, a combat washer can flay the flesh from a man's bones with one swipe of a power hose, and knows many intricate and painful ways to use a chamois to break bones.
The idea that any washer would lay down the sacred bucket and renounce the covenant of hot wax and squeege to become a mere scrivening weevil crawling through dusty law books or leech mongering bloodletter is absurd. You risk soap vendetta upon you and your house for suggesting it.
posted by Grimgrin at 1:20 AM on October 14, 2011 [49 favorites]
The idea that any washer would lay down the sacred bucket and renounce the covenant of hot wax and squeege to become a mere scrivening weevil crawling through dusty law books or leech mongering bloodletter is absurd. You risk soap vendetta upon you and your house for suggesting it.
posted by Grimgrin at 1:20 AM on October 14, 2011 [49 favorites]
Would anybody like to join my new dub-step band, Soap Vendetta?
posted by Joey Michaels at 2:07 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Joey Michaels at 2:07 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
And presumably this score decreases as the game progresses?
Strangely enough, it only decreases when you drink soda. But you need an IQ of 250 to be a lawyer, and 350 to be a model or a florist.
first day on the game and i'm already 120kg and 57 IQ. If it wasn't for car washer boyfriend i'd just give up.
posted by radiobishop at 2:28 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Strangely enough, it only decreases when you drink soda. But you need an IQ of 250 to be a lawyer, and 350 to be a model or a florist.
first day on the game and i'm already 120kg and 57 IQ. If it wasn't for car washer boyfriend i'd just give up.
posted by radiobishop at 2:28 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
For the record: no, John Walker is not an "Alpha Snarker" in the vein of Yahtzee. Along with the rest of RPS, he's a remarkably fair-handed reviewer. I guess he does get a little snarky with things that are obviously stupid, but other than that he's a perfectly lovely man. He does a nice general-rambling podcast called Rum Doings, too.
posted by Drexen at 2:47 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by Drexen at 2:47 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Someone needs to turn this into a roguelike. With permadeath and necromancy.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 2:58 AM on October 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 2:58 AM on October 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
This can't be for real. Right? This is really just a subtle satire, right? I mean, just loading the home page reveals that all the female figures have a perfectly blank stare. Too perfectly. The stereotypes are being exposed a little too well, aren't they?
posted by JHarris at 2:59 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by JHarris at 2:59 AM on October 14, 2011
JHarris, it's the only way. It mandates what weight you have to be at.
posted by bleep at 3:04 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by bleep at 3:04 AM on October 14, 2011
Yeah, the Car Washers were one of the "martial races" back in the day. They may mostly wash cars now, but you still don't want to fuck with them. They'll just straight up kill you.
posted by Naberius at 3:43 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Naberius at 3:43 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
You risk soap vendetta upon you and your house for suggesting it.
Do they do windows? Mine are about due for a good soap vendetta.
posted by No-sword at 3:56 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Do they do windows? Mine are about due for a good soap vendetta.
posted by No-sword at 3:56 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
So, what do the people of MetaFilter think about the players of this game?
Not going to put words in your mouth.
posted by effugas at 4:21 AM on October 14, 2011
Not going to put words in your mouth.
posted by effugas at 4:21 AM on October 14, 2011
Strangely enough, it only decreases when you drink soda. But you need an IQ of 250 to be a lawyer, and 350 to be a model or a florist.This game is indistinguishable from social satire, I swear. That's brilliant. 120kg and dumb as bricks ... and the in-game solution to this problem is to drink more Tab. This cannot be real.
first day on the game and i'm already 120kg and 57 IQ. If it wasn't for car washer boyfriend i'd just give up.
posted by cotterpin at 4:24 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I too was sceptical until I found the forums. Tired of reading about how to slaughter Orks in Space Marine or how to be slaughtered by undead in Dark Souls? You could instead be discussing Trying on Belts - Clothing Order, Two Hair Extensions at the same time? or Sexy Underwear - Permanent (the last one is less interesting than it sounds, although the shoulder rat would make a nice in-game accessory).
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 4:34 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 4:34 AM on October 14, 2011
I could sse this game being popular with transvestites.
posted by jonmc at 4:42 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by jonmc at 4:42 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
This game's been under various iterations - one notorious one being Miss Bimbo.
posted by mippy at 4:44 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by mippy at 4:44 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Don't any of you people have tween daughters? There's a ton of this crap out there.
posted by a snickering nuthatch at 4:50 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by a snickering nuthatch at 4:50 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
I too was sceptical until I found the forums
The forum for this game has 60,000 posts. Excuse me while I go curl up in a ball and die
posted by crayz at 4:53 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
The forum for this game has 60,000 posts. Excuse me while I go curl up in a ball and die
posted by crayz at 4:53 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Wow, this looks remarkably like Princess Maker. Is there a time management component?
posted by asperity at 5:03 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by asperity at 5:03 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Pardon me, winna, but Kudos 2 is a much better game than this bullshit. It's got multiple career paths, for a one, so if you want to try your hand at being a doctor or a lawyer you can just get started out the gate, rather than building up 350 IQ first.
Also romantic relationships help your mood much more than they help your wallet.
Also you do not have to look like a bimbo.
posted by LogicalDash at 5:14 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Also romantic relationships help your mood much more than they help your wallet.
Also you do not have to look like a bimbo.
posted by LogicalDash at 5:14 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
The forum for this game has 60,000 posts.
Yeah, but 30,000 of those are in the International Economic Theory and 16th Century French Poetry rooms.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 5:29 AM on October 14, 2011 [8 favorites]
Yeah, but 30,000 of those are in the International Economic Theory and 16th Century French Poetry rooms.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 5:29 AM on October 14, 2011 [8 favorites]
This isn't a particularly no-holds-barred review.
To be fair, there are so many potential holds on this topic, that trying to bar some of them is an exercise in futility. Unless "no-holds-barred" just means shouting fuck a lot.
posted by GenjiandProust at 5:32 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
To be fair, there are so many potential holds on this topic, that trying to bar some of them is an exercise in futility. Unless "no-holds-barred" just means shouting fuck a lot.
posted by GenjiandProust at 5:32 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Don't any of you people have tween daughters? There's a ton of this crap out there.
Pre-tweens, ( a.k.a: kids ) and I'm terrified of the shit I see them playing online.
posted by mikelieman at 5:42 AM on October 14, 2011
Pre-tweens, ( a.k.a: kids ) and I'm terrified of the shit I see them playing online.
posted by mikelieman at 5:42 AM on October 14, 2011
Phalene: If the game originated in France I cannot believe it did not mandate matching underwear for even the lowest levels - let alone making it, apparently, unattainable.
posted by rongorongo at 6:03 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by rongorongo at 6:03 AM on October 14, 2011
Jesus. By this game's logic we Western Hetero Males should be playing games about buying steroids, harleys, and lap dances with our pro wrestling money.
I'd like to add Grand Theft Auto and every single game like it to the list that started with Duke Nukem.
Also, have you heard any top 40 hip hop lately?
posted by hellslinger at 6:24 AM on October 14, 2011
I'd like to add Grand Theft Auto and every single game like it to the list that started with Duke Nukem.
Also, have you heard any top 40 hip hop lately?
posted by hellslinger at 6:24 AM on October 14, 2011
Wow, those forums are awesome. The forum games forum are particularly interesting; a whole board of people making games out of the board itself. Ie, "Count to 400 before a moderator posts!!! or Vending Machine Game, where people type "$insert coin$" and other people post what the imaginary vending machine gives them for the coin.
I think I've got a great idea for a new Metafilter site.
posted by Nelson at 7:10 AM on October 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
I think I've got a great idea for a new Metafilter site.
posted by Nelson at 7:10 AM on October 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
Car is short for Carlos. Washer is short for George Washerton, the father of all dollar bills.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 7:13 AM on October 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 7:13 AM on October 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
I now have an account to play the game. My character's name is Ug Lee Stereotype.
posted by misha at 7:20 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by misha at 7:20 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I would like to thank the 6500 posts in the "Count to 400" forum for making me feel so much better about how much time I spend on MetaFilter.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 7:20 AM on October 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
posted by Horace Rumpole at 7:20 AM on October 14, 2011 [6 favorites]
Status update! I chose soccer clothes for my outfit--of course, I have a tiny little black skirt that doesn't cover much, because there were no unsexy shorts. It was mini-skirt or bell-bottom pants.
I am signed up for Cookie Girl class, and I have now gone to the Club because oh no! I am single.
Roadblock--Dancing at the Club for 30 minutes takes 30 minutes real time. So now I have to wait.
posted by misha at 7:33 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I am signed up for Cookie Girl class, and I have now gone to the Club because oh no! I am single.
Roadblock--Dancing at the Club for 30 minutes takes 30 minutes real time. So now I have to wait.
posted by misha at 7:33 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
In Princess Maker at least, if you developed your character right, you could end with beating up a dragon and then marrying him. Technically it was one of the "bad" endings, but my D&D playing, anime watching self, it was awesome.
posted by happyroach at 7:34 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by happyroach at 7:34 AM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
I am really excited to see if dancing for 30 minutes will make me lose weight, and I will be penalized or considered more attractive as a result.
If this stupide game has an anorexia sideline, I will hunt down the game designers.
posted by misha at 7:36 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
If this stupide game has an anorexia sideline, I will hunt down the game designers.
posted by misha at 7:36 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Car is short for Carlos. Washer is short for George Washerton, the father of all dollar bills.
So they're money launderers? Is my 50 monies not real?
posted by maryr at 7:46 AM on October 14, 2011
So they're money launderers? Is my 50 monies not real?
posted by maryr at 7:46 AM on October 14, 2011
AS I remember, Miss Bimbo, post the controversy in the UK about the plastic surgery tasks, morphed into My Minx, a game where you had to make your own drag queen.
posted by mippy at 7:56 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by mippy at 7:56 AM on October 14, 2011
I think it's great. Those gender roles aren't going to ossify themselves, people.
posted by sonascope at 8:04 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by sonascope at 8:04 AM on October 14, 2011
Hey! Why did I get Unemployed boyfriend at the Club?
I am fit!
And have on a cute little skirt!
Plus, I am in soccer clothes and all guys love sports, duh.
And I got the wrong hairstyle by mistake, and I'm almost out of money.
I am SO not going to be popular, guys!
I should buy a gallon of ice cream and eat it on the sofa instead of going to this friend's party.
posted by misha at 8:10 AM on October 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
I am fit!
And have on a cute little skirt!
Plus, I am in soccer clothes and all guys love sports, duh.
And I got the wrong hairstyle by mistake, and I'm almost out of money.
I am SO not going to be popular, guys!
I should buy a gallon of ice cream and eat it on the sofa instead of going to this friend's party.
posted by misha at 8:10 AM on October 14, 2011 [4 favorites]
mippy: "AS I remember, Miss Bimbo, post the controversy in the UK about the plastic surgery tasks, morphed into My Minx, a game where you had to make your own drag queen."
sonascope: "I think it's great. Those gender roles aren't going to ossify themselves, people."
This is why we never want to have threaded comments, folks. Because sometimes the order in which comments organically appear is a wonder that should never, ever, ever, ever, ever be messed with.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 8:18 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
sonascope: "I think it's great. Those gender roles aren't going to ossify themselves, people."
This is why we never want to have threaded comments, folks. Because sometimes the order in which comments organically appear is a wonder that should never, ever, ever, ever, ever be messed with.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 8:18 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I could sse this game being popular with transvestites.
I was going to say the same thing, but then I tried it. There is dress up, but it's mostly a substandard RPG slog.
Also, I'm guessing you can't be a lesbian, which rules out all the straights.
For trannies, there's already IMVU, which has surprised me with its sustainability.
I would like to thank the 6500 posts in the "Count to 400" forum for making me feel so much better about how much time I spend on MetaFilter.
heh, you beat me to it.
posted by mrgrimm at 8:46 AM on October 14, 2011
I was going to say the same thing, but then I tried it. There is dress up, but it's mostly a substandard RPG slog.
Also, I'm guessing you can't be a lesbian, which rules out all the straights.
For trannies, there's already IMVU, which has surprised me with its sustainability.
I would like to thank the 6500 posts in the "Count to 400" forum for making me feel so much better about how much time I spend on MetaFilter.
heh, you beat me to it.
posted by mrgrimm at 8:46 AM on October 14, 2011
John Walker does not do the same thing as Yahtzee, and he's been doing it for much longer than Yahtzee.
(Yahtzee might be the new Old Man Murray, if you're desperate to think of things that way.)
posted by straight at 9:49 AM on October 14, 2011
(Yahtzee might be the new Old Man Murray, if you're desperate to think of things that way.)
posted by straight at 9:49 AM on October 14, 2011
Hosebeast can't figure out how to go shopping, so she's sitting around in high heels and underwear.
this is too much like real life.
posted by elizardbits at 10:33 AM on October 14, 2011
this is too much like real life.
posted by elizardbits at 10:33 AM on October 14, 2011
I can't avoid it. It's like the Rubin Vase or the young/old woman -- once you perceive it, you can't un-perceive it.
I shouldn't have this problem. Ma cousine. Ma chaise. Ma voiture. Ma Bimbo.
Instantly, inescapably, I envision some kind of tramped-up Granny Clampett.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 10:53 AM on October 14, 2011
I shouldn't have this problem. Ma cousine. Ma chaise. Ma voiture. Ma Bimbo.
Instantly, inescapably, I envision some kind of tramped-up Granny Clampett.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 10:53 AM on October 14, 2011
No-sword: Actually they just beat you to death with a sack of rusty car engine parts. They only call it a soap vendetta to fit with the theme.
posted by Grimgrin at 11:41 AM on October 14, 2011
posted by Grimgrin at 11:41 AM on October 14, 2011
*chuckles*
The elephant in the room is that these games are actually fun to people, and you're all silently but thoroughly judging people for being entertained by them.
Honestly? I think it's really disrespectful. What, your video games are acceptable and normal and their video games are freakish and damaging? Let me tell you, people have been dressing up and flirting and competing for mates for quite some time, at least as long as they've been taking up arms against alien intruders.
posted by effugas at 1:33 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
The elephant in the room is that these games are actually fun to people, and you're all silently but thoroughly judging people for being entertained by them.
Honestly? I think it's really disrespectful. What, your video games are acceptable and normal and their video games are freakish and damaging? Let me tell you, people have been dressing up and flirting and competing for mates for quite some time, at least as long as they've been taking up arms against alien intruders.
posted by effugas at 1:33 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Pardon me, winna, but Kudos 2 is a much better game than this bullshit. It's got multiple career paths, for a one, so if you want to try your hand at being a doctor or a lawyer you can just get started out the gate, rather than building up 350 IQ first.
Also romantic relationships help your mood much more than they help your wallet.
Also you do not have to look like a bimbo.
I did not mean to imply that it was a game solely about being a bimbo. Just that it was too much like life for enjoyable game time. I can be an over educated underemployed person with a cold living in a filthy house in the real world. Although my friends are infinitely less needy than those kudos folk.
posted by winna at 1:37 PM on October 14, 2011
Also romantic relationships help your mood much more than they help your wallet.
Also you do not have to look like a bimbo.
I did not mean to imply that it was a game solely about being a bimbo. Just that it was too much like life for enjoyable game time. I can be an over educated underemployed person with a cold living in a filthy house in the real world. Although my friends are infinitely less needy than those kudos folk.
posted by winna at 1:37 PM on October 14, 2011
effugas: Because the main character can't do anything else other than flirt, shop and compete for mates; Because it presents relationships as entirely transactional; Because it links self worth to weight; Because it's a cheaply made farmville clone that is designed to be an addictive loop rather than a game; And finally, because it re-enforces sexist ideas extant in the world to a degree that even Duke Nukem has a hard time matching.
posted by Grimgrin at 1:55 PM on October 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by Grimgrin at 1:55 PM on October 14, 2011 [3 favorites]
Grimgrin,
The main character in a shooting game can't do anything else but shoot the bad guys. I mean, it's a *big deal* to even design a game so you can stealthily *walk past them without shooting*. All games have their constraints; in Chess, you can't bribe units to refuse their orders (though that'd be an entirely different, and maybe fun game).
Why is shooting and bribing OK, but dating off limits? Isn't that rather sexist?
posted by effugas at 2:13 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
The main character in a shooting game can't do anything else but shoot the bad guys. I mean, it's a *big deal* to even design a game so you can stealthily *walk past them without shooting*. All games have their constraints; in Chess, you can't bribe units to refuse their orders (though that'd be an entirely different, and maybe fun game).
Why is shooting and bribing OK, but dating off limits? Isn't that rather sexist?
posted by effugas at 2:13 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
effugas, that's not dating. That's flirting to get the best guy based on your weight, clothes, hair-style - oh, wait a minute. Well, that sucks.
posted by doyouknowwhoIam? at 2:28 PM on October 14, 2011
posted by doyouknowwhoIam? at 2:28 PM on October 14, 2011
What, your video games are acceptable and normal and their video games are freakish and damaging?
I don't see John Walker calling for these games to be banned. He's making fun of stuff that he finds horrible and stupid.
I like first-person shooters, but if someone wants to mock them and express disgust for the way they take human beings and turn them into objects you use for target practice, I have no real answer to that. To me it's just a game, but I can understand someone who finds entertainment that involves pretending to kill and hurt people disgusting and repulsive. I can understand it in part because I'm horrified and disgusted that anyone could find Lady Popular entertaining.
It's when people start saying "These games should be banned because they turn people into violent criminals / sexist pigs / brainless bimbos" that I start asking them to show me some evidence or shut up.
posted by straight at 3:03 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
I don't see John Walker calling for these games to be banned. He's making fun of stuff that he finds horrible and stupid.
I like first-person shooters, but if someone wants to mock them and express disgust for the way they take human beings and turn them into objects you use for target practice, I have no real answer to that. To me it's just a game, but I can understand someone who finds entertainment that involves pretending to kill and hurt people disgusting and repulsive. I can understand it in part because I'm horrified and disgusted that anyone could find Lady Popular entertaining.
It's when people start saying "These games should be banned because they turn people into violent criminals / sexist pigs / brainless bimbos" that I start asking them to show me some evidence or shut up.
posted by straight at 3:03 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
What, your video games are acceptable and normal and their video games are freakish and damaging?
Yes.
posted by mrgrimm at 3:38 PM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Yes.
posted by mrgrimm at 3:38 PM on October 14, 2011 [2 favorites]
Actually there are plenty of people, feminists included, who think Call of Duty and company, taken together with Republican rhetoric and Guns and Ammo and the like, really are quite harmful to the psyche of many young men.
The intent of such a criticism is usually to point out the pervasiveness of a trope and describe its traits, so that you can then argue for why that trope is harmful. You can find conversations about social forces that don't start this way, if you look, but they're kind of hard to follow.
The writers just have to assume that readers will be able to see past "THIS THING IS BAD" and into "This is an attribute that this thing has and the attribute is bad." A lot of people can't, and perceive an attack on something that they find good and awesome.
I dunno, I guess communication's just hard.
posted by LogicalDash at 3:59 PM on October 14, 2011
The intent of such a criticism is usually to point out the pervasiveness of a trope and describe its traits, so that you can then argue for why that trope is harmful. You can find conversations about social forces that don't start this way, if you look, but they're kind of hard to follow.
The writers just have to assume that readers will be able to see past "THIS THING IS BAD" and into "This is an attribute that this thing has and the attribute is bad." A lot of people can't, and perceive an attack on something that they find good and awesome.
I dunno, I guess communication's just hard.
posted by LogicalDash at 3:59 PM on October 14, 2011
Oh, in any case, a lot of people do in fact dislike things for the simple fact that they use a trope that they find bad and horrible. That's nothing to do with politics or feminism or whatever, that's just how aesthetics work. So it's pretty disingenuous to assume that these objections are equivalent to "These games should be banned because they turn people into violent criminals / sexist pigs / brainless bimbos".
posted by LogicalDash at 4:02 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by LogicalDash at 4:02 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Exactly. The fact that this is a pseudo-role playing game and you can't choose the gender of your character (or "boyfriend") seems pretty telling.
posted by maryr at 4:09 PM on October 14, 2011
posted by maryr at 4:09 PM on October 14, 2011
I'm more perturbed by the dead-eyed thousand yard stare in these women's illustrations. There's this, I guess you would call it a 'theme' in the artwork for social games where they take one stock facial expression and use it everywhere. But here it's this pensive, almost angry stare that does seem common in the fashion industry. But it's kind of weird.
Are they just emulating fashion illustration? Is there some psychological reason for doing this?
posted by delmoi at 4:15 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Are they just emulating fashion illustration? Is there some psychological reason for doing this?
posted by delmoi at 4:15 PM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]
Logical Dash, my point was that John Walker and the other people in this thread criticizing the game aren't making that claim, which means making fun of these games is just expressing an opinion that they're terrible stuff I wouldn't want to play, so there's no hypocracy in criticizing this game even if you yourself play violent games that other people find disgusting.
posted by straight at 5:27 PM on October 14, 2011
posted by straight at 5:27 PM on October 14, 2011
I'm guessing you can't be a lesbian
Well, kind of. Look at Level 37 or Level 44. Having a girlfriend is cooler than dating George Clooney, but girls don't give you any money. In fact, look at the whole page because it tells you that:
player 1: You're meant to encourage players not discourage them.
player 2: LP isn't discouraging to me, it's more realistic.
posted by Busy Old Fool at 2:09 PM on October 16, 2011
Well, kind of. Look at Level 37 or Level 44. Having a girlfriend is cooler than dating George Clooney, but girls don't give you any money. In fact, look at the whole page because it tells you that:
- You meet boyfriends in the club and ladyfriends in the park.
- An IT expert is a better catch than a news anchor, but not as good as a car dealership owner.
- Hollywood actors are less generous than doctors.
player 1: You're meant to encourage players not discourage them.
player 2: LP isn't discouraging to me, it's more realistic.
posted by Busy Old Fool at 2:09 PM on October 16, 2011
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Shopping for videogames.
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 10:05 PM on October 13, 2011 [6 favorites]