Lewis Packwood Spiffing Reads

Spiffing Reads: Sex in Games and the Future of VR

This week on Spiffing Reads, it’s all sex and VR. So a bit like the Brosnan-starring The Lawnmower Man, then.

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The best – and very worst – sex scenes in video game history (The Guardian)

When it comes to sex scenes in video games, it seems that Bioware is one of the only developers that has even come close to actually creating, well, sexy ones. Even then, there’s still a long way to go – I’m thinking of that disappointing Talia bed scene in Mass Effect (which incidentally, someone has tried to fix). Still, it sounds like CD Projekt Red are giving Bioware a run for their money with the steamy scenes in The Witcher III, a game I’m intrigued to play (and not just for the unicorn sex, honest).

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Virtual reality’s driving force (Eurogamer)

Reports suggest that sales of Oculus Rift and Vive have flatlined after an initial surge, and it’s anyone’s guess as to how successful PlayStation VR will be. There’s a real worry that VR will just turn out to be a fad like Microsoft’s Kinect – initially captivating in its cleverness, but let down by lightweight games and ultimately deemed too fiddly and pointless. Still, even if the VR resurgence flounders, I can see driving-game fans – like our very own Sir Gaulian – giving it a long-term future. The same audience that will happily shell out for a force-feedback steering wheel is also likely to stump up for a VR headset – and judging by this report, driving games are at least one genre where VR really makes a massive difference.

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“We’re definitely at the point where something’s gotta give” (GamesIndustry.biz)

It’s astonishing to hear Amy Hennig recounting the crazy working hours she did at Naughty Dog. Essentially she worked 80-hour weeks for years at a time. Reading this made me think how AAA game development just isn’t sustainable any more – games are getting bigger and bigger, and so are dev teams, but the game prices and schedules remain the same. If the only way that game developers can get games out on time and on budget is to work hundreds of hours of unpaid overtime, then something is clearly not working.

Spiffing Reads is a regular feature where we pick out the best gaming articles of the week. If you’ve read anything interesting, please let us know in the comments.