Cybersex, Prostitution and Inevitability of Sex – The Dark Secrets of MMO
Some people maintain our entire culture, since it's derived from primal instincts, is determined by sex. We're not going to ponder over this question, but rather examine it's manifestations in MMO RPGs.
Table of Contents
- Cybersex, Prostitution and Inevitability of Sex – The Dark Secrets of MMO
- I like to move it in Azeroth!
- A matter of business
- Public houses and sponsors are the standard
- Will you marry me? It'll pay off!
A piece of trivia for starters: sex workers exist in the MMORPG genre since its very inception. Don't believe it? The creators of Ultima Online themselves confirmed that the very first profession in their game was not smiting, alchemy or anything typically associated with RPG mechanics. One of the first players of that game obtained an empty property, and promptly established a prostitution ring. The simple business that exchanged payments for bowing and sexting turned out very profitable. With this anecdote, we've begun the story of cybersex, vice, and debauchery in online video games.
Sex, drugs & rock’n’roll
Star Wars Galaxies. Once Upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away, a player decided to become a pimp. He made a real fortune by creating a set of extra characters that other players would hire for a fee. He was always in there, always accompanied by his eager employees.
After making the payment, the player was able to take the selected character to a secluded location and indulge in some virtual delights (such as, you know, laying on the ground with the other character sort of tea-bagging?) So if you want to think MMORPGs are a safe haven, be careful to avoid the dark alleys, because you may find some really bizarre things. And remember, you're never sure who actually plays a particular virtual character – a real woman or a grose dude. Or don't – it's up to you.
VIRTUAL CELEB CONQUERS REAL WORLD
In February this year, a virtual character began stealing viewers from real women on a website for camgirls. The digital heroines modelled on the Vocaloids (very popular in Japan) are nothing new – places for watching virtual character instead of living people are very popular – it's called "vtube," and the people who deliver such content are vtubers. However, no one seemed to expect that such a virtual model would conquer an erotic website (though many were probably happy about the occasion) – much to the dislike of real models.
