I just received the August 2001 issue of Computer Gaming World and was flipping through it when a picture caught my eye (Maxim girls, Page 39). I started reading the article and I can't decide whether the situation is sad or hilarious (or both). The spokesmodels interviewed by Ms. Fleming seemed to be fairly harsh on the E3 crowd - "They don't get out much.", "They're easily fascinated.", "You can tell these guys are staying indoors alot."

Does having these ladies in skimpy clothing actually do anything for the comapanies that hire them? I know the practice of using attractive people at tradeshows and in commercials is not confined to the gaming industry, but it would seem that solid gameplay, attractive grahpics and bug-free programming would bring better press than 10 "booth babes".

Heck, I don't know, perhaps the game developers and marketing teams want the gaming press to think these are the type of women they hang out with all the time and, if they get a good review, they can hook you up.

-DavidCPA

PS..I don't think it is necessarily "wrong" to use attractive people to get attention for a company's product because that is what marketing does. It only seems out of place in the setting of E3 where most of the audience is the gaming press.

The booth babes don't do anything for me. I like to look just as much as the next guy, but I've never gone out of my way to visit a booth just because it's manned by babes.

Honestly, if I'm in the mood for that I can go get some wings at Hooters or drive across the river and visit a strip club.

They have different booth babes in many european trade shows. They're "professional" booth babes, not out-of-work models and struggling "actresses" from LA who just stand there and look giggly. They're model-types, yes, but they're usually well educated, bilingual, and they're briefed on the products. They're really useful as a first contact in an environment where visitors often speak various languages and stuff.

I don't think they've got this class of Booth Babe at ECTS, but many other european big-business trade shows have 'em.

Now if E3 booth babes were like this, I'd certainly enjoy the show a lot more.

>The spokesmodels interviewed by Ms. Fleming seemed to be fairly harsh on the E3 crowd - "They don't get out much.", "They're easily fascinated.", "You can tell these guys are staying indoors alot."

Okay, that's certainly fair, but turnabout is fair play. I could just as well make generalizations about them like, "They're not paying the bills as a pro model and don't wanna do porno" or "it's pretty obvious they're wannabe actresses without a college education."

I get a lot more mileage out of some of the really very attractive PR reps. Useful, smart, AND easy on the eyes.

>I don't think they've got this class of Booth Babe at ECTS

They don't.

"Does having these ladies in skimpy clothing actually do anything for the comapanies that hire them? ... it would seem that solid gameplay, attractive grahpics and bug-free programming would bring better press than 10 "booth babes"."

I've never really thought that booth babes were meant for the press. E3 is only partially about getting press for your games - a great deal of it is so publishers can meet with distributors, and developers can meet with publishers. Those are the the real targets of all the flash.

Or, at least they were at one time. E3 has become some huge entity unto itself, with little rhyme or reason for existing in the manner that it does.

-Ron

>>"Okay, that's certainly fair, but turnabout is fair play. I could just as well make generalizations about them like, "They're not paying the bills as a pro model and don't wanna do porno" or "it's pretty obvious they're wannabe actresses without a college education.">>

Ms. Fleming didn't let the models off free,

"Incidientally, some of these Babes had bad breath."

Describing an otherwise attractive babe, she added, "Her nose was like a discarded lump of Play-Doh." Ouch!

Overall a well written article and an interesting insight into the non-gaming part of E3.

>>"...a great deal of it is so publishers can meet with distributors, and developers can meet with publishers. Those are the the real targets of all the flash.">>

That may explain alot. Marketing guys putting on a show for purchasing guys.

-DavidCPA