Comic-Con Bounty Hunt for EA Booth Babes

But is it still WRONG,...if the breast is digital ?
( I guess it had BETTER still be a sin,....if "Inferno" is the game! )

This is what I ended up sending.... I may go after their advertisers too, but it may be too late to do much good.

I just heard about EA's Acts of Lust stunt, the withdrawal of it and the inadequate and missed-point "apology" EA has issued. I want you to know that I avoid Comic-Cons (and EA games) because of these kind of legs stunts.

I want you to know that there was no confusion; no one thought EA was selling actual sex. I guess EA was just letting women know once again what their true role in gaming is. If the Acts of Lust game was not turning its back on women, where is our game where we win a man, with a map drawn on a penis?

If you want to know how some others feel about this, here is a blog post link. The post by fountaingoats describes point by point how I feel about this. http://current.com/items/90529158_comic-con-bounty-hunt-for-ea-booth-babes.htm

Thanks once again for making me unwelcome at your event, except as a sex object.

Here's the email I sent to EA in response to this, and to their "apology" (which can be read here: http://kotaku.com/5322781/ea-apologizes-for-sin-to-win-booth-babe-promo). Let me know what you think.

To whom it may concern:

I am deeply disappointed in EA's decisions related to the "Sin to Win" promotion at Comic-Con this year. As more and more women become interested in gaming, you were there to remind us all that we're not welcome in the gaming community. This promotion reinforces women's role in that community as outsiders and objects of desire. The extreme sexism and objectification displayed in the advertising materials is clearly at issue here, but regardless of that, the contest is clearly for straight males - what incentive would straight females or gay males have to enter?

I've read the "official" PR statement about EA's actions, and it does nothing to address my concerns. I'm sure very few of the people who have voiced their opinion over this thought you were actually pimping out the "costumed reps" for sex. The problem we have is not "confusion and offense that resulted from [your] choice of wording" (to quote the PR statement) - we weren't confused. We hear you loud and clear: you intend to objectify women and propagate the culture of sexism within the gaming community. No confusion about that.

In fact, your PR statement adds insult to injury by implying that anyone who is offended by your actions is merely confused. Why doesn't the statement address the sexist nature of the contest or its marketing materials? You avoid the subject altogether by focusing on some fabricated "confusion." Your explanation that "it was all done in the spirit of the good natured fun" is insufficient at best and disgustingly offensive at worst. Do you have any idea how often women are treated like crap "in the spirit of good-natured fun?" This excuse, combined with the implication that the offended are merely confused, is an attempt to exonerate EA from all blame and to place the blame on the many women (and men) who found your actions offensive. You are saying that it's our fault for being offended, not your fault for making poor marketing choices and propagating sexism in the gaming community. You might as well have said, "we're sorry that you're so thin-skinned."

Female gamers are becoming a bigger and bigger consumer group, and at Comic-Con this weekend, EA showed that it's not positioned to take advantage of this. Apparently you are stuck in the old world of stereotypes where gamers are all straight males who drool over boobies and can't get a date without the help of a contest. The community of women gamers is a force to be reckoned with, and now that you have insulted and demeaned us, we will gladly take our money elsewhere. I will never buy another EA game again.

Regards,
Kelly -----

Way to include women in gaming. By objectifying them. Does EA have any idea how well this alienates women from the community of gamers? Not to mention making women feel unwelcome at Comic-Con in general. I, for one, won't be purchasing any EA games any time soon.

at first i thought this banner was on a treasure map, but i'm pretty sure it's actually on a womans chest - look closer to see the collar bones and the beginnings of cleavage.... gr8 way to keep it classy, EA.

i thought comic-con was trying to be more inclusive to fangirls... i've got a feeling this isnt helping anything.

That sounds like the scariest thing in the world... for her. I'm sure the winner will wet his pants when he finds out he won, though.

Yikes, even I think that's kinda sketchy