Okay, not puppies per se, ’cause 1) I don’t know if that’s possible and 2) that’s just mean.
Anyways, after my “Portal is for Lesbians” post, Scott and I were talking about other mainstream games that slip in some subtle, maybe/maybe not, “Okay, I can totally see that now” gay overtones. For example? Nintendogs! No, don’t worry, this isn’t yet another old-school homophobic puppy bash (“ugh, adorableness threatens my manhood and is thus so very gay”). What I mean is, if you think about it, you could read Nintendogs as a game about gay men walking their dogs around town to meet other guys.
It’s hardly a new idea; guys in San Francisco and New York do it all the time. You walk your adorable puppy around the block, another guy stops to compliment you on the adorableness of your puppy, and you end up going for a coffee. What’s great is that Nintendo (granted, probably not intentionally) has passed us down a friendly hook-up sim cleverly disguised as a pet care simulator.
I mean, I don’t know about you, but everybody–and I mean everybody–in my Nintendogs town was male. “Look, it’s Gary. Let’s go say hi. Oh look, now it’s Mark. He’s so nice. And look, it’s…” Come on, you’re a single male puppy-owner with an interest in stylish home interiors and fellow male pet owners. You get it. You know you do.
Bonnie Ruberg is a sex, technology, and video games journalist who contributes regularly to publications like The Economist, Forbes, and The Village Voice. By day she's also a comparative literature PhD student at UC Berkeley, where she studies French, English, gender, sexuality, surrealism and perversion. You can reach her at [her first name and last name, all one big word] AT gmail DOT com.
October 23rd, 2007 at 10:18 am
Will Imagine: Babyz allow MILFS to meet other MILFS?
October 23rd, 2007 at 10:25 am
I like the way you think :).
That is, of course, the only reason people have children. So they can parade them around as hook-up conversation starters. Then again, I’m pretty sure Imagine: Babyz is more a babysitting sim than a motherhood sim… so babysitters hooking up with other babysitters? Ah, what a post that would be.
October 23rd, 2007 at 2:06 pm
Frankly, I’m a little worried about how the developer is referring to Babies as a “hobby” of 6 – 13 year old girls.
October 24th, 2007 at 1:20 am
Of course. I’m hoping to grab a review copy and see just how troubling things really are in babysitting land.
October 24th, 2007 at 5:22 am
Okay I’m sorry, but I think that you’re over analyzing.
When I use to walk my dog I was looking to attract hot chicks. Though I suppose it was possible for me to attract gay men, but I didn’t. Just, because I happen to be walking my dog in an area with more men then woman doesn’t mean I’m looking for men.
I can’t say I know what the make up is of Nintendogs players. Nor do I own it. Still I don’t think of Nintendogs as a male only game. So what ever, I have to go to work. Peace out…
October 24th, 2007 at 11:06 am
I am tempted to get Imagine: Animal Doctor as a gift for my vet friend for the holidays.
October 24th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
Ah, Wileama, there’s a difference between the players and the characters in it. I’m female; I play Nintendogs. I’d wager that a higher percentage of the Nintendog playing crowd is female than the normal mainstream gaming crowd. Still, that doesn’t change the fact that the characters in the game seem to be entirely male.
And of course it’s over-analyzing. It’s fun!
October 24th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Ahhh, I thought the only characters in the game where the dogs. Well then, I grant you permission to continue your crazy over analyzing ways. :p
March 1st, 2009 at 12:55 am
[...] Oh, and Puppies are Totally Gay, Too [...]