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When Booth Babes Are Outlawed, Only Outlaws Will Have Booth Babes

Posted by Bob Mackey

Once upon a time, when men were men and E3 was E3, booth babes populated crowded convention centers full of men who wouldn't know what to do with them if they had the chance.  But not long before the death of the old E3, booth babes were abolished, causing an uproar from convention attendees who would no longer have the chance to get their pictures taken with women who clearly loathe them. This has always been a confusing reaction, because--from my perspective--if you're a man there's never any shortage of women who loathe you.

Fortunately for Tokyo Game Show attendees, Japan has not ditched the idea of the booth babe as a negative stereotype that does nothing but reinforce the idea of women as helpless playthings who subsequently make our industry appear to be chock-full of horny teenagers.  1UP.com has decided to document the adventures of these booth babes in a new [feature/gallery/mom don't come in here] that shows these women working hard for the money.  So hard for it, honey.  Like From Software's Village of the Damned dancers:



I gotta admit, these booth babes are classier than ours; note the relatively modest dress, lack of silicone, and presence of dignity.  Japan clearly has no idea what they're doing.

Related Links:

Gender Equality Fail: Kombo For Women
Penny Arcade Sums Up E3
TGS Trailer Time: Resident Evil 5


Comments

Demaar said:

I'd say this has a lot to say about how Japan thinks of women, but then I remember it was only a couple of years ago that E3 decided Boothbabes were bad, and the reasons weren't exactly the right ones either.

October 10, 2008 9:48 PM

About Bob Mackey

For a brief period of time I was Bull from TV's Night Court, but some of you may know me from the humor column I wrote for Youngstown State University's The Jambar, Kent State University's The Stater, and Youngstown's alternative newspaper, The Walruss. I'm perhaps most well-known for my bi-weekly pieces on Something Awful. I've also blogged for Valley24.com and have written articles for EGM, 1UP, GameSpite and Cracked. For all of my writing over the years, I have made a total of twenty American dollars. It's also said that I draw cartoons, which people have described with words such as "legible." I kidnapped the Lindbergh Baby and am looking to do so again in the future.

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