IGDA to look at sex in games

The International Game Developers Association has established a new Special Interest Group designed to "address the issues and challenges facing the use of adult sexual content in video games."

According to the SIG's official website, "the Sex SIG welcomes everyone interested in the topic of sexual content in video games, from developers actively creating such content to parents to those working in or with organizations that seek to restrict such content."

"[The SIG] embraces sex and sexuality as a natural, healthy and positive force in our lives and in the games we make."

The SIG's chair and founder, Brenda Brathwaite, commented: "Our main objective is to encourage responsible development." Brathwaite was lead designer on Cyberlore Studios' Playboy: The Mansion.

The SIG plans to issue white papers and deliver conference lectures on the importance of responsible development, and an online forum and mailing list has been set up to encourage debate. The IGDA has previously established SIGs to look at issues such as women in games, the rights of workers in the games industry and games for mobile phones.

"Sexual content in videogames is not a new phenomenon," said IGDA executive director Jason Della Rocca.

"Recent events are merely intensifying the attention to the topic, further validating the need for developers to connect on these issues," he continued, undoubtedly referring to the continuing controversy over the infamous Hot Coffee mod in Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.