Whether it’s on a console, handheld device or our PC, video games have become a central part in our everyday life. The characters, the design, the story and the gameplay are all wrapped up in a (hopefully) fun experience for the player. As video games became more popular, artists from various mediums became inspired to create their own artwork based on the characters and worlds they’ve been part of. From 2D sprites to full fledged 3D models, there’s different forms of inspiration that have created some of the best artwork out there.
Even in the world of 3DX, artists have been triggered by gaming to create their own version of some of the most popular characters out there. Most 3DX artists do enjoy the quality of gaming out there, but also love to see more done with the girls featured in the games. From Epoch’s Clara Raven to Zzomp’s version of Kasumi, 3DX artists have wanted to their beloved 3D heroines in various scenarios that wouldn’t normally see done by video game developers. That’s why we spoke with various artists about their thoughts on gaming and how it has influenced their works. And as avid gamers, we also wanted to know more about their passion for gaming.
Gaming is hitting their highest levels in terms of graphics and popularity. At the same time, 3DX has been steadily growing with more artists joining the fray. Do you feel that the growth in gaming has led to the growth in 3DX or 3DX naturally grew on its own?
Epoch: I don’t really think an increase in gaming has had any increase on 3D artists. I think the affordability of easy to use softwares like Daz Studio and Poser are responsible for that. 90% of the rendered porn you see out there is using Daz3D meshes, which has eliminated the need for a true 3D artist to make his/her own assets, thereby lowering the barrier to entry even further. Availability, affordability, ease of use… these are the reasons for the increase.
Zzomp: I think the more gaming graphics grown the more 3DX will do the same.
Mongo-Bongo: Think it grew more due to the improvements and accessibility of hobbyist 3d render programs. The games certainly help drive the initial interest, but the relatively cheap render programs are the key.
Supro: I think gaming does have an effect on some. I think people would love to see more of their favorite characters in hardcore situations and if the developers or no one else is doing that, then they’ll take the initiative to make it happen.
ExGemini: I believe that the growth of 3DX is following is natural path, but with a small boost from gaming industry. The more the 3D graphics becomes the basic medium to use, the more people will start to fiddle with it and get good in producing animations and models.
Miro: I think everything 3D has an influence on 3DX to a degree, but I think the growth of the 3DX scene is pretty much fuelled by itself. It’s obvious that the main stream gaming industry will stay away from porn and that apparently the porn industry has been content with sticking to tradition.
But the growth of both is to do with growth of anything virtual and 3D in general. What 3D does is merge reality with your imagined reality/dreams, what is… with… what you want it to be! No other medium has the potential to achieve this like 3D and of course 3DX for porn 😀 And with humans it’s all about dreams you’re never content with what you have you’re always on the way to something new, thrilling and exciting. 3DX is the vehicle to take you there!
Vizivius: 3dx might have grown on it’s on, but it has been influenced by games as well, in that some games appeal to sexuality leaving the player high and dry. That’s where we come in. 🙂
Detomasso: I agree. 3D erotic art and also 3DX is getting more and more popular. The growth of 3DX has its own direction, but games have had an influence of course. Attractive game characters don’t stay unnoticed for too long by 3DX artists. The best thing about 3DX is the fact you can create anything you want. Hot futa-chicks, babes with big boobies etc. No problem. 3DX – NO LIMITS.
Did video games have an influence on you entering into 3DX? If so, how?
Epoch: Actually, quite the opposite. I played video games ever since I was a kid, but when I started using Poser and making my own 3D porn, I began learning techniques relevant to 3D and, by extrapolation, game development. The concepts involved in making 3D art is for the most part the same when making games at least as it relates to 3D meshes, rigging, weight mapping, texturing, lighting, etc. As I became more skilled in 3D art and understood the concepts, that’s when I found myself dissecting how video games are made and realized it was what I wanted to do. So now I am in grad school earning my MFA in Game Design.
Zzomp: Obviously. ^_^ I started thinking about 3DX playing DoA on my Xbox. Those big bouncing boobs were fucking hypnotic. 🙂 Next step was buying DoA Extreme Beach Volleyball and finally trying to do my own virtual girls using Poser.
Mongo-Bongo: Not so much. Art was the primary influence. Though games do provide some great ideas and inspiration for sets.
Supro: I would say yes to this. I truly prefer to play games where I’m able to create my own character and use them in whatever boundaries the game has set for me. Some of my characters were inspired by creations from games, so I have to say that there’s a chance that without that option, I wouldn’t be doing this.
ExGemini: I don’t work in 3DX per se but, entering the 3D world for me was indeed influenced by video games.
Miro: No. I love games, and I love 3DX games, but there was always a disconnect mainly because they’re just two different industries and no-one really crosses each others paths. If anything it was the other way around though a healthy appreciation for 3DX has lead me to pick many a games based on the ability to sexify it like Dragon Age with boob and nude mods and I’ve seen amazing mods for Oblivion too. Dragon Age played 10x better with nude busty chicks slaying monsters!
Vizivius: Not really.
Detomasso: Games had a major influence on my decision to start with 3DX, especially one. To see the most famous games heroine in poses that every man dreams about…Whoa. It was a challenge for me.
Adult games have been around for a long time (Custer’s Revenge anyone?). Within the last few years, adult games have been released with 3D graphics, though they don’t compare to the big budget games in terms of graphics. Do you feel that this is the right path 3DX will be heading into with graphics comparable to the consoles?
Epoch: God I hope so. But there will never be adult releases for the consoles, which is actually probably for the best. The technology of the current gen consoles is at its breaking point; developers are ready to innovate and bring new techniques that can’t be done currently except on PC (PhysX, new DirectX tesselation). Unfortunately, it’s going to be at least another year before the next gen consoles are out. I would guess Q4 2013 at the earliest, maybe even later. Besides, how are you going to fap to an adult video game with a controller in your hand?
But if adult gaming is going to gain traction, it needs to stay in the realm of the PC. PC will always have better hardware options anyway to offer the best gaming experience and developers of adult PC games can use this to take chances and innovate. After all, an adult game developer should hardly be concerned with doing things like a regular game studio does, so I’m all for them pushing the boundaries of what can be done in their games.
But unfortunately, we have virtually no studios making ground-breaking content. The only American company I can think of that has tried and succeeded (moderately) was D-Dub (Bonetown, Bonecraft) and while the first game was ambitious, the second was just an on rails version of the first game that was sandbox, except set in space. It wasn’t innovative at all. Illusion and Teatime are the only serious adult game makers out there but they don’t want to sell outside of Japan so they are cannibalizing their own profit by encouraging overseas piracy. Not to mention, their engines are so poorly optimized and seem to cater to those with low end specification PCs, which is just a waste of development in my opinion. So while I am all about adult video games, I simply don’t see it becoming a prolific niche. Ever.
Zzomp: We’ll never see a 3DX game with the same quality of a normal game. Anyway, I think it would be better working on 3DX movies than 3DX games.
Mongo-Bongo: Leisure Suit Larry! As for high-quality graphics? I think somebody will definitely give it a go. Whether or not it actually pays off it something else entirely. I imagine it’s a lot more difficult to advertise an adult game, than your standard console game.
Supro: One day we may see a 3DX game that compares to the consoles, not just in graphics, but in gameplay too.
ExGemini: Not a chance. Sadly the gaming industry of today is sick. Do a Google research and see how much money the burn to make a game that barely gives you 6 hours of gaming. They spend MILLIONS of dollars and 90% of the games that comes out are mediocre to say the least. Most of the fault is the publishers that push push push to see results and sell the crap, and the other half is, ofc ourse the developers.
3DX gaming will never reach current console gaming graphic level simply cause they don’t have a) the budged and b) the market. When you sell, I don’t know, the next GTA to use a big name, you are sure that you gonna sell millions of copies in a day. When you publish a 3DX title, ONLY passionates will know that and will buy it. It’s all a matter of money, not much of skills.
Miro: Yes, no question. CG movies are kind of a window to what games will be like and games are precursor to what 3DX will do in the near future. I think 3DX will go head into both mainstream 3DX porn videos/ movies and 3DX porn games. And it doesn’t take long to notice that cg animation is one of the driving forces in Hollywood today and that every special effect conceivable will have 3D effects at the heart of it. We may not be able to fathom the idea today, but the future will entail both real and virtual movie/ game stars on equal footing, imho.
And 3DX is the prefect extension to what porn needs but can’t do and the only thing stopping it are technology, social acceptance and a couple of other major hurdles, but these are barriers that can and will be crossed! I think the heart and inspiration is there within the 3DX artist community. It’s clear they’re doing it for the love and fun of it. Whilst I think it’s okay, indeed encouraged for an artists to make a living, the passion must be there first, without it you’re driving a Lamborghini on a Suzuki motor.
Vizivius: Of course ! As it becomes easier and cheaper to create, the quality will only be raised in the future.
Detomasso: Yeah, General Custer and his duties :).
Even though adult games are not a major genre, they should try to use an attractive visual style. Better graphics will interest more people, more people will buy it, etc.
I think anyone that ever picked up a controller had their own video game crush when they were young. Who was your first gaming love? While we’re at it, who’s your favorite video game girl of all time?
Epoch: Lara Croft was my first love, but I have a lot of loves from video games! I love Claire Redfield and Jill Valentine from Resident Evil, Chloe Frazer from Uncharted, Miranda Lawson from Mass Effect 2 & 3, Tifa and Aeris from Final Fantasy VII, and Rikku and Yuna from Final Fantasy X and X-II. I really have a soft spot for Yuna because her character was so tragic and emotional. Even though many people didn’t enjoy that game series (more X-II than X), I loved it because of the romantic aspect of it, and how the whole second game is Yuna trying to find her lost love.
Zzomp: About the game? Mmm…I think Golden Axe was my first love. About the girls, I don’t know. There are too many sexy females around to choose only one 😀 But if I have to make a choice, Kasumi from Dead or Alive saga is my all time fav girl.
Mongo-Bongo: Oh man, that’s too tough to choose. FF series had some really great ones. Then there is always Lara. The Resident Evil girls. Dead or Alive. Soul Calibur.
Supro: Damn that’s a tough one. But I’m gonna have to go with the Rival Schools girls (can’t pick just one :P). RS was one of my favorite fighting games of all time, so there were a lot of girls there that I probably had the hots for. Nowadays, I’d have to say Rubi Malone from Wet is my current fav. I love everything about her. A chick who kick ass while still retaining her sexy. Oh yeah.
ExGemini: Mate, I come from a time where Commodore was the true king of gaming. 🙂 I never found another game that got me so, not addicted, but passionate about a video game. Ooh memories! In regards of the favorite girl of all time, that’s a tough question. It’s hard because the first video girl I remember to use was Chun-Li and mostly due that lovely thighs than anything else. 😀 I think I’ll go with Bayonetta. She is sexy and funny.
Miro: Errmmm, I think you mean mouse and keyboard. If I’m being perfectly honest, I never had a crush on a girl from a game. Maybe because the hot girls seemed to hang out on the consoles and I’m a PC only gamer. My first contact with a game beauty was Tifa via Tifa’s Hardcore game series. Yes, I knew Tifa’s 3DX version before I knew the actual game char o_0! The other reason is the games I played like Unreal Tournament, Diablo, etc had horrible looking chicks in them. I finally did find good looking girls in games like Aion and Dragon Age, but it took a while.
Vizivius: Lara croft and her twins… and probably still is. :]
Detomasso: So who could it be? Hmm…I think I don’t need to say it’s Lara Croft. 🙂
Have you ever re-create your own 3DX character based on a video game character or considered it?
Epoch: Clara Ravens is an obvious knockoff of Lara Croft. And the Jack Hawkins character is a Nathan Drake knockoff. I’ve been meaning to make a Chloe Frazer character too, but just haven’t gotten around to it.
Zzomp: Of course! I made my own Kasumi a couple of years ago 🙂
Mongo-Bongo: Plenty. More than a few Soul Calibur inspired ones.
Supro: Tried a couple of times, but never fully completed one.
ExGemini: No. Tried yes, but succeeded no. It’s not that easy no matter how hard you try, especially in 3D graphics. You need hell of good skills in sculpting and modelling.
Miro: No, personally I prefer original characters. But I’m not completely put off by the idea. Taking a character and maker her your own or even as a challenge to try a different style, does have it’s appeal.
Vizivius: Nope.
Detomasso: Since 2009, all my artwork is and will be dedicated only to Lara Croft.
What are you favorite past and current games and why?
Epoch: The Resident Evil series is probably my favorite series to date. I fell in love with the survival horror genre after RE1 and they are still my favorite type of games. I also love the Final Fantasy series because of FFVII and how it changed the way games were experienced. And, of course, the tragedy behind the death of Aeris. My new favorite franchises though are the Dead Space and Uncharted franchises. Uncharted was great because Nathan Drake is just so damn funny (Nolan North is the most amazing voice actor on this planet) and I loved Uncharted 2 and the jokes between the ‘love triangle’ of Nathan, Elena, and Chloe. And Dead Space is just an amazing series for so many reasons. It looks prettier than almost any modern day game, it has incredibly fun and diverse game play mechanics, a super-creepy and compelling story, and… the game will scare the fucking shit out of you. Visceral made such an incredible game with DS2 and it deserved more attention for Game of the Year last year, though it was a tough year with games like Skyrim and the Uncharted, Call of Duty, and Assassin’s Creed franchises all seeing releases. If you haven’t played Dead Space, you are seriously missing out on an amazing series and I recommend you go play it immediately.
Zzomp: Diablo some years ago. World of Warcraft now. Probably because I’m a fantasy stuff addict.
Mongo-Bongo: Big fan of PvP games. Fave was Tribes 2 (Renegade mod). Current is EvE-Online. Neither are good at all for chick inspiration. But they are fabulous for harvesting tears.
Supro: I grew up on fighting games since my brothers were really into them. As mentioned earlier, Rival Schools was an old-school fave. I also loved Evil Zone, mainly because it was like the easiest fighting game on the planet. I also love Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, SF Alpha 3 and a couple of wrestling games. The best game I’ve ever played was Bioshock. The story just drove me into the underwater world of Rapture. It was absolutely one of my favorite games to play. I sometimes like to pop it in my 360 once in a while.
ExGemini: Turrican 2. It was magical. It has that unique music, shooter and platform style that I couldn’t find anywhere since then and more than 20 years has passed *sighs*. Current games that I just love are Halo and before BioWare screwed up big time, Mass Effect. The more the time pass, the more I find myself looking for strong stories with deep involvements. I care less and less about graphics and more about contents.
Miro: My all time favorite of the past would have to be Unreal Tournament, my current even though I hardly get to play would have to be Quake Live. The skill required to play this game in combination with the fast paced action is a great Adrenaline rush. Other games I’ve played and really enjoyed include Aion, EverQuest 2, Dragon Age, Diablo and Starcraft.
Vizivius: Past Oblivion, current Skyrim. Cause of all the adult content made available by the gaming community. 😛
Detomasso: If I looked over all games that I ever played, definitely it is the Mass Effect trilogy. The story, actions, characters, emotions are all simply amazing. For me it is like an interactive movie. But there are also other memorable games like Silent Hill, BloodRayne or Stalker.
What games are you looking forward to that’s coming out this year?
Epoch: Quite a bunch, actually. Diablo 3, Borderlands 2, Resident Evil 6, I Am Alive… I’m hoping Assassin’s Creed 3 brings my attention back to the series, because I was kinda getting bored with Ezio after Revelations and just thought the game wasn’t very innovative the way AC2 and AC:B were.
I’m also excited but nervous about the Tomb Raider reboot, only because I feel she’s been treated poorly by Eidos since she became popular and a character like Lara Croft deserves to be in epic games that are memorable for more than simply being a game featuring Lara Croft. Angel of Darkness was easily one of the worst video games ever made, and even Underworld, which is their crowning achievement to date so far, has horrible gameplay compared to other games. So part of the reason I am nervous about this reboot is because Crystal Dynamics is still making the game, and using the same game engine they used for Underworld. And Crystal Dynamics is a mediocre game studio at best. I could go on and on about my anger towards Eidos and the choices they’ve made with their titular character that seem to stem from nothing more than using her as their ‘cash cow’, but I will simply end by saying that if Eidos were to give their IP to a rock star studio like Naughty Dog, Rocksteady, Visceral, Bethesda, Valve… the Tomb Raider franchise would be all that devoted fans like myself expect it to be. I’m still waiting for that “Holy Shit!” Tomb Raider experience that Lara deserves to star in.
Zzomp: I’ve not so much time to play videogames at the moment, but I think next WoW expansion will be interesting. I’m really curious on how Blizzard will introduce pandas in the game.
Supro: Bioshock Infinite. Bioshock 2 was good, but not as awesome as the first. I’m expecting this one to be even better as the original developers are returning for this one. I’m also looking forward to the new South Park game (always been a fan of the series). I might check out the Tomb Raider, Borderlands 2, Halo 4 and maybe Lollipop Chainsaw.
Mongo-Bongo: Dust514 is the only one I’m really excited about. Am curious about Diablo III, Tomb Raider, RE6, and XCOM.
ExGemini: As I said, I got totally let down by the Mass Effect 3 ending. So I guess Halo 4 is the only thing I’m looking for so far. The rest can burn in hell.
Miro: I’m kinda looking forward to Diablo 3. Still wish I could play Skyrim but I’m scared of all the time it would delete from my life. Other than that I’d still play Quake Live most of the time.
Vizivius: Unless Bethesda is coming out with the next Elder Scrolls, not much.
Detomasso: Even though I don’t have time to play games as much as I used to in the past, I’m really curious to see the reboot of the Tomb Raider series.
s666
April 18, 2012Thank you sunny ^^
Sunny
April 15, 2012BloodRayne Topless, from the October, 2004 issue of Playboy Magazine
http://www.onedigitallife.com/bloodrayne_topless2.htm
s666
April 15, 2012Hi, who’s the girl with red hairs in the first banner (in middle)?
She’s amazing! thanks you.
myself
April 14, 2012hummmm kinda remember the uprising that was going on about mass effect 1 :3
renderfan
April 12, 2012Too many games are too politically correct and/or timid with their female characters. It’s like they are afraid of offending feminists. But, you can see in this interview that the best games have busty/flirty girls. (^.^)
Katzekage
April 12, 2012Exelent interview of so many artists at the same time, nice collection of pictures to give the final touch to this article.
“Lollipop Chainsaw” 🙂
def a 5/5 and my two thumbs gos up
in honor Katzekage
myself
April 12, 2012sry too huge wall of text 😛 just skiped to the pictures 😛