The Guy Game | |
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Developer(s) | Topheavy Studios |
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Publisher(s) | Gathering of Developers |
Release Date(s) | 2004 |
Genre(s) | Puzzle |
Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Rating(s) | ESRB: M |
Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox |
The Guy Game is an adult video game developed by Topheavy Studios and published by Gathering of Developers, released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, and the Xbox in 2004. Presented in a trivia gameshow style supporting up to four players, it consists of about 1,000 questions spread out over 20 episodes. Much of the game involves watching live-action video footage of young women in bikinis, and as the player succeeds in the game the women eventually expose their breasts. The game garnered much controversy and was the subject of a lawsuit.
Gameplay[]
After every question there is video footage—shot during spring break festivities on South Padre Island—of host Matt Sadler giving the same question to young females in bikinis (referred to as "hotties"). If they answer incorrectly, they are required to show their breasts. Before they give their answers, the footage is paused and the player is asked to guess whether the hotties answered correctly or not. In the "TitWitz" portions of the game, the player is told that they were wrong, and asked to guess what wrong answer they gave. The more times the player is able to correctly predict the outcome, the higher the "Flash-O-Meter" rises, and the more exposed the breasts become. At first, the breasts are obscured by a Guy Game logo ("Soft and Squishy" level), then just digitally blurred ("Sorta Chubby" level), and finally fully uncensored ("Super Stiff" level, maxed-out meter). Once the player reaches the uncensored level, the episode can be played again with no visual censorship. As the game progresses, the players are ranked as President, Vice President, Treasurer, or Asshole. Also included are the "Ballz" minigames which can give players extra points during an episode. Before the game, each player chooses a female avatar (called cheerleaders) to represent them. Based on how often the player correctly guesses the outcome of each hottie's response, the more clothes the cheerleader removes. At the end of the episode, a short video montage is shown of the cheerleader belonging to the player who reached the rank of President. Many other rules can be enabled, most inspired by drinking games.
Lawsuit[]
Four months after the game's release a lawsuit was brought against Topheavy Studios, Gathering of Developers, Inc. , Sony, and Microsoft.[1] A woman known as Diane in the game (who is found in Set 5, Episode 20) explained that she was not informed that footage would be used to promote the video game. At the time the footage was recorded (March 2003), Diane was only seventeen years old, making her underage. Diane faked an ID to participate in the recorded contest and gave their permission with her signature to use the content in the game, despite security mesures to provent minors attenedind the event. [2] A temporary injuction was granted in December 2004, prohibiting the further production of copies and distribution of the game that contained the girl's image, voice, and name.[3] An appeal in 2005 was held and the conclusion was that the injuction is only valid in Texas and the trial did not resolve the question as to whether Topheavy had produced child pornography. It also could not determit if the contract she signed with the develloper is valid or not.[4]
After the lawsuit, developer Topheavy Studios released a DVD, The Guy Game: Game Over, which featured the footage filmed for the game as well as additional content and bonus features.[3]
Reception[]
The Guy Game received generally unfavorable reviews across all three platforms, with the Xbox version holding an aggregated Metacritic score of 47/100, based on 20 critic reviews, the PlayStation 2 version holding a score of 48/100, based on 20 reviews, and the Microsoft Windows version holding a score of 23/100, based on two reviews.
References[]
- ↑ Thorsen, Tor (December 23, 2004). "Topless teen sues over 'The Guy Game'". CBS Interactive. Retrieved on October 30, 2016.
- ↑ Warner, Richard (January 17, 2008). "Topheavy Studios, Inc. v. Jane Doe". Illinois Institute of Technology. Retrieved on October 30, 2016.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "The Guy Game banned, goes straight to video". Retrieved on 2 January 2017.
- ↑ https://casetext.com/case/topheavy-studios-v-doe