Gamecrush gets ‘game crashed’
Coming Soon!
News of the new online pay to play social networking service Gamecrush was greeted with eyebrow raising and open mockery by some, yet many gamers themselves were not so skeptical. Within 20 minutes of the official beta launch, the site fell victim to its own instant popularity as thousands of gamers raced to join and ended up crashing the site in spectacular fashion. The fact that the beta was crashed immediately means that, there is definitely a market out there for this kind of service. Assuming that interest holds after the novelty wears off, this market is vastly bigger than even the folks at Gamecrush themselves could have predicted.
When you think about it, it was really only a matter of time before something like Gamecrush came along, offering up a massive directory of women available and willing to be your gaming girl in exchange for some dollars. It’s a story as old as time itself, but rather than start in on all the tired talk about “lonely nerd gamers??? or “Players??? as they are known on Gamecrush, I’m really more curious as to what kind of experience this will be for the ladies of Gamecrush, or “Playdates??? as they are known.
Obviously I had to do some hands on detective work to see for myself just what all the fuss is about. I took a minute to peruse their FAQ section before heading to the PlayDate sign up page. As I read the explanation of what it is, exactly, that this site offers, I am struck yet again by the fact that we are in the year 2010 and to date this is the first pay to play “online adult social gaming site??? in existence. Social networking sites have, since their earliest appearance on the internet, been populated by their fair share of gamers. And of course there are countless gaming related sites with forums available for gamers to connect to other gamers with similar interests all over the world. But when it comes to gaming guys and gals finding each other and forging connections online, there are some major barriers.
It is well established that the Internet makes it easy for people to pass themselves off as someone or something they are not, if they are so inclined. The old adage “once bitten, twice shy??? holds very true in gaming, as it is both general practice and a running joke for people to claim that “girls don’t play video games.??? Many male gamers still react with shock and disbelief and even varying degrees of hostility to those claiming to be female in a game, so entrenched are these perceptions. The advent of audio channels and webcam chat in gaming has made it easy for girls to prove their identity, but once you’ve established that you are in fact female, you may just end up having to defend yourself and your credentials as an actual girl gamer; emphasis on the gamer.
Gamette Jenna Jaguar of www.blackmage.net
In other words, the gaming world seems to be trapped in a vicious cycle: guys think girls don’t play video games, so anyone claiming to be a girl who also loves games must be lying – either they aren’t really a girl or they don’t really love games. Obviously there are a lot of guy gamers who understand that many women love gaming, and who have played games competitively with women on many occasions. The rare nerd even has a girlfriend who plays the occasional game! But in all seriousness, given that knee-jerk suspicion and skepticism toward gamer girls does persist in many forms, through many avenues, I see Gamecrush – and any similar sites in the future, (which will inevitably follow if Gamecrush proves to be a success) as nothing but a positive step.
The simple fact that now there is a place for gamers to go to find other gamers who are by definition not only 100% guaranteed female, but ready and willing to give you their undivided attention and play the game of your choosing with you, means that all of a sudden when they come across a female gamer in the wider world of online gaming and console gaming networks like Xbox Live, it won’t be such a novelty anymore.
Removing the novelty from the idea of girl gamers can only be a good thing. We all know that there are girls who take advantage of the low numbers of women openly active in gaming in order to get loads of attention for themselves. With adult social gaming, both guys and girls who enjoy the flirty and the dirty sides of gaming have a healthy outlet to do so where everything is up front and honest. Since honesty is always the best policy, let’s be clear: yes, absolutely there are gamer guys who are more than a little desperate for some female companionship, and there are gamer girls who are equally desperate for attention. I can’t see any fault in a service which provides people with a consensual means to connect and interact in a positive way that is rewarding for both parties.
Gamecrush has the potential to offer a little something for many in the gaming world, even those who don’t count themselves among those lonely basement dwellers we’ve all heard so much about. There seems little question at this point that adult social gaming is here to stay, and that there is a lot of evolution to come. Since the Game Crush website is currently still offline, only time will tell if the creators of Gamecrush had the right idea in bringing this service to the world.
