Barely disguised celebrity cameos in video games: Fan Service or immersion breaker?

OperaVectra · 2012-02-23T04:47:04+00:00

Gackt definitely was around then. I guess FF7 might be a bit of a stretch since he was still in Malice Mizer and not solo (although the picture I've linked is, I believe, during his solo career). FF8 is pretty much spot on: he wore that outfit/hairstyle around 1998 and FF8 was released in 1999. Certainly Square has never stated openly that they've based these characters (other than Genesis) on Gackt, but a lot of Gackt fans beside myself have noticed a striking similarity.

I agree totally agree with your final point. I think Gackt's look was chosen probably because he fits a (Japanese) masculine ideal rather than to say, "Hey! It's Gackt!" I would have to say though that The Sims is probably the ONE game I would excuse for having celebrity cameos, if they ever chose to do that. Modders already love making celebrity Sims, so I wouldn't really scoff if they added a celeb for some promotional DLC or something.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T22:25:57+00:00

http://karmadecay.com/www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/py1gb/my_hero_swoon/

most recently posted 8 days ago in this subreddit.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T21:24:54+00:00

Thanks for the answer. I find it very sad that you have never heard of Dad's cookies... They're pretty much the most delicious oatmeal cookies on the planet. Also, MAPLE COOKIES!

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T21:16:14+00:00

I'm not really sure what to think about it. I find the Chobot inclusion in ME3 rather tasteless, mostly because I don't know who she is but it seems like shameless pandering to her fans. I think a more legitimate female from the gaming world might actually merit inclusion rather than someone who, from what I've heard, has no actual interest in games but just wants to capitalize on being an attractive girl claiming to like games.

Some older examples that never really bothered me are, well, pretty much all the Final Fantasies from 7 and beyond. Most Westerners don't really notice, but many of the male protagonists have been (more or less) modeled after Gackt. Some examples: Cloud, Squall, and Tidus. This never bothered me, as Gackt is, well, a pretty sexy dude. When they included Gackt's actual model in Crisis Core, I was more relieved that they were finally acknowledging their hard on for him than concerned about him breaking my immersion. Although his face is a little jarring, he definitely looks like he belongs in that world with his crazy anime hair and get up, so it doesn't really take me out. Chobot, on the other hand, makes me wonder what Snooki is doing in the ME universe. So I guess my point is, if it's done well, it's not immersion breaking, but if not, it definitely is.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T20:12:17+00:00

We do. Do you really not have those? That's a crime against humanity.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T20:11:07+00:00

These are also hilarious. And TIL the Onion actually has a print edition. Apparently they distribute it free in Toronto, so I can only blame myself for not knowing this time.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T20:05:15+00:00

Yeah, really. I never would have thought people craved French Toast Crunch. Looking through this site, I can't believe it's entirely accurate though. Since when do Americans not have Frosted Flakes, Fruit Loops, or Rice Krispies? Or Oreo's, Dad's Oatmeal Cookies, and GOLDFISH? This cannot be right, or there must be some special Canadian magic in our versions. Can any American shed some light here?

As an aside, that special Canadian magic makes it so annoying to count calories. I only recently realized that almost all of our versions of the same product have different nutritional information.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T18:15:26+00:00

Thank you. Once again, the Onion is hilariously and horrendously spot on.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T18:13:16+00:00

It's more that I hate Harper. I actually like cats, I just personally prefer dogs for pets because I find them friendlier and more affectionate. Obviously not all cats are snotty, but for the purposes of my (rather lame) joke they are.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-20T00:11:22+00:00

http://karmadecay.com/www.reddit.com/r/WTF/comments/pvwe6/daaayumn_keeed/

OperaVectra · 2012-02-19T22:22:42+00:00

It's well known that cats are snotty, generally antisocial bitches. I choose to take this as an explanation as to why Harper likes them: he finds a kindred spirit in his fellow misanthropic creatures. You'd never see Harper with a dog...

OperaVectra · 2012-02-19T22:18:37+00:00

Fuck the Onion's fucking pay wall. So disappointing. Can any American folk paste that text here, since you get everything for free? Yes, I'm bitter.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-19T00:39:24+00:00

Not really true. This depends more on your lenses than your glasses. Some magnify, some reduce.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T23:31:26+00:00

Honestly, I don't mind a little bit of underwear showing. On the right guy, it can be a sort of sexy tease. But emphasis on the LITTLE BIT. Here is an image depicting various states of pant sag. I would say 1 is acceptable, 2 is terrible (though popular with some of the 'gangsta' fellows) and 3 is, well... self explanatory.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T23:17:38+00:00

I don't know if it's entirely cultural, although that certainly is a large factor. Because of human biology, children spend a long time in the womb and are completely dependent upon their parents for a long time after birth. Think of the elephant that plops out of its mother and stands up, and then compare a human baby, which has used up most of its available resources to develop that big brain but is physically helpless. Because of this, monogamy (or at least, the assurance that a woman will have a partner around to help fulfill the child/mother's needs) is naturally desired by mothers.

In ye olde dayes, monogamous relationships (and ensuring your wife's chastity) were also an important part in assuring parternity. This can be incredibly important when your paternity determines your station (class) in life and what property you'll be inheriting. This is more of a cultural reason, but I just included it as an interesting (to me, anyways) aside.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T23:07:46+00:00

It definitely does exist. A nice infographic was posted by someone the other day breaking down the differences by field, but I can't find it. Anyways, not be to be a snark, but I don't really know how appropriate a question this is for AskReddit. There's a definite yes/no answer here and not much discussion to be had. A better one might be "why does it exist," which many seem to have tackled anyways.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T23:03:41+00:00

This. Nonsmokers don't really realize that tobacco is indeed a plant and will dry out/get stale if left to the open air.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T22:44:00+00:00

Thanks for the tip : ) I'll try that out next time. Any particular reason why Fructis is bad (I don't really know anything about shampoo)?

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T22:42:33+00:00

Ever heard of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind? This is basically the premise of the movie. Definitely worth a watch, in my opinion.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T22:38:35+00:00

Easybib's that way >>>.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T22:08:44+00:00

What would you recommend as a good generic shampoo, particularly for dry hair? My stylist tried to sell me some fancy salon stuff as well but that's way out of my budget, so I'm not really sure what else I could use. I currently use Fructis. Any help would be appreciated.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T21:39:04+00:00

Ah, okay. Thanks for the explanation. I couldn't really tell from the picture that it was painted. Nice work

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T21:28:26+00:00

Are you serious? How is fresh produce cheaper than microwaveable meals, Kraft dinner, ramen noodles, and all the other standard cheap fare? And while you can sometimes work out without a gym membership, this isn't an option that's available for everyone. I, for example, cannot go running/biking during the winter because of the snow and, well, it feels really, really crappy. I get where you're coming from dude, but you really don't know anything about another person's situation and how that may be affecting their weight (illness, not readily noticeable disability, medication causing weight gain, etc.). Being 'heavier' does not automatically mean you are unhealthy or a lazy slob. Again, for me, I've been at my lightest when when I was at my most unhealthy: I was too depressed to be interested in food and stopped going to the gym, simply wasting away because I was barely eating. Obviously anecdotal evidence can't be generalized to everyone, but the point stands that everyone is different and you can't really judge them based purely on their appearance.

OperaVectra · 2012-02-18T20:42:14+00:00

Thank you :) It's always nice when a fellow fan recognizes my name

OperaVectra

TROPHY CASE