“Video games and titties… who can say no to that?” asked iman9100 on YouTube on April 5.
Apparently, a lot of people.
On Monday, when porn company Brazzers announced they would be sponsoring prominent pro fighting video gamer Joe Ciaramelli, a.k.a. Ll Joe, all hell broke loose. Gamers wrung their virtual hands (and poked fun), indulging in drama-filled comments about their community’s image, sexual harassment, the future of sponsorships and…the children.
“BRAZZERS users who cross over will be confused by ‘streaming with web cam’ descriptions that lead to clothed gamers,” joked professional Starcraft 2 player Geoff Robinson on April 3.
Gamers eventually got over the fact that the Brazzers and LI Joe partnership wasn’t an April Fools joke. Then, they became concerned over how Brazzers’s sponsorship of a prominent member of the fighting game community (commonly referred to as the FGC) would negatively impact the community’s already tarnished image. In late February, the FGC saw a sexual harassment scandal.
But others couldn’t help but laugh at the irony.
“The #FGC gets a ton of press for sexual harassment..what’s the next thing they do? Get sponsored by Brazzers. This is going to be hilarious,” tweeted business director Curt Carter of Check Six Gaming, a professional gaming organization, on April 2.
Sherry Jenix, a new professional girl gamer, agreed, tweeting: “The FGC’s rebuttal to sexual harassment, sponsorship by Brazzers LOL (not hating, just seriously laughing).”
Other gamers maintained Brazzers was a natural fit for the community, saying the porn and gamer bridge should’ve been forged a long time ago (others joked that gamers are too intelligent to pay for porn.) Many called Ll Joe a “ smart guy [who] will make the right decisions,” calling the community’s fretting over the porn sponsorship unnecessary. Some gamers pointed out porn “is just as legit of a business to sponsor things as alcohol.”
“NFL advertises beer, and I’m pretty sure I know people that let their 5 year olds watch that” wrote YouTuber IIIpwnzyIII on a WillofDC news segment about the controversy. A sponsor is just a sponsor, some maintained.
“Rumors are true, I picked up a sponsorship with Westboro Baptist Church” tweeted YouTuber and gamer GeoffTheHero as a joke. “I’ll be spreading good Christian messages at tournies from here on.”
Still other gamers asserted fighting games aren’t for children anyway.
Some members of the community speculated that the Brazzers sponsorship would prevent other sponsors from signing on with FGC members, a sentiment echoed by an anonymous top executive involved with the fighting game business, according to Ars Technica.
“I don’t think many in the fighting game community realize how much of a potential death sentence this is for the growth of their sport,” the top executive told Ars Technica, before calling the Brazzers brand “toxic” enough to “tarnish” his team. Ars Technica reported talking to many officials who felt similarly.
Despite the controversy his sponsorship has stirred, Ll Joe is still positive about his new partnership.
“It’s a sensitive subject as if late,” tweeted Ll Joe on the morning of April 5. “I didn’t know all this was going to happen but it’s already movin. I’m wit it!”
Photo By firecloak