Playboy Forming New Video Gaming Label

CHICAGO – Playboy Enterprises is reportedly forming a new video game label set to debut by the end of the year to bolster the company’s mainstream appeal.

According to paidContent, Playboy’s managing director for new digital ventures, Paul H. Lee said the company has already partnered with German online game company, Bigpoint Games to help create and distribute games on Playboy.com.

No name has been given to the new venture but the inaugural game is Bigpoint’s Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) urban crime fantasy, "Poisonville," that has just been released from beta testing.

The games will target Playboy’s core 18-35-year-old male demographic.

Lee said that while gaming might seem a little outside Playboy’s editorial and TV strengths, the company’s found a lot of overlap between gaming sites and Playboy.com visitors.

“One of our core competencies involves using our brand to present quality content,” Lee said. “Gaming is a growing, mainstream area. And part of our plan is to extend Playboy’s brand into the mainstream.” The recent unveiling of the safe-for-work site TheSmokingJacket, is in keeping with that motive.”

No details as to the amount of staff nor what Playboy’s financial commitment is to online gaming but Lee did say the backing is “significant.”

The report said that the game pages will initially be ad-free to attract users but paid ads are planned. The iconic Playboy bunny logo will also show up from time to time, but Lee said that any overt signs of branding will be played down.

Poisonville has a dedicated Playboy.com channel and is described as an action-oriented, multi-player online game involving a fictional U.S. city “where crime and corruption rule the streets.”

Players must complete a series of missions in order to counteract corruption, regain respect and rebuild their reputations. The one slight difference here, according to Playboy, is that players will be encountering “beautiful, Playboy-caliber women.”

“We’re excited to expand our global partnership with Playboy and introduce Poisonville to U.S. gamers,” said Heiko Hubertz, founder and CEO, Bigpoint. “Launching this new game through Playboy.com will allow us to directly tap into our ideal gaming audience – avid, online men between the ages of 18-35. We look forward to engaging gamers in new and exciting ways through Playboy’s network of high-traffic websites.”

Playboy also expects to add games to Facebook and other social networking sites in the future.

According to the report, Lee wouldn’t comment on talks with other game developers but said the company is actively looking for partners.

“We’re looking for quality developers and the time I spent looking at Bigpoint showed me that they fit the bill for what we needed to get started,” Lee said.

“Previously, Playboy’s gaming interests included a few licensing deals and some editorial in the form of gaming reviews. But there was no clear, over-arching strategy in place. With Bigpoint, we’ve established a clear path in terms of where we want to go,” Lee said.

Playboy doesn’t have an equity arrangement with Bigpoint, but other partnerships could include some investment along with a working contract, Lee said.

“At this point, we haven’t made any decisions and we’ll see how these first steps go. We could possibly do some investing down the road, depending on what we find and what our needs are.”

Related:  

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

2024 Pornhub Awards Winners Announced

Winners of the 2024 Pornhub Awards were announced this morning.

Justices Alito, Thomas Invoke Victorian-Era Morality Law, Raising Censorship Concerns

Several national publications reported this week on widespread concern among Free Speech advocates after U.S. Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas repeatedly invoked during a hearing the infamous segregation-era law the Comstock Act, which was the cornerstone of U.S. censorship of sexual material from the 1870s until the 1970s.

LELO Launches 'Masturbitter' Craft Beer to Promote Male Sex Talk

LELO has partnered with Great Beyond Brewing Company to launch Masturbitter, a craft beer, to encourage men to discuss sex.

Skinfluential Management's FansFuel Acquires Fanwire

Creator stats and affiliate marketing platform FansFuel has acquired creator account management tool Fanwire.

Nebraska AV Bill Moves Forward Despite Privacy, Free Speech Concerns

Nebraska’s unicameral Legislature has given first-round approval to LB 1092, the state’s version of the age verification bills being sponsored around the country by anti-porn religious conservative activists.

AEBN Celebrates 25th Anniversary

The Adult Entertainment Broadcast Network (AEBN) is celebrating its 25th year in business this week.

Performers in Meta Blacklisting Lawsuit Seek to Preserve Antitrust Claims

Adult Performance Artists Guild board officers Alana Evans, Kelly Pierce and Ruby have informed a California court that, although they want to drop their lawsuit claiming that Meta conspired with OnlyFans to blacklist rival premium fan platforms’ talent, they may still pursue antitrust claims in the future.

Xgen Now Shipping ZOLO's 'Stroke Off' Collection

Xgen Products is now shipping the Stroke Off collection of 11 handheld strokers and four masturbators modeled after lifelike body parts.

Nobü Unveils 'Gyrä' Vibrating Grinding Pad

Nobü has introduced the new Gyrä vibrating grinding pad.

Orion Introduces New 3-Motor Vibrator From 'Sweet Smile' Line

Orion Wholesale has debuted the new three-motor RC G- & P-Spot Vibrator from its Sweet Smile line.

Show More