SAN FRANCISCO — Gaming company THQ likes playing with porn stars.
According to Gamasutra, the company has hired a group of Penthouse Pets including porn star Nikki Benz to help promote its “Saints Row: The Third” video game as a “quality assurance” team.
Earlier this week the company also announced that crossover adult star Sasha Grey was lending her voice as the game’s character Viola DeWynter.
Using porn stars to create a buzz is nothing new for THQ. Tera Patrick reportedly also did voice work and posed for a poster for a "Saints Row 2" downloadable content pack two years ago.
A porn-friendly company release said the new team will "dedicate themselves to complete customer satisfaction," adding that "the Saints Row Quality Assurance team promises to ensure a satisfying 'Saints Row' experience whether playing alone or with a friend."
The Penthouse Pets will also be included in the downloadable version.
Gamasutra said that using porn for promotion is a “natural” for the game as it includes a giant purple dildo bat as one of its weapons.
But industry watchers caution that the porn connection may discourage some “fence sitters” from buying the game.
“THQ is obviously taking a page from Rockstar's playbook with its porn patrol (porn queen Jenna Jameson voiced the character ‘Candy Suxxx’ in GTA: Vice City). Still, that's an odd marketing decision since the company has worked hard to distinguish 'Saints Row' as something other than a GTA clone,” Gamasutra said.