So It’s Like Prostitution, Only Nerdy and Sadder

I… I’m pretty speechless, here. I make cracks about the end of civilization on TR all the time, but this… I’m pretty sure this is actual evidence. Because now guys can pay cash money to girls to play videogames with them. From the official press release:

GameCrush, now available in public beta, introduces
an entirely new interactive social gaming experience allowing gamers to
meet, match and pay to play online games with other users (PlayDates).
GameCrush is the only online service that allows gamers to choose a
companion to spice up their favorite online games. Both Players and
PlayDates define the experience they want- either “flirty” or “dirty”,
choosing from some of the most popular console titles and casual
web-based games. To register for free, visit www.gamecrush.com.

On
GameCrush, players can find their perfect PlayDate through browsing
their profiles and chatting live with them. Players can then purchase a
live one-on-one private gaming session, complete with two-way video and
text chat.

IGN says the service is now only available on the Xbox 360, that there are currently 1,200 “PlayDates” available on the site, and that you have to pretty much spend $8.25 which gets you a 10-minute Xbox Live game session with the girl. Despite the fact that only “flirty” and “dirty” “experiences” are offered — and despite the Skinemax After Dark softcore porn music in the trailer above — it’s very clearly a way to separate sad, lonely or desperately horny nerd boys from their money, but without even the tangible benefits of prostitution. I doubt this is going to the nerd girls any favors either, whether normal gamers or ones who actually might actually sign up to be PlayDates under the mistaken impression it won’t be all sad, lonely, desperately horny nerd boys requesting them to “show me your tits.” Sigh. Thanks to Dog of Thunder for the tip.