Do booth babes play video games? Do booth babes find gamers unattractive?

Pretty faces, skimpy outfits, handheld weapons, and lots of cleavage are booth babe trademarks.

A photograph taken by the author of the article

This year, Examiner.com's LA Video Game Babes Examiner emerged from his cave to make a pilgrimage to the Electronic Entertainment Expo, known colloquially as E3. This journalist risked life and limb, enduring both the rays of the sun and social interaction -- his two greatest weaknesses -- in order to bring you coverage of this year's E3. He was even forced to face his greatest fear -- speaking to females.

Booth babes are women hired to make a company's booth much more visibly distinguishable from the hundreds of other booths that are competing for attention at the same trade show. Many booth babes are also able to demonstrate a product or give information about a service; this kind of interaction with potential customers makes a booth far more appealing. The most eye-catching trait of a booth babe is her attire, which is often designed to represent the product while grabbing attention with lots of skin.

Since the dawn of humankind -- or, at least the first gaming convention -- the sight of a booth babe has caused man to ponder two eternal questions: "Does she play video games?" and "Do I have a shot with her?" People are drawn to other people who share their hobbies and interests, and so many gamers would love to find a mate who also enjoys gaming. However, gaming has often been considered a nerdy pastime, and for many years, beauty and nerdy hobbies have been considered to be two mutually exclusive things.

Booth babes are at gaming conventions, representing game companies, and dressed like game characters -- but do they actually play video games? This was the question that examiner.com's LA Video Game Babes Examiner set out to answer. Remarkably, he managed to encounter twenty women who did not flee upon sight of him. Below, these brave and beautiful women are featured, as well as their answers to this journalist's inquires.

Names have been withheld, except when requested.

NOS, an energy drink manufactured by the High Performance Beverage Company, was out in force at E3, with booth babes handing out free drinks both inside and outside the convention center. Of the many lovely ladies chosen to represent NOS, this journalist managed to procure an interview from three. The first is seen below:

When asked if she played video games, she replied that, yes, she did play games -- but mainly old school titles, and occasionally FPS games as well. When asked to name a favorite game, she said Mario Kart. When asked if she could ever bring herself to date a video gamer, she replied that she was, in fact, currently dating one.

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? No

The woman on the left is a gamer, while the lady to the right is not. The gamer babe said that she enjoyed Contra and Raiden 2, both of which are rather old franchises, while her companion put forth Tomb Raider as a title she admires. Both women stated that they could date a man who plays video games, as long as he only plays them in moderation.

Gamer? Yes / No

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

Two booth babes were interviewed at Lionworks' booth, but the second one was camera-shy. When asked if she played video games, the woman featured above stated that she did not play video games because she knows firsthand how terribly addictive they can be, and shared an anecdote about being absolutely hooked on Wild Arms. Her off-camera companion stated that she would only play video games occasionally, naming a few casual titles. Both women agreed that they could date a man who plays video games, but only as long as he is not addicted to them.

Gamer? Yes / Sometimes

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

This booth babe was present at E3 to represent End of Nations. She stated that she did not play video games herself, but that she would not find a man unattractive for playing games -- unless he did so compulsively.

Gamer? No

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

This woman was present at Tecmo Koei's booth. When asked if she played video games, she stated that she did not, but can respect how far the video game industry has grown. When asked if she considered video gaming to be an unattractive hobby, she answered with a very emphatic "Yes!" She holds a belief that the majority of gamers are far too addicted to video games, and stated that she'd had only negative experiences when attempting to date gamers in the past.

Gamer? No

Is gaming unattractive? Yes

This beauty was a booth babe promoting Lucha Libre. She is not a gamer, but she said that she does not find men to be any less appealing for having gaming as a hobby, and that she could date a gamer.

Gamer? No

Is gaming unattractive? No

One of the booth babes for Gamers First was not allowed to let anyone take pictures of her, but was still able to answer this journalist's questions. She is a gamer, and when asked to name a favorite game, happily replied "Doom!" In addition to having good taste in games, she also stated that a man is no less attractive to her for playing video games.

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? No

APB was advertised at E3 with a car exhibit - but the sexy punk and goth booth babes in front of the car stole all the attention. Two were available for comment. The woman featured in the middle stated that she would not describe herself as a gamer, but occasionally played games like Madden. When asked if gaming was an unattractive hobby for a man to have, she said that it would depend on how much time he spent playing video games. A fair amount of scribbling in this journalist's notepad suggests that this woman shared much more information with him, but to the details of the interview have been obscured by sloppy handwriting. This journalist is surprised that any of his handwriting was actually legible, considering the degree to which his hands tremble when he is in the presence of real, live women.

Gamer? No

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

The woman featured above stated that she is a primarily an old-school gamer; she has an aversion to modern games because they are too intense and gripping. Dying in a video game causes her great distress, and she stated that will often intentionally let her character die, just to take the edge off and remind herself that it's no big deal; it's only a game. When asked if she finds a man less attractive for playing video games, she smiled and said that she loves watching her wife mow down online opponents.

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? No, but she is taken.

Our messy-haired Video Game Babe Examiner demonstrated his ineptitude at social interaction when he angered three women enough to make them draw weapons on him. Fortunately, he escaped with non-fatal lacerations. Once the women had calmed down, they offered further insight into the interests of booth babes.

This woman in green armor represented the Video Game Club. Appropriately, she is a gamer herself. When asked what type of games she plays, she named Wii Sports and other titles of a casual nature. When asked if she sees gaming as an unattractive hobby, she replied "Not at all."

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? No

The woman in blue armor was a gamer as well, and a fan of laid-back titles such as Wii Sports, Guitar Hero, and a title involving yoga. When asked if she considered a man to be less attractive for playing video games, she gave the most positive answer so far: in her words, gamers are "awesome" and "interesting" because they have vivid imaginations and minds that are geared towards creativity and fantasy, meaning that they have more in common with her. She was not ashamed in the least to be seen among nerds and geeks at a gaming convention, and expressed a wish to share her website URL with readers: sabrinamachado.com.

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? No, it is attractive.

The only other booth babe at E3 who volunteered her name was Tiffany Jules, who represented THQ and promoted UFC Undisputed 2010. She is a gamer, and when asked to name a favorite title, replied with Frogger. She provided perhaps the most witty response so far when she was asked if playing video games is unattractive to her: "It's better than playing girls!" she said, demonstrating that, although gaming may be a geeky hobby, being unfaithful and promiscuous are far more unappealing traits to possess.

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? It is far more favorable than other vices.

These two beautiful women represented Gamingo. The one clad in red stated that she used to be a gamer, but had to drop the hobby when she found herself with less free time in her life. The one in white was not a gamer, but said that gaming is not unattractive, as long as the gamer doesn't overdo it -- a sentiment shared by her companion.

Gamer? Not anymore / No

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

This photograph is spoiled by the presence of our messy-haired journalist, who managed to find yet another woman who could tolerate him long enough to answer a few questions at the NYKO booth. She stated that she occasionally plays video games, mostly titles from the 80s. In her words, video gaming is only an unattractive hobby if done excessively.

Gamer? Occasionally

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

These two women helped Powergig to advertise their debut title, Rise of the SixString. The woman on the left was available for comment; she is a gamer, and demonstrated an immense amount of good taste by naming Goldeneye 007 as one of her favorite titles. Like many women before her, she stated that playing video games is only an unattractive hobby when it is taken to an excess. When asked what the worst part about being a booth babe is, she replied that the long hours were tiring. When asked if she received a lot of unwanted advances from men at E3, she smiled coyly and replied that such attention "comes with the territory."

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

The final women to be interviewed were promoting Pelican's Afterglow line of LED-lit controllers. Both of them were gamers -- in fact, they hailed from a modeling agency called Charisma +2, which only employs gamers. The woman glowing blue plays Left 4 Dead and Gears of Wear, while her green-lit companion enjoys Tenchu, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, Final Fantasy, Super Street Fighter 4, and Halo -- both women were obviously true hardcore gamers and definitely would have named many more titles. The woman to the right stated that she would want a gamer boyfriend to play games only moderately, while the woman on the left simply said that she loves men who play video games. Both women said that they had encountered very little negative attention while at the Expo, citing the tastefulness of their outfits.

Gamer? Yes

Is gaming unattractive? Only when it is done obsessively.

10 out of 20 booth babes were gamers, and only one woman stated that she found gaming to be an undesirable hobby for a man to have. Nearly every woman interviewed stated that gaming itself is not an unattractive interest, but that, like anything else, it is unhealthy and unappealing to be addicted or obsessed.

Although the women who were interviewed are only a sample group and do not represent the entirety of trade show models, 50% were gamers and nearly 100% stated that gaming itself is not a turn-off. However, it was a nearly universal belief that there has to be more to a guy than just video games in order to find him attractive. Just because you like to have adventures in virtual worlds, it doesn't mean you don't have a shot with a girl -- however, you will only be appealing to a woman if you have more to offer than a high achievement score.

In addition to the women interviewed above, three more ladies were also questioned during this journalist's visit to E3. Unfortunately, they are disqualified from counting towards the statistics about booth babes, but their interviews will be featured below nonetheless.

Promoting Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove was a young girl far below the age of an average booth babe.

Examiner: Do you play video games?

Gabrielle: I wouldn't be caught dead with a controller in my hand. Anyone who plays video games is a lowlife deadbeat who never showers and lives in their mother's basement. Get away from me. What makes me look like I have time to talk to you, four-eyes?

Promoting Dead Rising 2 was perhaps the most attractive booth babe in all of E3, an enchanting goddess who left this journalist's jaw on the floor.

Examiner: Do you play video games?

Booth Babe: ...braaaaains...

Promoting BioShock 2 was another female of tender years, causing this journalist to wonder if child labor laws were being violated.

Examiner: Do you play video games?

Little Sister: Look, Mr. Bubbles! It's an Angel! Wait a minute...he's still breathing. It's alright. I know he'll be an Angel soon.

The interview was cut short after a bouncer approached and informed this journalist that interviews with the girl were strictly off-limits.

To conclude, below are featured five photographs of booth babes who were in great demand by photographers, and far too busy posing for their admirers to be interviewed.