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to let their perceptions of the world get warped. They probably have a blast pretending to be some super-chick who can kill a monster while wearing basically a loin cloth and a bra.

You see, it's so ridiculous that it becomes nearly impossible to allow the video game portrayals to skew one's perception of reality.

So yes, it's eye candy. And mostly harmless.

*The Harm

Yes, it was time to get to it. There is potential for the eye candy of female video game characters to do damage to the players and users. It is simply this: images of the human body naked, in alluring poses and garb, and doing sexual acts are vivid and far too often indelible.

When a player allows him or herself to be exposed to these images for too long a time, there is a real danger of addiction to them. Pornography addiction can begin in this way. If you do not believe that there is such a thing as pornography addiction, check out current sites that discuss social diseases.

Researchers have found that the brain is stimulated by pornographic images in much the same way that it is stimulated by drugs. The pleasure receptors love both equally, thus enabling addiction to come riding in.

In conclusion, the answer to the question of whether the portrayal of female video game characters is eye candy or role models is simple: it's eye candy. In general, popular video games are not interested in teaching life lessons about strong women. Nope, not even Lara Croft is a role model folks, she's a loose, free-wheeling mercenary.

However, the damage is not in the fact that these characters are eye candy, but is in the potential to become addicted to pornographic images. The damage is in the need to often ramp up the stimulation to a higher level with each successive experience.

So my advice? Don't play the games. Stick with Mario and Tetris. You don't want an escape that is going to eventually trap you.

Learn more about this author, Jared Garrett.
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