Psycho Pigs UXB Back Cover Advert
The following letters are related to an advert for Psycho Pigs UXB that was placed in issue 40 and 41

Well, I suppose I, humble Lloyd Mangram, was asking for it - I received over 50 letters this month on the subject of sexism alone. They ranged from people cancelling their subscriptions to an inquiry from the Adverising Standards Authority to those who thought it wa all a bit of a larf and should be encouraged. I’m sure you’ll find yourself in agreement with one of the letters below. . .

The rest comprises a bijou bundle-ette on piracy (including a call for the return of the death penalty), a teeny tad on the Amiga section (Though I’m sure this will increase now that Amiga reviews are full and permanent) and some more banana lovers. Oh - and I hope you like the re-designed Rrap - it’s a bit less sober than it has been (but then, who stays sober in the summer?).



SEX!
(CHEAP ATTENTION GRABBER INC)


Dear Lloyd, After reading the results of the Zzaptionaire I was a little disappointment with them. I was disappointed to find the lack of female readers: ‘up the lads’. However, before all of you out there write in and say ‘Come on Mary Whitehouse, look at ZZAP! page 3’ and chant ’censor censor’, I suggest a quick scan of the Zzaptionaire results is in order, and look at the age and sex of the readers and use your imagination to work out what sort of things people of that age want to see.
Phillip Kirk, Hull, North Humbs.

. . . I was amazed and annoyed to see the advert on the first pages of August’s ZZAP! for US Gold's Psycho Pigs UXB. OK so I accept that most readers of your magazine are male, but this type of adverts and its implications - which are obvious before anyone tries to plead ignorance - are totally unacceptable. We are not playthings and there are enough problems in this world without implying they are for men’s usage.
Karen Newland, Southsea, Hants.

P.S. I am in complete agreement with Michael Doherly’s views on pornograhpy (ironic that his letter was in the same issue). These games are readily available for children to purchase. Surely this is not acceptable. Stop being cynical Lloyd - something should be done. I will now get off my soap box snd await your comments with interest.

. . . Unfortunataly this kind of selling seems to be on the increase. First it was Samantha Fox with her Strip poker, then Maria Whittaker with Barbarian and recently, the woman in Vixen and Whittaker again in - suprise, suprise - Barbarian II. Don’t get me wrong, business is busioness and it’s the best method of promoting the advertisement for the game then the company will do it, but I must add that I draw the line at the standard of advertising mentioned earlier in the August 88 issue, the advertisement for Psycho Pigs UXB.
Paul Vakharia, Middlesex.

. . . Take a look at August’s advert for Physco Pigs UXB. I’m not going to buy it until I see a review in my favourite Commodore magazine (Shlurp!), It sounds awful anyway! My mate bought me Hollywood Poker for my birthday and I played it until I removed all of one lady’s clothes. Then I showed it to my mum to see what her reaction would be - she laughed it off!
Andrew Lark, Flixton, Manchester.

. . . How dare you put that degrading advert of Physho Pigs UXB in August’s ZZAP!. I am furious about it and will be complaining to everyone possible about it. I have bought all your ZZAP!’s right from the start for my family but will never buy another one. It’s getting worse and worse - no wonder there are so many perverts about.
Mrs. Leonard.

. . . I don’t really mind it being there. It’s worth a quick glance and a chuckle but that’s all. Some Labour feminist is going to say I’ll go out and rape someone. What a load of crud, What harm does it do? I shouldn’t think a picture of Maria Whittaker standing over a messy dragon with a pair of spangles is going to entice someone to such an extent. How about a picture of Claire Hirsh again?
Andrew Balley, Horsham, Susses.
. . . I am writing in reply to the letter on sex and violence in the August issue of ZZAP! The part about pornography I totally agree with, because there is no excuse whatsoever for pornography. But can you imagine if there was no violence at all in games - the software industry would become totally boring. Obviously games do not have to be violently orientated to be good, as we’ve seen with masterpieces such as Spindizzy, Head Over Heels, or Matchday II. But if there was no violence in computer software all new games would become repetitively unoriginal and (as I said before) boring.
Yours faithfully, Bart Pepper, Romford, Essex.

. . . As the software industry has grown, so has the need for high quality advertising. Only purists can say they’ve never looked twice at Maria Whittaker on Barbarian (I have the game poster in my room). The point is, this type of advertising draws interest to a product, almost in the same way as a licence or arcade conversion.

But now sexual innuendos are everywhere, and this type of thing attracts the more subversive of us. I mean, it’s good for a laugh isn’t it? I may sound chauvanistic but until companies think back on all they have learnt in the past, things must stay as they are. They have to make a living too, you know.

And as for violence affecting us, who ran out cutting people’s heads off after playing Barbarian, or beating up people with kicks and karate chops after playing many of the karate games currently available? Come on, hands up. Not many, are there?

Now I know that may sound daft, but on a lower level, isn’t it also a bit ludicrous? Games are written to enjoy in the house, to take you out of all reality only while you play the game. The real world is totally different, as 999 people out of a 1000 (you know who you are) are probably nice and safe, making baskets somewhere.

So come on, give us game players the credit we deserve, as some mags are making us out to be sword-waving gun toting pirates. After all, we do buy the games!! Maybe more interaction with the public will give companies a better idea of what we really want. Who knows?
Andi Appleton, Liverpool.

. . . I opened Issue 40 to a very nice female spread semi-naked over two pages. After many hours spent ogling at her I managed to turn to page 4. Will we be seeing more of this gorgeous female advertising Psycho Pigs UXB, I hope so. Is the aforementioned game so bad they need to resort to pornography to sell it? Next thing ZZAP! Towers will be staffed by luscious naked Page 3 beauties. Yes! Yes!
Jonty, County Durham.

. . . (lssue 40) You asked for it Lloyd, saying that we (the punters) could and should stop pornography in sofiware whilst you (the magazine) are publishing provocative and sexist advertisments (No, not British Rail, Psycho Pigs and Barbarian II).
Anonymous.


First off, we in Editorial didn’t know that the Psycho Pigs UXB ad was going to be placed until we recieved the finished version of the magazine by which time it was too late to do anything about it. The space had been booked for a long time before that, and the ad arrived at the last minute. It’s also unfair to criticise ZZAP! if you do criticise the ad, since it was spread across most of the major computer magazines.

On a different note, a lot of people here think that the ad in question was on the tasteless side. As you can see from the review of the game in this issue, Psycho Pigs UXB features no women in any shape or form (unless you count sows) so the content of the advert was not only potentially offensive but totally irrelevant.

Obviously it’s not going to turn every ZZAP reader into a rapist overnight but there is a strong case for saying that the ad depicted women in a trivial and debasing light. After all, it didn't exactly invite you to think of the model as anything other than a mound of flesh - bacon, even.

I doubt that computer sexism will result in anyone mistreeting women who wouldn't otherwise have done so but I’m not sure that its content was altogether desirable. . .

The debate is now closed. Unless, of course, you can shed different light on it. . .
LM

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