Videogames are a common pastime for people of all ages. Adolescents make up a large population of the people who play online games, and the prospect of making a sexual education text in the format of an online game targets that specific audience. “Adventures in Sex City”, a trivia game, was created by the Middlesex-London Health Unit in Ontario, and was intended to educate a mature youth audience on the risks of unprotected sex. The characters are unrealistic and comical, there is a lack of education in how to protect oneself, and the game depicts men as being responsible for sexual risks, which is represented by the “Sperminator”. “Adventures in Sex City” reinforces stereotypes of sexuality through the use of provocative imagery; the text fails to establish a reputable ethos, due to its exaggerated and comical representation of sexuality.
The characters in the game are childish, which diminishes the text’s appeal to its intended mature audience. There are four characters to choose from when playing this game, and they are all part of the Sex Squad: “An elite team of superheroes dedicated to keeping the citizens of Sex City safe from STIs (sexually transmitted infections).” (Middlesex-London Health Unit) The vocabulary used to describe the squad is reminiscent of a comic book, except these superheroes are not fighting villains, they are fighting STIs. Comic books are marketed towards a younger audience, generally males around the age of ten. However, this sexual education manual is intended for teenagers, and the use of comic-book themes is not age-appropriate.
Wonder Vag is one of the characters from the Sex Squad. Her special power is that she is a human lie detector. “Wonder Vag is a virgin, believes in true love and promotes abstinence until marriage.” (Middlesex-London Health Unit) Wonder Vag’s character is a spokesperson for the abstinence method of birth control. She has blonde hair and large blue eyes, which are features that are associated with purity. She dresses more modestly than Power Pap (the sexually active female character), which promotes the stereotype that girls who dress conservatively aren’t sexually active. Wonder Vag has been constructed to symbolize abstinence.
However, Captain Condom was created to encourage the use of prophylactics. Captain Condom is half man, half condom and his superpower includes the ability to stretch to any size like a condom. He is tall and muscular, and wears a blue unitard with a condom hat. His character is strong and masculine, and these positive qualities make condoms appealing. The name “Captain Condom” appears to be satiric, poking fun at other superheroes whose names are alliterations. The problem with the character’s name is that it elicits a negative response from the audience. An older adolescent would ridicule the game’s characters because of their childish appearance. The animation is bright and colourful and does not appeal to an older audience since they are unable to relate to the images and characters. This tone of the text is exaggerated, and seems as if it is a parody on the superhero genre. The parody of the superhero genre mocks itself as well, since a mature audience would not take the text, and its cast of cartoon characters seriously. They might feel as if they are being ridiculed by the immature tone of the text, since it has themes and imagery that are associated with young children. This creates a lack of trust; the audience begins to lose respect for the content of the text, rendering the messages useless. The credibility of a source is important in education. “In fact, Levine and Badger (1993) found that the credibility of sources, the use of content that causes fear or warns the learner of a bad consequence, and the way that words emphasize a message, all influence the process of changing attitudes.” (Jensen, 39) Jensen summarizes how a text’s ethos determines its reception amongst the learner. “Adventures in Sex City” attempts to change the attitudes of adolescents, and encourages practicing safe sex. However, this message is eclipsed by the text’s overpowering use of childish imagery. Since the source’s credibility is undermined, the message isn’t as effective; therefore the “process of changing attitudes” in adolescent sexual behaviour is not successful.
Secondly, the trivia game uses imagery that attempts to educate, but is unsuccessful at providing all the information, which damages the source’s educational integrity. When answering a question correctly, the member of the Sex Squad uses a “condom shield” to protect itself from the angry sperm of the Sperminator. This “shielding” action is a metaphor for condom use, as condoms are a barrier method used to protect against sexual risks. This representation illustrates how condoms protect against STIs and pregnancy, but it does not elaborate on their effectiveness and how to use them. This is a major concept that is missing from this sexual education manual. The producers of the text chose to include facts about sexual risk, but do not offer any educational reinforcements on the usage of birth control. The game’s value as an educational text is diminished because the applicability of the message is not presented to the audience. The ethos of the game suffers, because the text does not provide a complete education on how to protect oneself against sexual risks.
Lastly, the Sperminator embodies sexual risk, associating males with those dangers; the gender stereotypes produced by this villain damages the text’s credibility. The Sperminator is the villain of the game and was intended by the producers of the game to incite fear of sexual risk. The Sperminator is very large in comparison to the other characters, which makes him seem intimidating, and gives him more power. At the end of the game, when he is defeated, he becomes smaller in size, therefore losing his power. The Sperminator wears red shorts and a red Mexican wrestler mask. Red is a colour associated with aggression, and his rage is apparent through his dialogue of angry grunts and growls. Red can also be associated as the colour for HIV/AIDS. The wrestler mask shields his identity, making him less relatable and likeable to the audience, but is also a symbol for a fighter. “The Sperminator was once part of the sex squad. He got infected with an STI, went untreated and now his goal is to infect everyone with his evil sperm…” (Middlesex-London Health Unit). The Sperminator shoots threatening sperm from his hands that are shaped like penises. This image is very provocative and carries a lot of negative connotation. It elicits shock from the audience, as the image of the penis hands is comical and absurd. The Sperminator associates sexual risk with men, which misinforms the audience about who can carry STIs. The Sperminator’s “goal” is to infect everyone with his “evil” sperm. This presents another social issue, as it stereotypes people with STIs. “HIV-related stigma leads to fear of HIV disclosure, social rejection, inadequate social support, suicidal thoughts, decreased self-esteem, and depression. HIV-related stigma also may be a factor in determining lack of support in these individuals.” (Grant, Keitner & Prachakul, 68). The text promotes the ideology that someone with an STI has the malicious intent to infect as many people as possible. This associates a negative perspective on people that are suffering from diseases like HIV, and does not educate acceptance and tolerance among youth. HIV-related stigma causes a lot of social problems that isolate people living with HIV from the rest of society. The representation of sexual risks in this text produces a very narrow perspective on who carries STIs which promotes the stereotypes that exist in society. This depiction of sexual risk is a detriment to the text’s credibility as it misinforms the audience. The Sperminator’s character is absurd and offensive, which further isolates the learner from trusting the messages presented in the text.
“Adventures in Sex City” is unsuccessful of establishing an educational tone, due to its use of exaggerated and comical imagery. The characters are childish and are not relatable, the text neglects to fully educate the audience on prevention, and the villain of the game is an absurd illustration of sexual risk. “Adventures in Sex City” appears to be a parody of superhero video games and sexual education manuals. However, the online trivia game is serious in its intention to educate youth and promote prevention and testing. Unfortunately, no one can take a villain who shoots sperm out of penis hands seriously, and the text loses its integrity due to the ridicule from the audience.
