A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
‘Virtual pleasure made real’: Domestication of online sex games and sex toys
Authors: Caetano, Mayara Araujo
Publisher: SAGE Publications Ltd
Publication year: 2025
Journal: Convergence
Journal name in source: Convergence
ISSN: 1354-8565
eISSN: 1748-7382
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565251336307
Web address : https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/13548565251336307
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/491889106
This article discusses the domestication of remote-controlled sex toys within the online multiplayer sex game 3DXChat (SexGame Devil 2012) after their partnership with Lovense (Hytto) in May 2021. Under the title ‘Virtual pleasure made real’, both companies re-branded longstanding promises for the ‘future of sex’ for their consumers by converging different kinds of technologies and influencing sex-playing practices. In order to understand players’ perspectives, I primarily analyzed publications posted on 3DXChat official forum related to the partnership, which were complemented by other materials and participant observations of a two-year-long online ethnography within the sex game. The findings suggest that players were surprised and sceptical about the success of domestication. There was limited data supporting a modification of sex-playing practices, though they speculated who would benefit the most. In sum, it seems that the consumption and domestication of sexual objects in a technological setting were not as impactful as was expected, particularly in a sociocultural context of a global pandemic, which encouraged the interrelation of play and sex.
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Funding information in the publication:
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the Suomen Kulttuurirahasto (The inclusion of the period (2021-2023), Opetushallitus, and Research Council of Finland.
