by A.J. Focht

Microsoft kicked off the major E3 conferences on Monday morning. They started the show off with a bang, introducing the next game in the Xbox flagship series Halo 4. It focuses once again on Master Chief and is full of your favorite past enemies as well as an exciting new threat. Following the Halo 4 debut, was news of the next game in the Splinter Cell series, Blacklist. A handful of other sequels were featured, including: Resident Evil 6, Call of Duty Black Ops 2, Gears of War: Judgment, and a new addition to the Tomb Raider series. There were a few new titles showcased as well, the most impressive of which was the new South Park game where the player creates a character and joins the gang in an episode.

Microsoft also showed off the new Microsoft Smart Glass, which is an application that will work with Windows 8, and Windows Phones and tablets. The smart glass can link with the Xbox to enhance the in game experience. Smart Glass has multiple applications, among other things, it allows the wireless device to double as a controller or an interface to look up outside information on the game without having to exit it.

Two game developers had large press conferences that were streamed live, EA Games and Ubisoft. EA showed several expected follow-ups including: FIFA 13, Need for Speed: Most Wanted, and a new Sim City. E3 also announced they acquired the rights to future UFC games. Ubisoft took things in a different direction. They introduced one new IP called Watch Dogs. They also touched on Assassin’s Creed III and future games for the Wii U.

Sony had several announcements at this year’s E3. The electronics giant displayed the latest addition to the PS3 lineup, Beyond Two Souls, the enticing tale of a girl who speaks to ghosts. They also introduced another new IP called All-Stars Battle Royale, Sony’s version of Super Smash Bros. All-Stars will feature characters such as Kratos, Sweet Tooth, Sly Cooper, and Big Daddy. After talking about the future of the Vita and the new Play Station Plus subscription service that will offer members discounts and other perks, Sony closed with their two most keenly awaited titles: God of War Ascension and The Last of Us.

Nintendo held two separate press conferences. The main one was used to show off the Nintendo Wii U. There are several new game properties making their way to the device such as Pikmin 3 and New Super Mario Bros U. The new Nintendo IP for the Wii U is Nintendo Land, a theme park based game that offers mini-games based on your favorite Nintendo characters. A few third party games were revealed as well including Mass Effect 3 and Ninja Gaiden 3.

The second conference Nintendo held was focused on the 3DS. There were many games featured, starting with Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate. Many new games for classic Nintendo titles were displayed as well, including: Luigi’s Mansion 2, Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion, Paper Mario Sticker Star, and more information about Pokemon Black and White 2 was also divulged.

Many other games were showed off during the conference as well. One of the most talked about games at E3 has been Injustice: Gods Among Us, which pits DC heroes against each other in an all-out fighting game. Bethesda also released the first teaser trailer for The Elder Scrolls Online.

by Steven-Elliot Altman (SG Member: Steven_Altman)

Our Fiction Friday serialized novel, The Killswitch Review, is a futuristic murder mystery with killer sociopolitical commentary (and some of the best sex scenes we’ve ever read!). Written by bestselling sci-fi author Steven-Elliot Altman (with Diane DeKelb-Rittenhouse), it offers a terrifying postmodern vision in the tradition of Blade Runner and Brave New World…

By the year 2156, stem cell therapy has triumphed over aging and disease, extending the human lifespan indefinitely. But only for those who have achieved Conscientious Citizen Status. To combat overpopulation, the U.S. has sealed its borders, instituted compulsory contraception and a strict one child per couple policy for those who are permitted to breed, and made technology-assisted suicide readily available. But in a world where the old can remain vital forever, America’s youth have little hope of prosperity.

Jason Haggerty is an investigator for Black Buttons Inc, the government agency responsible for dispensing personal handheld Kevorkian devices, which afford the only legal form of suicide. An armed “Killswitch” monitors and records a citizen’s final moments — up to the point where they press a button and peacefully die. Post-press review agents — “button collectors” — are dispatched to review and judge these final recordings to rule out foul play.

When three teens stage an illegal public suicide, Haggerty suspects their deaths may have been murders. Now his race is on to uncover proof and prevent a nationwide epidemic of copycat suicides. Trouble is, for the first time in history, an entire generation might just decide they’re better off dead.

(Catch up with the previous installments of Killswitch – see links below – then read the finale after the jump…)

[..]

“Ray Bradbury is somebody who [could] write a short story which actually felt like it was a part of me. There are Bradbury stories imprinted on my DNA.”
– Neil Gaiman, 2003, From The SG Archives

by Jen Friel

On Twitter a week and a half ago I jokingly tweeted out that I hoped the next guy I dated had a foot fetish so I could get my feet rubbed. See, I recently started jogging in the morning and while my booty is getting into shape nicely, my feet are suffering from the extra pavement pounding.

What I didn’t expect from that one tweet however was the OVERWHELMING demand from guys actually wanting to help. Now, I know from a dear friend of mine who is formerly a porn star that feet are the number three fetish, just behind butts and boobs (pun intended) – but I had yet to actually find a guy to date that was into it. I then received an EXTREMELY heartfelt email that changed everything for me.

Here’s the actual email, in which the sender explains his history…

Hi Jen,

Because you’re interested in having me massage your feet, and intrigued by foot fetishism in general, I wanted to tell you about my foot fetish history.

For as long as I can remember, I was preoccupied by women’s feet. When my parents female friends would visit the house, I would stare at their feet. I was equally obsessed with the feet of girls my own age. I have always loved women’s feet. And my submissive impulses were already there as early as 3 years old: I had fantasies of being a butler, a servant. I had one babysitter who would plop down on the couch and I’d bring her drinks and snacks and she would rest her feet on my face while she watched TV. Good gig for her. But I was happy; I needed feet in my face – even back then.

By the time I was actually kissing girls and fooling around, the fetishism and submissive tendencies were completely buried. It’s interesting to note that VERY EARLY ON, i realized this was considered to be weird and taboo. So my sex life was normal through my teens.

My junior year of college was the first time I lived away from home and had access to the internet. I immediately began exploring my fantasies online. This was the late ‘90s and the internet was new to me.

I looked up foot fetish and BDSM porn and I realized I wasn’t alone in my desires. I had also found a book in Barnes & Nobles called Different Loving. It was a sympathetic view of power exchange / BDSM interactions with many personal essays. It shocked my system. I read almost the entire thing right there in the aisle. But I still felt intensely shameful. I felt like a creep, like a loser. And of course, there are plenty of people out there who would say that foot fetishists are indeed creeps, losers, or worse (is this online? – just look at the comments below).

Fast-forward a few years. I had moved to New York City. And much like I responded to your “foot fetish / I want my feet massaged” post, I wrote an email to a professional Dominatrix who lived in Manhattan. We arranged to meet. I went over to her “studio” where she conducted her BDSM sessions. We discussed my interests. And long story short, she made me her “houseboy.” This wasn’t a professional arrangement. I wasn’t her client. This was a personal, mistress/slave thing.

For over 5 years – FIVE YEARS ! – once a week, I would go over to either her studio or her apartment, sometimes both, and clean for her. I would run errands. I would give her massages. And she would reward all of this service by allowing me to worship her feet. The arrangement ended when I moved out here to Los Angeles.

I’m still in touch with my former Mistress. And she was instrumental in encouraging me to be honest with my current girlfriend. Instead of being secretive, I was able to be honest and up front about my desires. Listening to the Savage Love podcast didn’t hurt either; I could hear Dan Savage calling me a “piece of shit asshole” if I tried on the idea of going to see a Dominatrix behind my girlfriend’s back – and he would have been correct to call me that.

So after years of shame and secrecy, I did the unthinkable and came clean to my GF. I told her that I have a foot fetish, that I have the desire to be dominated by other women. And I explained that this was a compartmentalized impulse, distinct from the romantic love and sex we shared.

Guess what: She completely understood and gave me her blessing. It was life changing. Someone I loved more than anyone in the world was accepting me for who I am.

It made something that I admit is weird feel more normal. Everyday, since my girlfriend’s acceptance of me, I’ve felt more healthy, true, and peaceful.
My biggest epiphany was that this was really about humiliation. I’m someone who requires humiliation to feel sexual. So someone ordering me to pick up a coffee or dry cleaning and then allowing me to get on the floor and pamper their feet while they relax or work – that really does it for me.

BTW: you can Wikipedia this shit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erotic_humiliation

I hope all of this intrigues you. Let me add one more thing…

It’s really, deeply upsetting that foot fetishists or people into BDSM or whatever are considered to be FREAKS. If you Googled “foot fetish” or do a key word search in Twitter, I’m sure there are people saying tons of negative shit.

You can’t choose what gets you off. There are kids killing themselves because they’re gay and they’re in environments where being gay is shit on, where they’re told they’re going to burn in hell, or that they’re just plain freaks. Sexual shame is seriously intense.

The people who are quick to shit on foot fetishists – calling them freaks, or leaping to an even more absurd presumption that they’re dangerous – I bet a ton of those people would be quick to be like, ‘Of course it’s OK to be gay!’ Meanwhile, not realizing that people who have foot fetishes are just as hurt and shameful and often closeted because of their desires. There is an absolute parallel. (And look: I have to admit that foot fetishists do creepy things. But I believe this is a result of being closeted and desperate. I get that there’s a reason for this reputation. I guess I’m just saying it’s a shame.)

So you have no idea how grateful I’ve been in my life to meet people who are like, “Let me get this straight: you’re going to worship me like a Goddess, I don’t have to say ‘thank you’ or even be nice, and in return all you want is my feet? GREAT.: It is pretty fucking great and mutually rewarding if you have an open mind.

This is long. I could say a lot more. But I hope foot fetishism continues to intrigue you and that you see it can be pretty cool.

How awesome is that? He’s so upfront and honest – but I could FEEL the shame bleeding onto my monitor. This man was so closeted with his fetish and desperately seeking an outlet.

We outlined each of our boundaries and after about 40 emails back and forth, we finally agreed to meet at a public place last Friday.

I have to say this experience hands down changed my life. He approached me in the park with sunglasses and a hat on, but quickly asked me if he could put on his hood. “Yes,” I said, noticing that other people weren’t around (and even if they were – I didn’t care).

He then went to town for about a half an hour rubbing not just the base of my feet, but also in between my toes and all the way up my calf. I watched his body shake as he found certain “sweet spots” – and while having my feet rubbed does nothing for me sexually, in this moment it allowed me to explore the dominant side of my personality. Here is this guy laying on the grass literally WORSHIPING my feet and my only job was to ignore him and be as mean to him as possible.

FYI, I literally do not have a mean bone in my body. I’m pretty much all about jelly beans and rainbows twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, constantly seeing the bright side of things. In this moment, and in this position, I got to explore the dark side and all I can say is that I WANT MORE!!!

It was so liberating being so…bitchy. There is clearly a side of my personality that I had suppressed – much like this guy and his fetish. I can’t wait to get more into it and really let the dominant side of my personality come out to play.

This relationship is TOTALLY beneficial for both of us and I only hope this post can inspire more women to do the same. Here I am thinking foot fetish guys are “creepy” and in fact I thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s also helping me grow and become a better person by exploring a place of discomfort.

Foot fetish guys aren’t “creepy” ladies – they are just closeted. Why not explore the dark side yourself? Who knows, like me, you may enjoy it!

If feet are your thing, you may want to join our Foot Fetish Friends of SG group.

Jen Friel is a lifecaster and corporate sponsored minimalist. She went out on over 103 dates in 9 months while couch surfing for a year building her website and bartering social media to live. Consequently, she’s an accidental expert on online dating. You can read all about her ongoing adventures on OKCupid at TalkNerdyToMeLover.com and follow them on Twitter.

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by Blogbot

Suicide Girls love getting dressed up almost as much as they like taking their clothes off. San Diego’s monster Comic-Con event is therefore a major highlight on our calendar each year, since it’s an excuse to play dress up.

This year we’re cooking up an extra-special Comic Con cosplay wardrobe, with a little help from clothing manufacturer and retailer American Apparel, pop-culture event planners Bubble Punch, and our fave Sunset Strip geek emporium, Meltdown Comics.

Comic chic chicks Chubby Bunny and Yume Ninja of Bubble Punch will be designing a series of three different sexy cosplay themed outfits for our ladies to wear while they man our Comic-Con booth. Each of the outfits will be made using basics available at your local American Apparel store. We’ll also be producing “How To” videos with the help of our friends from Meltdown so you can recreate the costumes the Suicide Girls will be wearing to Comic Con at home.

The three “How to” videos – one for each SG cosplay costume – will be posted on SuicideGirls’ Facebook page in June. The costumes will then be debuted live at a special pre-Comic Con party to be held at Meltdown Comics on July 7th. Follow @SuicideGirls on Twitter for up to the minute news, updates, and photos.

You can also catch our ladies in their unforgettable cosplay outfits at booth #1730 of Comic Con San Diego 2012. If you’re planning on attending the convention on more than one day, be sure to come back and visit us again, since our team of sexy booth girls will be cosplaying new outfits each day!

Related Posts:
Dirty Laundry: Cosplay 4 Comic Con

by Steven-Elliot Altman (SG Member: Steven_Altman)

Our Fiction Friday serialized novel, The Killswitch Review, is a futuristic murder mystery with killer sociopolitical commentary (and some of the best sex scenes we’ve ever read!). Written by bestselling sci-fi author Steven-Elliot Altman (with Diane DeKelb-Rittenhouse), it offers a terrifying postmodern vision in the tradition of Blade Runner and Brave New World…

By the year 2156, stem cell therapy has triumphed over aging and disease, extending the human lifespan indefinitely. But only for those who have achieved Conscientious Citizen Status. To combat overpopulation, the U.S. has sealed its borders, instituted compulsory contraception and a strict one child per couple policy for those who are permitted to breed, and made technology-assisted suicide readily available. But in a world where the old can remain vital forever, America’s youth have little hope of prosperity.

Jason Haggerty is an investigator for Black Buttons Inc, the government agency responsible for dispensing personal handheld Kevorkian devices, which afford the only legal form of suicide. An armed “Killswitch” monitors and records a citizen’s final moments — up to the point where they press a button and peacefully die. Post-press review agents — “button collectors” — are dispatched to review and judge these final recordings to rule out foul play.

When three teens stage an illegal public suicide, Haggerty suspects their deaths may have been murders. Now his race is on to uncover proof and prevent a nationwide epidemic of copycat suicides. Trouble is, for the first time in history, an entire generation might just decide they’re better off dead.

(Catch up with the previous installments of Killswitch – see links below – then continue reading after the jump…)

[..]

by Damon Martin

The comic book industry has never been afraid to tackle tough and somewhat controversial subjects. They’ve featured stories of alcoholism, drug abuse, rape, and many other difficult themes that may have seemed somewhat taboo for a world that mostly involves spandex clad super heroes and mystical villains. The comic book world is more about fantasy than reality, but sometimes reality collides with their fantasy world.

Following President Barack Obama’s historic speech recently, in which he became the first sitting American president to endorse gay marriage, the topic has become a hot button subject on every talk show, news show and press outlet in the world. And now it appears the comic book industry is getting on board as well.

In 1992, Marvel revealed that Northstar, a character that was featured at the time in the Alpha Flight comic book, was indeed gay. Now 20 years later, in issue #50 of the Astonishing X-Men, Northstar (real name Jean-Paul Beaubier) proposed to his long time boyfriend Kyle Jinadu. They will marry in issue #51 set to hit stores in June.

“The Marvel Universe has always reflected the world outside your window, so we strive to make sure our characters, relationships and stories are grounded in that reality,” Marvel editor-in-chief, Axel Alonso said in a press release. “We’ve been working on this story for over a year to ensure Northstar and Kyle’s wedding reflects Marvel’s ‘world outside your window’ tradition.”

In addition to the wedding between X-Man Northstar and the love of his life Kyle Jinadu, DC Comics is set to reveal a major character as gay in the coming months in one of their books.

DC has tackled the subject previously, including with the relaunch of the Batwoman series in 2006 that revealed lead character Kathy Kane was a lesbian. The Batwoman comic has remained a top seller for DC over the last few years, and J.H. Williams III has actually been named the ‘Artist of the Year’ for Batwoman the last two years running by SuicideGirls.

Now, a major male character is apparently set to come out of the closet. “One of the major iconic DC characters will reveal that he is gay in a storyline in June,” said DC Comics co-publisher Dan DiDio earlier this month.

While no solid confirmation has been given by DC Comics regarding who it will be, most rumors have pointed to the original Green Lantern, Alan Scott, who was originally introduced to the DC Universe in 1941. He was the first ever Green Lantern, although in a much different incarnation than the Green Lantern Corps that survive today in most comic books.

The comic book industry as a whole has always been focused more towards the young male demographic, but these new characters help to broaden the comic book universe. It may sound hokey or somewhat old fashioned to think that way, but comic books are a real slice of pop culture and the introduction of more gay characters as well as the idea of gay marriage can only be seen as a positive step in the realm of science fiction, fantasy, comics, and real world social dynamics.