Readers hated it. Hardcore fans of the magazine felt cheated. The letters to the editor were scathing: "I can look at a video game anywhere. I buy Playboy for the reality of the female form." There was a sense of betrayal—the magazine built on the voyeuristic thrill of reality was offering a simulation.
Welcome to the short, strange life of the . What Were the Virtual Vixens? Between 2004 and 2006, Playboy introduced a rotating cast of characters that didn't exist. Literally. Alongside real-world models like Sara Jean Underwood and Kara Monaco, the magazine featured "models" rendered entirely in 3D computer graphics. Playboy Magazines Virtual Vixens
Playboy even gave them names: (the Celtic elf), Diana (the action-adventure hero), and Lorelei (the "Tron" girl). The Tech of the Time To understand why this happened, you have to remember the mid-2000s tech landscape. Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) had just proven that CGI humans could be photorealistic. The Incredibles (2004) was breaking box office records. Polygon counts were up, and rendering times were (relatively) down. Readers hated it