Interview: A Chat With Playboy's Pamela Horton

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Almost one year ago, we spoke to the Gamer Next Door, Playboy's Jo Garcia, about our favorite subject: Video games.

As it turns out, there's more than one Playboy bunny who enjoys the interactive entertainment medium. There's also Pamela Horton, who looks great, has an artistic streak, and loves MMOs like League of Legends and World of Warcraft. We talked to her about a variety of topics, including a few you guys suggested. So without further ado:

PSXE: How and when did you first get started with video games?

Pamela: "I’ve been a gamer since I was 5 years old. Gaming has always been a large aspect of my life. I didn’t start modeling until 18, so I was a gamer long before I was a model. 'laughs'

PSXE:Do you have a favorite genre and favorite game of all time?

Pamela: "My favorite genre is role-playing, basically any sort of RPG. I enjoy most all of them, and I get the most amount of time out of MMOs like League of Legends and World of Warcraft. If I had to pick a favorite game of all time, I'd say it's a toss-up between Chrono Trigger and Earthbound for the SNES.

My dad actually got Chrono Trigger before I even know anything about games and their titles, so I was basically playing it before I even knew what it was. Then I got Earthbound for my 9th birthday; it was right when it came out. It only became a big cult classic later, but I remember it releasing right around my birthday."

Quick side note- This got us talking about Chrono Cross, and Pamela reminded us that not everyone was all that happy with the game, as it wasn't exactly a direct tie-in to CT. There was also the mention of Legend of Mana, which wasn't anything like Secret of Mana. Yeah, it was my fault; I got her talking about it. But when it's JRPGs...we're gonna talk more. Anywho...

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PSXE: What's your take on the ongoing West vs. East debate in gaming? Do you see any lagging in Japanese games versus their Western counterparts?

Pamela: "Personally, I enjoy games for what they're worth. The Japanese culture obviously has certain standards, and they put out the sort of games they would enjoy. Americans are stereotyped for only playing games with guns, so FPSs like Call of Duty and Battlefield are excelling in our current culture. So games that are super popular in Japan don't do that well here.

Obviously, Japan wants to drive towards the world market, but they're still going to appeal to the audiences they believe will like they're type of game. Games they like to play, you know? It's just two different cultures trying to appeal to different audiences, so it's hard to speculate on this. There can be no cease-fire here."

PSXE: What do you think of mobile gaming (cell phones, tablets, etc.)? Do you play those games often?

Pamela: "I do play mobile games. I've got all the Zenonias and I really like to play Plants vs. Zombies. That game became popular on the mobile market, and I thought it was weird that it came out for the 360. I've always been a big fan of the cash-op games, anyway. As for the mobile market, I don't think it will get worse or anything but I do think it has peaked for now. Everyone has their smartphones and and there's always something to play on them, but now it feels like it has plateaued."