Booth babes have long been a part of the trade and enthusiast show experience, but since its inception, Penny Arcade Expo has tried to put some limits on the dress and behavior of the models. After polling the community, the policy on booth babes has been clarified, and some specific details have been added regarding how publishers can use paid models to push their games.

6,313 people took the poll, with 60 percent of respondents either liking or loving the ban on booth babes. Only 12 percent of respondents hated the ban, putting public opinion firmly in the anti-babe area. The major addition to the policy stipulates that the models need to be "educated about the product," and "partial nudity" has been banned. Models can dress up like characters from games and wear revealing clothing, as long as it's true to the original character.

The numbers are striking, and the rule saying models need to know about the product is important. It seems that those going to PAX want to see and learn about the games, not ogle scantily clad ladies who pretend to really like having their picture taken with sometimes-stinky gaming fans. Giving more breathing room to cosplayers is also a nice touch, as fans dressing up like their favorite character has always been a large part of the show experience... even (especially?) if the outfits are titillating.

The rules leave some room for interpretation, but the spirit of the law is clear: no partial nudity, the models need to be knowledgeable about the products they're shilling, and cosplayers can continue to be outrageous as long as it's true to the original character design. Sounds fair.