By 2007, the Virtual Vixens were quietly retired. They never appear in "Where Are They Now?" specials.
Playboy’s response has been to embrace the debate. In 2023, the company launched the "Real vs. Virtual" podcast, where real Playboy models interview their digital counterparts. The most viral episode featured model Lena Morris arguing with her AI duplicate. The AI said: “I don’t need a union. I don’t get harassed on set. Maybe you should be more like me.” The clip was viewed 50 million times on TikTok.
On the surface, it was a gimmick. But digging deeper, it was a forward-looking hedge. Playboy Magazines Virtual Vixens
Playboy's Voluptuous Vixens January 1998 1st Edition Tawny Peaks
: Occasional themed sections, such as the "WWE Super Vixens" feature involving wrestlers like Sable and Torrie Wilson. For more specific information on the Playboy: The Mansion By 2007, the Virtual Vixens were quietly retired
Hugh Hefner died in 2017, just as the NFT craze was beginning. In his final interviews, he was asked about . He chuckled, sipped his Pepsi, and said: “I like my women warm and breathing. But… the boys will do what they do.”
Technically, the production of these magazines was an immense undertaking for the time. Rendering a single high-resolution image could take days of processing power. The collaboration between Playboy’s creative directors and digital artists pushed the software of the era to its limits, resulting in visuals that—while dated today—were considered the pinnacle of digital art in the late 20th century. In 2023, the company launched the "Real vs
Hefner famously resisted the digital transition. He believed the ritual of the magazine—the texture of the paper, the scent of the ink, the act of turning the page—was inseparable from the product. Yet, by 2005, Playboy was hemorrhaging readers. The "Virtual Vixen" concept was the compromise: keep the magazine artisanal, but let the digital arm experiment.
