I'm going to go against the grain here, I know this is a "game forum", game is the holy grail for a lot of guys here, but.... I think looks trump game.
Not to say that game doesn't matter, it obviously does, and I would go as far as to say that it's necessary for the *average* guy to get laid in the U.S. and most of the western world. However, I think one of the greatest myths of the PUA industry is that *looks don't matter*! That's why you get bootcamps full of short, pudgy, balding, poorly dressed, unattractive men, that think if they take a weekend seminar with RSD or Lovesystems, they will be given the keys to the kingdom, and gain the "secret knowledge" that will help them obtain women.
From what I can see women are almost as superficial as men these days when it comes to looks, (almost is the key word), men obviously put more stock into women's looks then they put into mens'. Women's superficialities extend beyond looks to encompass, status, material things, and wealth.
But, how many tall, handsome, built men do you know who have trouble getting laid?
Seriously, every guy I know that is tall, handsome, and in good shape, gets laid with no problem. More often then not they have mediocre game, that a guy with substantially less looks then them, would not be getting laid with.
My really good looking friends, basically just post up and girls find excuses to enter their orbit, "accidentally", or outright approach THEM. Even if they don't approach them, they basically get eye raped by women, giving them the clear green light to approach.
Guy's that have everything going for them in the looks dept, know that they are attractive, and therefore based on that, and their past successes with women, have a certain level of confidence, that is based on something tangible, that a lesser looking guy cannot replicate.
How many tall, handsome guys do you know, that are bumbling idiots that have zero self confidence, and don't know how to talk to a woman, let alone escalate with them?
I'm sure they exist, but they are few and far between.
Women nowadays, are all trying to "trade up", haven't we all heard of "hypergamy"? I've overheard and had women straight up tell me in mixed company, that when they enter a bar, they scan the crowd to see who the tallest, buffest, and most attractive guys are. Sound familiar? That's basically what us guys do when we enter a bar.
Sure game is necessary, but if you want to date women that are above you in looks, then pure game won't cut it. Or maybe it will cut it in the short term, but if you want to see a girl on more the just a SNL basis, eventually her mind will wander towards guys that are taller, more handsome, fit, successful, etc.
Why do you think the whole pick up industry and game culture, has move towards lifestyle recently? Because having good game isn't an end in and of itself, it's a piece of the puzzle, in addition to game, a lot of guys need to work on their "look", get their grooming handled, upgrade their wardrobe, dress well, hit the gym, and put on some muscles.
At the end of the day I can say confidently, that a guy women would rank an 8 out of 10 in looks (with mediocre game), will out pull a guy who is a 6 out of 10 (with great game), assuming that both guys put in the same amount of effort to make the initial approaches on women.
Guys that claim that looks don't matter, are either in denial, are already good looking, or have an agenda and make a living off selling guys game advice.