BF2S Forums Censorship hits the video game world!

TheEternalPessimist wrote:

Spearhead wrote:

I wouldnt want to hang around anyone who plays a game like Manhunt, personally.

Why? Afraid I'm gonna gag you with a carrier bag and beat your head in with my bare hands/break your neck (Thats kill one in the original Manhunt).

Seriously, if someones homicidal it's because they have mental issues, not because of a computer game.

I think he's pointing more to the fact that someone who finds fun in playing as an insane criminal killing other insane criminals and sane people in tremendously bloody ways is probably not an ideal friend.

ghettoperson wrote:

It's a great ad campaign now though. Previously, I had no interest in it, but now all this fuss is being made about it I really want to play it.

Snap.  Same thing happened with the first game initially but in the end i lost interest and never got around to playing it.

some_random_panda wrote:

Meh, I'd never buy Manhunt 2 anyway.

The most violent game I've played is Call Of Duty 2, and I call that violent because it's the only game I've seen where the bots, when close enough, hit the corpses of the other bots when they fall after being shot.  They also spray the corpses a fair bit after it's clear that the guy is dead.

And above, I'm glad to know that you're not racist - it seems after incidents like Cronulla things are moving forwards.  (not that cronulla is a common occurance, but you get the idea)

Come to think of it, COD 2 really brings out the brutal side of war and shoves it in your face, as if the makers really wanted to show just how catastrophic and bloody war is.  I was rather taken aback at first, especially after COD 1.

Ever played FEAR? You can crucify people to the wall with the nailgun, blow limbs off with the shotgun, watch the mangled pieces of flesh fly after you hit someone with the repeating cannon, watch someone fried to a black skeleton with the particle gun, etc etc. CoD2 is hardly a violent game compared to FEAR, Quake 4, Half-Life 2, even Halo has alot of blood. I doubt this manhunt game can beat games like Doom 3 or FEAR in violence and flesh all over the room with blood everywhere decapitations. But none of these games with tons of gore and blood got censored, its because some dumbshit parents blamed the first game on their kids death which is utter bullshit. Hell, the hitman series, a series which focuses on pointless brutal murder was never banned anywhere or blamed on some lunatic fibre wiring someone to death and stuffing him in a chest or assassinating the vice president now do you? It was banned because its made by Rockstar and some dumbass parents complained. Simple as that.

Last edited by [NeMe$i$.Dr4g0ncl4w] (2007-06-21 06:33:24)

I guess someones idea on how violent a game is depends on their viewpoint i.e. if they think a game is based solely so that you can see violence. Half-Life is a great game series but is very violent but that is only details aside from your missions. They probably see manhunt 2, since you are a criminal killer, as violence the only main point in the game and b/c of that see no 'good' from it.

It seems like quite a surprising decision, especially so soon after releasing a report that appeared to be against such harsh decisions.

snipurl.com/1kxfy

"Most gamers see eliminating enemies as another step in the game
rather than something to savour for itself. Second, violence contributes
mightily to the tension in games not least because gamers are not just
shooting, they are also vulnerable to being shot. Most gamers concentrate
on their own survival rather than on the damage they inflict on others. Third,
the opportunity to be violent, without being vulnerable to consequences,
clearly underscores the appeal of some games as escapist; the violence
helps make the play exhilaratingly out of reach of ordinary life. Fourth, the
point made above; gamers seem not to lose awareness that they are playing
a game and do not mistake the game for real life."

"33. However most gamers are not seriously concerned about violence in games
for the reasons given at paragraphs 23 and 27, and also because they think
violence on television and in films is more upsetting than violence in games.
Film images are more ‘real’ than computer graphics, and film creates a more
compelling illusion; they feel these two factors transcend the fact that games,
uniquely, inspire ownership of the violence because they are interactive."

"34. Gamers are virtually unanimous in rejecting the suggestion that video game
violence encourages people to be violent in real life, or otherwise
desensitises them to violence. A few appear to think that playing ‘a lot too
much’ may make people aggressive. And some feel that people ‘who are
already unhinged in some way’ may be inspired or prompted or pushed
over the edge if they play violent games obsessively. Gamers exonerate
games of any responsibility for real violence because they are so confident
that their own propensity to be violent has not been affected by
playing games."

"In comparison with graphics, storylines – clear and compelling narrative
progression – are less often mentioned amongst criteria for assessing games
and seem relatively unimportant to many gamers. The tension and suspense
in gaming usually arises from the immediate situation, rather from
speculation about the ultimate resolution. With a few striking exceptions in
this sample, notably among the professionals, it is a sense of progression
through the game, as distinct from a strong linear storyline, that is
appreciated. Gamers like clear and coherent objectives and do not like
games when it is unclear how to progress, or when they seem to get stuck
doing similar sorts of things."

"Unlike the sort of involvement generated by most novels, gamers often do not
care much, when they are in the middle of a game, how it will ultimately end.
They are absorbed by the detail of what they are doing at each stage, and
the attendant excitement, rather than speculating about the end."

So apparently they found that most games don't get upset by computer game violence as easily as in films, don't become more violent, don't loose track of reality and generally don't give much of a s**t about the game's story.

Yet they still want to ban this game. Good job.....

9/10 5th grades know that the violence in Games, Movie and TVs shows is fake while the violence on the nightly news is real.

The only "video games" I play are BF2 and BF2142 (Which I don't even play that anymore) so these banning decisions on console games don't really stir my attention. However, I am highly against countries banning video games, especially for adults. One mans personal opinion about a certain game should not be the failure of an adults freedom to choose what they want to play. I've personally always believed that hard-core games that involve a lot of realistic violence should be restricted to people over the age of 21, but obviously that would never happen because the gaming industry would lose their key age demographic. I feel sorry for you guys in the countries where games you enjoy are being banned... but at least you could still buy the shit online if you wanted it that bad. So ultimately, the guy didn't ban anything, he just made a harder, and more annoying buying process.

Every time they start talking about violent video games, I start paying attention.  The more publicity it gets, the more I want to check it out.  And when they start banning them in places, forget it, I'm gonna own it.  This doesn't necessarily make me a violent person IRL.  I happen to be the kind of guy that always wants to do whatever the "talking heads" tell me I shouldn't.  If I judge it to not be harmful to anyone else if I try these things out myself, I go for it.  I can't be the only person out there like this.  While he may not be mentioned in the article I've linked to, Jack Thompson and his fellow crusaders should realize that the free advertising they generate in their anti-violence campaigns, could just be working against them.  But then again, it's just some thought I had... I could be wrong.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/fun.games/06/19/videogames.manhunt.reut/index.html

Please don't flame me too hard, we're all entitled to our personal opinions... LOL

Merged...

Braddock wrote:

It would seem, according to the latest reports on the story, that the game in question contains footage (or footage reminiscent of) the abduction of Jamie Bolger, who was brutally murdered by two young children a number of years back.

Mmmmm ...I'm all for freedom of choice for adults but that's a pretty sick attempt to court controversy by Rockstar games if it's true.

Turquoise wrote:

Yeah...  I'm totally against censorship, but I have to admit...  Rockstar is beginning to look like the Jerry Springer of videogame producers.

Then do the most effective protest on the planet... don't buy it. Rockstar is a company. Its only goal is to make money. If it makes shitty games, no one will buy them, and the company will fail. It's a fool proof method

Spearhead wrote:

Use your heads, people.... they're outlawing it so dumbshit parents don't have a chance to let their kids play it.  I was at Bestbuy a few years ago, and in the line in front of me a woman was asking her 5 year old son whether GTA San Andreas was the game he wanted for christmas.  The truth is, parents don't give a shit nowadays.  I'll be willing to bet that kid will be FUBAR by the time hes 15.

You can go on and on about how you should have the right to play games like Manhunt 2... but the fact is, sick shit like that shouldn't even be available for kids to play.  I mean, they shouldn't even be within 5 miles of where a kid is.  Why?  Because kids can literally have their lives ruined by even the tiniest amount of shit that goes on when they're young.

Ever read Huck Finn? I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings? Of Mice and Men? Catcher in the Rye? To Kill a Mockingbird?

The are dangerous books, if you ask the right people. They should be banned from all libraries, as kids might read them, and this would lead to the end of society as we know it.

All restrictions on free speech start with the excuse of protecting the children. It worked for Hitler, it will work for anyone else.

Axatar wrote:

Did they ban Postal 2:Share The Pain yet?

AFAIC, video games try to represent real life but in a different way, if you can kill people violently and without mercy in video games, you would probably not do it in real life. Why?

Because of the feelings, you won't have the guts IRL to even badly hurt someone because you're afrait of what's going to happen next, whereas in video games you can and you must kill people because you feel invincible.

If a kid wants a AO rated game, he asks his parents to buy it and voila!

The aussies did. I know, I remember after it happened, I downloaded it and played it all the way through... it wasn't that good, to be really honest. Though, the wanton killing was amusing for the first 2 minutes or so.

blisteringsilence wrote:

Turquoise wrote:

Yeah...  I'm totally against censorship, but I have to admit...  Rockstar is beginning to look like the Jerry Springer of videogame producers.

Then do the most effective protest on the planet... don't buy it. Rockstar is a company. Its only goal is to make money. If it makes shitty games, no one will buy them, and the company will fail. It's a fool proof method.

Agreed, but I wasn't saying I support the ban either.  I'm just saying that I can see why some people may have something against the company.

I think bans are mostly pointless when it comes to this stuff.  Now, banning food imported from China because of health concerns is another story....

juliancallan wrote:

I started a petition two days ago that I'm sending to IFCO (I'm Irish) to get Manhunt 2 unbanned.Please sign it ! http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/manhunt2unbanned1
It's an absolute disgrace that a single body can determine what a whole country can or cannot watch/experience.Help me fight for our games that we love to play.

I agree, I'm living in Dublin and will sign it no problem. Down with censorship; I can remember when they actually banned Natural Born Killers and even Monty Python's Life of Brian in this country (wtf???).