Actual City of Juarez Wants Videogame Juarez Banned

[DJDarque]

Say it with me people: "The subject matter never objectionable unless it involves something close to home, and if so, NOT IN MY BACK YARD..."

I live in Arizona, so this whole situation is relatively close to my back yard, yet the premise doesn't bother me. I'm not a fan of making light of a very big situation, but I'm also not a fan of the double standard in video games when it comes to portraying actual events. I think if you can portray Vietnam, World War I & II and other past events then you should be able to portray current world events as well.

Now, I've never played any of the other Call of Juarez games and up until now I honestly didn't even know about this one, but I think it's possible for the game to be making a firm statement against the cartels. I also believe that the outrage this game is a very positive thing, although I think it's aimed in the wrong direction. Instead of pointing your anger at the game itself, point your anger at the real life equivalent of what the game is portraying. Instead of wasting your breath calling for a ban or censorship, raise your voices in outrage that not enough is being done to combat that drug cartels that are running rampant.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Scytail]

On what grounds can they request a video game to be band in a country that isnt their own? And further more, its their own fault for letting the drug cartels gain and control so much power in the first place.

 

[Quaidis]

I can see where they're coming from and I support their decision to ban the game in their area. After all, if people really wanted it that bad they could jump over to the US and grab a copy. Or, more likely, they would download a pirated copy off the net.

If I lived in an area where beheaded bodies were being promoted at every corner to send a message and gunfire erupted outside my window every day, the last thing I would want is a game glorifying it and making it 'fun', then having it rubbed in my face with promotions and television/internet ads.


They're not saying 'ban all violent games!'. They're not blaming the game for ruining the place. They only think that the game wouldn't help the matter by making the current violence 'cool' and 'trendy'. Wrong time, wrong place.

To compare it for the US folks, it would be like releasing a game about how you're a terrorist and you have to hijack an airplane and crash it into the city's largest towers to cause the most havoc. Bonus points for how much damage you cause and how many people you kill! The game would get props for being realistic! And this game would be released within a year of 9/11.

 

[Flishiz]

With me being the advocate of art at most costs it surprises even me to hear me saying that I'm actually siding with the town. It's just somewhat in poor taste. I mean, if there was a game about the vietnam war with a segment featuring the Khmer Rouge (assuming same tech we have today) after they started slaughtering civilians and all that I would consider it in poor artistic taste as well. I think that there are far too many people whose lives are being ruined by the rampant drug violence of Latin America, and the fact that a video game is capitalizing on that is somewhat disgusting. I don't think that the city has the right frame though: saying that it's a toy for kids to psychologically train on falls flat, but the fact that anyone can have childish fun from a situation that is clearly tragic strikes me as somewhat uncaring. Like a drunk friend making a joke about your father finally sitting still while you're attending his funeral.

 

[Bang25]

This videogame is clearly meant for mature audiences. Even so, children will probably play it anyway. I might. I'm fifteen, and I think i'm just smart enough, maybe, to see the boundaries between reality and videogame shooty stabby wahey. I think people are underestimating the younger generation. (I love the Call of Juarez games.)

Edit For the Comment above me: I don't think people are trying to capitalize on a serious situation, and I doubt the game is going to be serious. The other games were about the madness of those who were trying to find a hidden cache of Aztec gold, along the way going through all the cowboy cliches. You could just as easily say that Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty capitalise on "serious" (fictional) situations , and they have met with some controversy, but if the developers and publishers of the game are actually MAKING THE GAME and are pouring millions of dollars into the project, then they don't think the material is truly offensive or will cause harm. I really really really doubt that this game is trying to capitilise on crime in Latin-America by trivializing it, especially considering the games before it, and also just how stupid doing something like that would be on a multi-million dollar project.

 

[RoBi3.0]

I can see where they're coming from and I support their decision to ban the game in their area. After all, if people really wanted it that bad they could jump over to the US and grab a copy. Or, more likely, they would download a pirated copy off the net.

If I lived in an area where beheaded bodies were being promoted at every corner to send a message and gunfire erupted outside my window every day, the last thing I would want is a game glorifying it and making it 'fun', then having it rubbed in my face with promotions and television/internet ads.


They're not saying 'ban all violent games!'. They're not blaming the game for ruining the place. They only think that the game wouldn't help the matter by making the current violence 'cool' and 'trendy'. Wrong time, wrong place.

To compare it for the US folks, it would be like releasing a game about how you're a terrorist and you have to hijack an airplane and crash it into the city's largest towers to cause the most havoc. Bonus points for how much damage you cause and how many people you kill! The game would get props for being realistic! And this game would be released within a year of 9/11.

I think If I lived in a place like you described I would be more worried the consent gun fire erupting in front of my house and the beheaded heads posted on my corner and the message they were suppose to be sending, then what some dickhead in south Detroit was playing on his days off.

And as for your 9/11 game I wouldn't give a shit if such a game existed. I wouldn't buy it cause it sounds lame, but I wouldn't be calling for a banned to protect the children.

I too, find the tagline insulting. Mainly because the Wild West was much, much less violent than modern day Mexico. Or L.A., New York, or DC.

Tell that to the Native Americans they may disagree.

 

[DJDarque]

I think if you can portray Vietnam, World War I & II and other past events then you should be able to portray current world events as well.

Why? How on Earth can you justify this? People will die every week, and they want to make a game, entertainment, based on this. Not even just "based on", but using the actual place. That just defies good taste, hell, it's morally questionable.

It's just disgusting.

So it's okay to make a game, or entertainment, out of an actual event that took place in actual location where millions of people lost their lives, but even mentioning doing the same to something happening now and all of a sudden it's disgusting?

This is exactly what I mean by a double standard.

Also, nowhere did I mention that it will always be in good taste, but that shouldn't mean that someone can't do it.

 

[Blind Sight]

You think these guys would actually be more concerned about the War on Drugs and how the American government has pressured Mexico to have heavier drug laws, effectively making the matter worse, but no. When a policy changes the drug producers in your country from villagers growing pot and making cocaine to armed drug gangs, it's clearly the policy that is the problem.

I think if you can portray Vietnam, World War I & II and other past events then you should be able to portray current world events as well.

Why? How on Earth can you justify this? People will die every week, and they want to make a game, entertainment, based on this. Not even just "based on", but using the actual place. That just defies good taste, hell, it's morally questionable.

It's just disgusting.

So it's okay to make a game, or entertainment, out of an actual event that took place in actual location where millions of people lost their lives, but even mentioning doing the same to something happening now and all of a sudden it's disgusting?

This is exactly what I mean by a double standard.

Also, nowhere did I mention that it will always be in good taste, but that shouldn't mean that someone can't do it.

For that matter, should we stop all forms of entertainment from portraying these events? Can we have no films on Iraq, no books on World War 2?

 

[Khada]

Why are the worlds leaders so stupid?... WHY DAMMIT!

 

[Sneaky Paladin]

Horrible situation, people getting raped, murdered, blah blah blah, its terrible, we get it, its a place, grab whatever food, water, and other provisions you do or do not have and gtfo, obviously if the place is so bloody terrible living as a hobo in a safer town is a step up, if they've got the time and connections to beg the government they should be begging for a competent militant force, or maybe the emo citizens could grow a pair and kill off the cartels alongside what small militant force exists?

The game is not going to do shit to change the place, except maybe get a bit more public attention, which if is truly their aim there is better ways to go about it then hassling game developers with or without bad taste. By this logic every third world civilization in the world + peta should burn Mario in effigy for stomping delicious edible turtles, while the rest of the world curses his name for being a shroom addict.

P.S. Citizens of Juarez, either Get out, Fight for your land, or Stop Bitching.
P.P.S. Cartels run on druggies, might as well kill those sobs off too and get the enablers at the root.

This is what happens when 13 year olds try to give their opinion on real issues.

Hey I don't agree with this guy either but making a comment like that seems like you're trying to start a small flame war. Try to avoid that.

 

[emion]

god thats just hilarious XD

 

[Mcface]

There is more killing in the real Juarez than the game haha..

 

[Canid117]

Maybe wiping out the drug cartels that inspire the game would be a better use of the Mexican governments time than banning a piece of media. "Please think of the children!" doesn't fly with me anyway but somehow I find it even more reprehensible when the children you are supposedly protecting are being exposed to this kind of violence in the real world every day and no one seems to be able to do shit about it.

 

[Doctor What]

I saw a news report this morning that 53 people were killed in Juarez in the last 72 hours. As morbid as that is, I'm pretty sure that's a pretty good kill streak for any game.

 

[qeinar]

but children aren't supposed to be watching/playing this game in the first place!

yes this indeed; the game is PG 18.

 

[arrjay93]

this is rediculous, he may as well be saying ALL violent games should be banned.

It's different, you don't understand there are people dying every day over there and it's a truly horrible situation, and to make it worse the government is not really doing anything to stop this, there are people getting raped and murdered over there, I don't know if you understand but it's really horrible to make a crime game in real city where people are getting killed and raped, and the cartels have practically taken over the place, it's really quite offensive for those of us who live in Mexico.

Horrible situation, people getting raped, murdered, blah blah blah, its terrible, we get it, its a place, grab whatever food, water, and other provisions you do or do not have and gtfo, obviously if the place is so bloody terrible living as a hobo in a safer town is a step up, if they've got the time and connections to beg the government they should be begging for a competent militant force, or maybe the emo citizens could grow a pair and kill off the cartels alongside what small militant force exists?

The game is not going to do shit to change the place, except maybe get a bit more public attention, which if is truly their aim there is better ways to go about it then hassling game developers with or without bad taste. By this logic every third world civilization in the world + peta should burn Mario in effigy for stomping delicious edible turtles, while the rest of the world curses his name for being a shroom addict.

P.S. Citizens of Juarez, either Get out, Fight for your land, or Stop Bitching.
P.P.S. Cartels run on druggies, might as well kill those sobs off too and get the enablers at the root.

It's amazing how complete ignorance makes even the most difficult problems trivial.