Dead Island Publisher Tones Down Logo for North America

[alandavidson]

What I really want to know are their reasons. I didn't think of a lynch mob when I first saw the cover. There are certain things that you do want to be careful with, but I don't think that this (original cover art) pushed the envelope too far.

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

It's kind of lame, but I understand the intent. Maybe instead of taking the noose away they could have made it so that the hanged zombie isn't a silhouette, that way it would be clear that it's a zombie and not a person.

 

[Zenn3k]

Are all the zombies black?

 

[Sniper Team 4]

Are all the zombies black?

Being a zombie is an equal opportunity career. See Resident Evil 5.
Sorry. I couldn't resist.

Probably the best move, as I have seen several stories on CNN where people get offended whenever any type of hanging symbolism is used. There was a story about a Halloween decoration that a man was forced to take down because people felt it portrayed a black man being hung. From the look of it, the guy was a rotting corpse. Hard to tell what color his skin was...

 

[KefkaCultist]

Really... Are Americas entertainment business run by 10 year olds?

Spoiler: I direct you to this Critical Miss:

Not quite the same, but still relevant I think.

Anyway, this is kinda dumb but it doesn't really bother me. It's not like its a drastic change to something completely stupid.

 

[Syphous]

It personally wouldn't bother me in the slightest, but I'm also a straight white male. Nothing can bother me. Like someone else said, as long as the game itself isn't censored I don't care what they do to the logo.

 

[Son of Detroit]

I'm so fucking sick of the US getting the shittiest box art. Every fucking game it's the same story, we get the WORST art. Publisher's need to fucking think for once.

Really? It's a silhouette of a grown man hanging from a palm tree that can magically support his weight. The cover was shitty to begin with.

 

[Jabberwock xeno]

I understand their decison, but I STRONGLY disagree with their choice.

Based on the trailer, this game seemed like it would be a very emotional experience that did not shy away from taboo.

IU had hoped it would stay that way, perhaps as one of gaming's examples as a legimate media and/or art form.

Because if THAT trailer was not a work or art, then neither is 90% of the stuff in thathers, played on the radio, or in gallery's.

 

[Mr. Eff_v1legacy]

I mean why would you try to hang a zombie?

That's what crossed my mind too.

Still, the developers should be able to leave things as they envisioned them.

 

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

I rather like the Ctrl-Alt-Del take on this.

[image/]http://l3.cdn.cad-comic.com/comics/sillies-20110321-3d8f8.gif[/IMG]

How dare he take the easy way out.

 

[Caliostro]

So America continues it's proud tradition of getting the absolutely shittier box art. Nothing new.

And as someone else pointed out:

"America: MAN, THOSE AUSSIES ARE WUSSIES BANNING EVERYTHING!

Wait, a hanging zombie!? Wow! I can see the problem in that! I mean, I wouldn't want a perfectly legitimate practice in the implied context (killing a zombie during a zombie apocalypse) to hurt the sensibilities of someone who ignorantly decides to connect it to lynching, despite the fact that historically, hanging has been used for centuries (since 1300 AD at least) as a capital punishment, and only for a relatively very brief period of history was it ever used for racist lynching! But fuuuuuuck that, ignorance is where it's at!"

 

[Hungry Donner]

I get why they would think it might be a problem...
But let's face it. If the game was released with all questionable material intact, the general public would go about their lives without being the slightest bit affected. Anyone who would have 'called it out' over that matter will call it out over something else anyway.

Considering that they're changing the box and not the in-game splash screen I'd guess they're hoping to prevent passerbys from noticing and taking offense. I could certainly see someone walking through a store and taking offense at the depiction of lynching who otherwise wouldn't have noticed the game in the first place.

 

[Jumplion]

Guys, you do realize that nobody has really been "offended" by this (yet), right? I'd say Deep Silver/Techland are just being courteous. This isn't censorship, they're just barely toning the logo down.

Besides;

I can understand the move, lynching is still a powerful symbol across much of the US and it isn't necessarily clear that it's a zombie hanging from the tree - I mean why would you try to hang a zombie?

 

[UNHchabo]

So America continues it's proud tradition of getting the absolutely shittier box art. Nothing new.

Actually, I didn't get a "lynching" vibe from the logo, and I think this is the better box art, because it more accurately depicts the content of the game.

Let's take a look at the differences:

US Box Art: The silhouette of a shambling zombie, under a palm tree. Okay, this is a zombie game that takes place on an island.

Original Box Art: There's a guy who hung himself from a palm tree. Why -- was he marooned on an island, and hung himself from despair? What type of game is this: Is this a post-nuclear game, where my only enemy is radioactive waste?

 

[Caliostro]

US Box Art: The silhouette of a shambling zombie, under a palm tree with the words "Dead Island". Okay. "Dead" anything generally implies zombies. And there's a zombie on the cover. How original. Generic zombie game. Moving on.


Original Box Art: There's a guy hanging from a palm tree with the words "dead island". "Dead" on anything generally implies zombies... But is that a hung zombie? Or is it someone else? Someone who killed themselves? An island overrun with zombies could drive people into despair... Wait, this is is something the devs considered? The emotional side of a zombie breakout? I'm officially interested. Let's take a look.

Fixed that for you.

That said, based on your original post I can see that maybe this wasn't as much a "censorship" issue as the standard "dumbing it down for the target demographic" the US versions seem to suffer.

 

[UNHchabo]

Fixed that for you.

That said, based on your original post I can see that maybe this wasn't as much a "censorship" issue as the standard "dumbing it down for the target demographic" the US versions seem to suffer.

That's really not what I get from the original logo. On the original logo, I can't even really tell that it's a zombie game. I can tell that it's a dark game, but that's about it.

This isn't a case like Ico or Future Wars, where the box art is dramatically changed to make it dumbed down. This is a minor change that makes a massive clarification of what the game's about.

There's a difference between abstract box art, which intrigues the potential buyer, and misleading box art, which confuses them.

 

[Caliostro]

That's really not what I get from the original logo. On the original logo, I can't even really tell that it's a zombie game. I can tell that it's a dark game, but that's about it.

This isn't a case like Ico or Future Wars, where the box art is dramatically changed to make it dumbed down. This is a minor change that makes a massive clarification of what the game's about.

There's a difference between abstract box art, which intrigues the potential buyer, and misleading box art, which confuses them.

This does reinforce my point... That said, there's another reason to like the original box art: It's focusing on how dark the game is, the human emotional element. The zombies are just a mean to accomplish an end.

You're right though, it's not a GIGAAAAAAAAAANTIC difference. It is, however, a worse piece of box art than the original.

 

[flaviok79]

The sad thing about censorship in any media is this "internal censorship" that takes place in the minds of the creators themselves.

In antecipation for any negative fallouts, people constantly constrained by censorship will eventually censor themselves. If that is the case here, than it is a sad sign that America is becoming a less free media friendly environment.

But, if the ESRB really did censor that, they should get some clue of the times we are living in. Perhaps admit younger, less conservative members, or have some sex. Both would help.

 

[UNHchabo]

But, if the ESRB really did censor that, they should get some clue of the times we are living in. Perhaps admit younger, less conservative members, or have some sex. Both would help.

There's no evidence the ESRB had involvement in this case; it's quite possible that the developers just chose to change the logo to avoid public outcry.

You may be against censorship, but publishers have to keep the sensibilities of the public in mind. A publisher can put out a product that includes full-frontal nudity on the cover, but if no stores are willing to sell the product, sales will be near-zero. To me, censorship of the package doesn't matter, as long as the content is unchanged.

 

[Flauros]

The original icon is pretty stricking and pretty cool.

But we have such a particular history with that symbol...that a zombie hanging or even a criminal hanging is not the first thing we think of. Remember, theyre going to try to have stores put this all over the windows and signs...Not that it will cause riots, but im sure some managers will be like....Nah, this has been here long enough, creeping me out and making people give me odd looks. Think ill put up Kirbys Epic Yarn instead....

Remember, thats not actually in the game.

Maybe they should of put a cowboy hat on him or something