ESRB Defends Dead Island Logo Decision

[ObsidianJones_v1legacy]

Yes, yes, I do know my history. I do get why hanging a man off a tree is bad.

I have other problems with this. Why the heck would you hang a zombie anyway? Why is anyone hanged at all. My problem with the box art is that it really makes no sense in the context of the game. The only thing it does is show a palm tree and show a hanged man. If I just saw the box art, I would think it was that murder simulator that Thompson warned us about.

Maybe use the Tree as the 'I' and have a horde at the base and a man at the top waving for help.

 

[GeorgW]

That is just silly. But at least they didn't change the game itself. So look at it this way, you get 2 logos!

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

And how does that justify censoring the art when the game will--probably--receive a M rating?

Probably in the same way that showing zombies being gassed wouldn't go down well in Germany. Or Israel.

M doesn't mean "Anything Goes".

 

[Blind Sight]

Considering the fact that throughout Catholic elementary school at Easter each year we saw several lovely pictures of Judas hanging from a tree, I don't really see the problem with this. Apparently there's racial undertones to this, but I just don't see it, probably because I'm Canadian (I am aware of the background of the situation, but I believe it would be a product of 'looking too deeply into it'). A close friend of mine's dad hanged himself from a pipe when he was in high school, I just showed him this picture and he didn't really see anything wrong with it. What I see is a man hanged from a tree, I can't really infer anything more then that.

But ESRB is just doing their job, even if I don't like it.

 

[lord.jeff]

As I said before

It would be as bad as a Zombie silhouette being guillotined in France, nailbombed or carchased in a tunnel in England, kneecapped in Ireland, or having it's hands amputated in Arabia.

Certain things don't sit well with certain cultures because of their past. Having a "shadow" man hanging from a tree doesn't work well in America. Don't make me have to spell it out why. (KKK)

And how does that justify censoring the art when the game will--probably--receive a M rating?

Because the content in the game is rated M, the box art isn't, thats on public display and will be seen by all. I believe box art should be an image that wold fall within the E rating, because gamestops have six year olds and easily offended parents in them and it would just makes things easier if we don't piss them off, plus at least in this regard we shouldn't have to piss them off.

 

[punipunipyo]

wow... Really? can't have hang man? I can't wait till someone makes a "Night" (holocaust book, in the book, there is a part where a 10 years old boy gets hanged by Nazi) game(possibly plays like heavy rain, more drama, less action...), and had to change title...

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

Why is no one asking the real question? How did a zombie hang itself?

 

[TerribleAssassin]

Dead Space has a cut off arm floating in space. People didn't seem to complain then

Same with the Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 game covers, they're pretty graphic as well, but didn't cause a fuss.

Left 4 Dead 2's did, as stated in the article...

I can see why it would be banned, but it's not massively offensive, not that it needed to be banned.

 

[Galliam]

For the land of the free, you guys sure do have some odd fine print when it comes to these things.

Just means folks are free to choose whether or not their kids see a man hanging from a tree. If it's in the game, there's a choice. If it's on the box, at eye level in a game store frequented by children, there isn't.

Also, because this is a pretty damn free country, folks have free choice over where they buy their games. A retailer may decide that having a hanging man on a box on the shelf may drive away customers... so instead, they choose not to sell the game at all. Well, to combat that, the company makes a slight alteration to the box art. Sounds like a lot of people exercising perfectly reasonable freedoms, there. No one was forced to do anything (note that the ESRB asked for the change).

This basically sums up my oopinion on the matter. Also, I don't get why ANYBODY cares about artistic expression on box art. Its just the package the game comes in. 99.9% of your time with a game doesn't feature box art at all.

One final point, speaking as a person who has had a family member commit suicide by hanging, tiny little reminders like that, while they may seem harmless, cause me actual emotional distress. I know the main controversy here is potential racism, but walking into a store and seeing a person hung on a video game box would very likely piss me off.

 

[kael013]

Dead Space has a cut off arm floating in space. People didn't seem to complain then

Or even better, the indigo prophecy box art. That shows a man holding a knife while it appears that he cut himself with words like "Guilt" or "Fear" written in blood behind him.

That seems more graphic then a silhouette of a zombie that's hung itself.

Are you American? Are you familiar with American history? Check out the Civil Rights movement of the 50's and 60's. When black people were chased down, beaten, had dogs sicked on them for wanting the rights they're entitled to under the Constitution. And the worst of all was the flagrant and outright murder of black people in the southern states, often with the consent or help of the local law enforcement. And the most iconic of these killing were the LYNCHINGS. Don't know what that means?

"Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people, however large or small."

Do you understand now why the silhouette of a HANGED MAN might just be incredibly offensive to a good chunk of the American population, and could easily be taken out of context and turned into a media shit storm by people with a misguided agenda?

And yet we have our kids play a game where if they can't guess and spell out a word in a set number of tries, BANG!, there's a hanged stickman. Maybe not a graphic as it's only a bunch of lines but still, it's always seemed like a double standard or something to me.

 

[Kroxile]

Why is no one asking the real question? How did a zombie hang itself?

Well, I'm just assuming that it stepped into some sort of trap, being the slow dim-witted creatures zombies are.

OT: I get why people would think its offensive and I agree that the ESRB is just preventing a shitstorm. But what I don't like is that it would even cause a shitstorm in the first place. People need to let shit go and move on with their lives. I dunno how it is across the pond but it seems we Americans have a really hard time letting go of the past and we let it drive our futures far too much.

 

[Jonny49]

And, once again, America decides to mess with box art.

I can't wait to see what Australia will do....

I imagine it'll just be a blank cover.

 

[slipknot4]

Oh god! Think of the children! When will they think when the grow up in a world of sunshine, lollipops and rainbows everywhere only to be drenched in blood in their first mature rated game.

 

[Midnight Crossroads]

The new box art makes more sense. It doesn't seem likely that you could hang someone from a palm tree. Especially when you consider palm trees don't have branches. Those are leaves it's hanging from.

 

[Marmalade]

I didn't even notice the zombie until they pointed it out.

 

[Xanadu84]

It's pretty minor, and it won't change the game. I'm fine with this.

 

[L8NEYET]

For the land of the free, you guys sure do have some odd fine print when it comes to these things.

America is one giant Grey area! There is nothing free and there is always too many people poking their noses where it does not belong.

What about billboards, cd's, Churches, fastfood joints, they all push their ideas and messages across and without little fuss. Games are targeted more due to the fact of school shootings and violence in general.

The person in the tree is red and makes me think of a Native American before I think of an African American... just saying.

 

[TheEvilCheese]

Well, I suppose it's fair enough.
Anything that gains an age rating IN the game can't really be used in an advertising environment full of 9 year olds.

But in this case, it does seem silly, not the most graphic design to be honest.

 

[Jabberwock xeno]

As I said in the other thread:

THE ESRB HAS 0 LEGAL POWER OVER GAMES!

What "guidelines" are they talking about? I have NEVER once heard of them, has anybody else? No?

I want to see the damned microscopic particles of these mythical "industry guidelines"