"Shocking" Modern Warfare 2 to be Raised in U.K. Parliament

Andy Chalk

One Flag, One Fleet, One Cat
Nov 12, 2002
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"Shocking" Modern Warfare 2 to be Raised in U.K. Parliament


U.K. Member of Parliament Keith Vaz says he is "absolutely shocked" by the violence in Modern Warfare 2 [http://modernwarfare2.infinityward.com/] and plans to raise his concerns about the game in Parliament.

Controversy erupted when it was revealed [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/95743-Leaked-Modern-Warfare-2-Opening-Will-Be-Controversial] that Modern Warfare 2 would include a sequence in which players could join terrorists in killing unarmed civilians at a Russian airport. Players who find the scenes disturbing or objectionable will be able to skip them but that's not enough for Vaz, a notorious videogame critic. "I am absolutely shocked by the level of violence in this game and am particularly concerned about how realistic the game itself looks," he said.

Activision [http://www.activision.com] pointed out in a statement that Modern Warfare 2 is meant for adults and that warnings about potentially offensive content will be given prior to the start of the sequences. "At the beginning of the game there are two checkpoints where the player is advised that some people may find an upcoming segment disturbing," the company said. "These checkpoints can't be disabled. It is appropriately rated 18 for violent scenes."

Despite Activision's caution, it's no surprise that Vaz is taking issue with the game. He is familiar to gamers, particularly in the U.K., as a Jack Thompson-like figure whose concern for facts often takes a back seat to his penchant for strident commentary. In the past, he has claimed that interactive rape is a feature of some videogames (a statement quickly debunked by the central role [http://www.bbfc.co.uk/] in bringing the brief Amazon appearance of the Japanese game RapeLay to widespread attention.


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Amnestic

High Priest of Haruhi
Aug 22, 2008
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Look at the Mumbai airport attack
Look at Modern Warfare 2
See they're nothing alike
Say it's realistic anyway
???
Controversy! PROFIT!

I wish feckers would stop trying to tell me what I can and can't play. This just further cements my view that Parliament is populated by a pack of pricks who are about as in touch with recent developments as they are with staying loyal to their wives.

That is to say, not terribly much.
 

Iron Mal

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Jun 4, 2008
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Amnestic said:
Look at the Mumbai airport attack
Look at Modern Warfare 2
See they're nothing alike
Say it's realistic anyway
???
Controversy! PROFIT!

I wish feckers would stop trying to tell me what I can and can't play. This just further cements my view that Parliament is populated by a pack of pricks who are about as in touch with recent developments as they are with staying loyal to their wives.

That is to say, not terribly much.
Never a truer word has been said.

Unfortuneatly it has been proven on many occasions that you don't always need to have evidence (or even basic logic) to get a crowd of people to believe you provided you word it right (need I mention both Mccarthyism along with the Mass Effect 'sex scandal'?).
 

notyouraveragejoe

Dehakchakala!
Nov 8, 2008
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Hot damn. A second Jack Thompson. One was bad enough. Hopefully this mind set won't spread to France (where I am). I like having the freedom to pick my games. And if it does I'll have to stick to purely ebay which....well kinda sucks.

Honestly though they do say that its for 18s and above. They even state they put two checkpoints before the infamous terrorist part. If that isn't enough are they just going to have to cut portions of the game out?
 

XJ-0461

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Mar 9, 2009
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Surely this will be like GTA?

Not gameplay wise, but contorversy wise. I predict that people will kick up a stink, but the game will be released, played, then blamed for a murder at some point.
 

Trivun

Stabat mater dolorosa
Dec 13, 2008
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ThePeiceOfEden said:
GRRRRRR. At least I get it before the banning in the UK.
They won't ban it. The UK is fortunately not populated by conservative idiots like Thompson or by the likes of the Australian government (seriously, as a side note, while watching 'Border Patrol' on Living TV today I saw that the Australian government won't even allow porn to be imported into the country because it could be deemed offensive). We're lucky enough that games aren't a major concern for the ministers that make up Parliament, so even if one or two retards like Vaz turn around and complain, there's no way the government as a whole will support a motion to ban the game. If Manhunt is still being sold in UK stores (even though I feel personally that that's one game that should have been banned), then I think MW2 is pretty safe.
 

WrongSprite

Resident Morrowind Fanboy
Aug 10, 2008
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http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2008/03/keithvaz.jpg

This, ladies and gentleman, is the awe inspiring force of nature intending to bring down MW2.

I don't think it's going to happen.
 

hansari

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May 31, 2009
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killing civilians...hahahhahahha no one can defeat the death toll/terrorism that Kane and Lynch unveils....
 

Spaghetti

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Sep 2, 2009
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I wouldn't be surprised if this gets shot down pretty quickly.

I just looked into the past of The Righ Honerable Keith Vaz MP, and he's the sort of person that likes having things banned. For example, he wanted Salman Rushdies "Satanic Verses" banned because "there is no such thing as absolute freedom of speech". He also suggested that an IRA bomb in Leicster had in fact been planted by the British Army...he's also been suspended from the House of Commons in the past and got caught cheating on his expenses.

To be honest, this man is a nutter. I think the Manhunts were the only games to be actually banned, but I still see them being sold in the shops, so I don't see this going anywhere...
 

MadMechanic

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Nov 6, 2009
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For gods sake...
Well, atleast I'm getting it before he or Parliament can do anything. Seriously it comes out tomorrow - does he really expect that in the...12 hours(ish) we have until the UK release that Parliament would do anything? It takes weeks for parliament to do anything!
But - are fellow Brits really suprised at Vaz's statement? If I remember correctly, he's one of those guys who goes out to find and take offence at pretty much everything and is shocked by everything.
He makes these points about games, but has he asked parliament to look into the SAW films?

It's an 18 for a reason.
 

electric discordian

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Apr 27, 2008
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Hypocrisy thy name is government, "Don't play this violent video game, join the army and kill Arab's for real!" should be there slogan at the moment!

We do after all live in a country in the UK where you can't buy booze until your eighteen but can buy acid, at sixteen! Oh and that's the face melty xenomorph blood incase your wondering not hallucinogens!

Vaz is a tosser!
 

Terramax

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Jan 11, 2008
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OK, who here DIDN'T see this coming?

WrongSprite said:
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2008/03/keithvaz.jpg

This, ladies and gentleman, is the awe inspiring force of nature intending to bring down MW2.
What IS it? Does it breed? Can it be killed?
 

orangebandguy

Elite Member
Jan 9, 2009
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Nothing will happen, our government is as soft as shite as it is.

We'll all forget about it in a few weeks, when they'll get blamed for expenses and the recession.
 

Amnestic

High Priest of Haruhi
Aug 22, 2008
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Terramax said:
OK, who here DIDN'T see this coming?

WrongSprite said:
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2008/03/keithvaz.jpg

This, ladies and gentleman, is the awe inspiring force of nature intending to bring down MW2.
What IS it?

He has...interesting parents.
 

HardRockSamurai

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May 28, 2008
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There are an endless number of games in which the player can kill innocent civilians. Hell, Modern Warfare 2's violence doesn't even come close to the acts of meaningless brutality other games can let you dish out.

But let me get this straight. It's OK to kill in-game civilians if you're playing as an escaped convict, hit man, illegal immigrant, or drug pusher, but throw on a sock mask and call yourself a terrorist, and suddenly it's too violent for adult eyes?

In all fairness, I can see why the government would have a problem with this game: terrorism is supposed to be, after all, the number #1 enemy of all governments. It's just a shame to see that, despite all the red tape Infinity Ward has included in their own game, that a small segment of virtual terrorism can still cause such a stir.
 

Dogstile

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Jan 17, 2009
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WrongSprite said:
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2008/03/keithvaz.jpg

This, ladies and gentleman, is the awe inspiring force of nature intending to bring down MW2.

I don't think it's going to happen.
I just laughed my ass off, oh god, thanks for that.
 

Woodsey

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Aug 9, 2009
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Oh no (not Santa's balls)!

What a dipshit. In films they kill civilians - no problem there though. The thing's rated 18 for f*ck sake, get over it you nob end.


Thankfully the rest (or most) of the government are aware that people are actually capable of choosing what they want to play and then not turning into serial killers because of it.