Tomb Raider/Hitman- Those two don't deserve to be put into the same category. Hitman trailers involving women dressed PURELY to be sexual being brutally beaten and killed is... pretty disturbing to me. The outcry was necessary, in my opinion.
However, the Tomb Raider thing? I'm actually on board with that. Sexual interaction IS used as a form of control and intimidation- that is a thing that happens, and not just to women. Mostly to women, but not solely. It makes the entire scene more gritty, more unpleasant, more nasty, and, yes- more real. It's NOT sexual, it's not titillating, it won't make you hot under the collar, because sexual violence is almost never about sex- it's about control, and (having experienced it first-hand) I thought that came across. It's a nasty insight into something which DOES happen, and I'm on board on shining a light on that and saying, "hey, look, it's a thing that happens." And, although obviously not under those circumstances, it happens a LOT- should we remove it because it's too "real"?
On the other hand, it's something that needs to be discussed. I wouldn't say it needs to be a "controversy" as such, but definitely a discussion. It's something that shouldn't be ignored, and shouldn't be blanked, and it shouldn't be treated as something that doesn't happen. But it does need to be done respectfully and correctly- and the only way that is going to happen is if it's TALKED ABOUT. It wasn't handled perfectly, but I've got respect for the fact that it was handled at all.
Diablo III- It was called, it was a mistake, and hopefully the outcry will help people learn and move forwards. Possibly not, but we can hope. I have no idea why Blizzard didn't see it coming, but there we are.
WarZ- I dunno why this isn't a legal issue. End of opinion.
Bayonetta 2- The fact that it wouldn't exist if Nintendo didn't want to make it for the WiiU is sort of... a thing that I can't not focus on. It does feel disrespectful to the people who liked the first game; but on the other hand, it's probably a tactic to try and drum up interest in the WiiU in the hope that people might actually buy it. I can understand the anger behind it, though.
On-disk DLC, well, that's a long on-going discussion, and it'll keep on going until it's resolved- which it may never be.
Copywrite issues- ...Why is this only coming up now? There's been a lot of copywrite stuff going on, much of which is illegal and/or problematic.
Also how are people still blind to the fact that sharing stuff online is a GOOD THING for businesses...?
I'm unsurprised at it, basically. I just hope something can change for the better, instead of for the worse.
Halo 4- Do I need to say anything...? (Other than that I'm damned glad I was never interested in the game.)
Mass Effect 3- I was surprised this wasn't number one- until I heard what number one was.
If they had put the DLC ending on the disk, I think the reaction would've been "eh, it's not a great ending, but it doesn't ruin my experience with the series." The more hardcore fans would probably still being "WHAAAAT THAT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE" but it sure wouldn't have had the massive back-lash it did.
The problem most people outside of the fan base don't seem to realise is that the ending was hated so much because it turned away from the most important aspects of the series. The writing, the way it sticks to the lore, the way it tries to have an explanation for all the science, for one major thing. For another is the focus on characters and character development.
People didn't hate the ending because it was sad, or even because it was bad- they hated it because it was so far from what made Mass Effect, Mass Effect. I felt like it was written by someone who didn't really know anything about the series, and didn't care; someone who went "okay, it's sci-fi, this works right, okay ending done let's do something more important." Even now I can't work out how the writers and quality control okay'd it.
So yeah, that was a very important controversy- and in the end, it led to an important discussion between the gamers, and the game companies. Discussion is important, and I think this one did a lot of good beyond just the ending of ONE game; it told the game companies that endings matter, that sticking to what makes a game or series unique and gives it character is important, and that if they want to listen to the fans and give them input (and they did, throughout the series, listen to the fans) then they need to KEEP doing that- and they need to understand what's important to those fans. I think that's important.
Dev imprisonment- HOW did I not hear about this?! It's... beyond bizarre and messed up. I need to do more research into that before I can wrap my head around it.
Discussion can be a very good thing; and controversies happen when people have something to say, and care about saying it loudly. That's not a bad thing- but how it's handled can be very, very bad. Still- we live, and with any luck, we learn. Sometimes.
Anyway, you asked for thoughts, there are mine.
