'Bully' game targeted in the US

[TechBear_Seattle]

'Bully' game targeted in the US
The developers of controversial videogame Bully have defended the title in the wake of a threatened injunction in Florida, in the US.

Lawyer Jack Thompson is attempting to stop the game going on sale, arguing it would cause a public nuisance.

-snip-

"I'm pretty sure that the game is harmful to minors," Mr Thompson told the Washington Post newspaper.

The BBC News website has been shown an unfinished copy of the game. In it, the main character has to defend himself from school bullies as well as form alliances with different cliques in the school.

Tackling the bullies and stopping them from picking on other children is a key feature of the game.

The full article is available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6046932.stm

So, hmm... a game with the premise of defending oneself from bullies and protecting others is "harmful to minors." How fascinating.

[ck4829]

1. No blood, no death in the game

Seems rather tame actually.

[SpreadItAround]

2. Ugh, Jack Thompson please get a life...

I bet Holy Joe is on his side.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

3. It's Jack Thompson.

This is a guy who challenged video game makers to produce a game where a person goes on a shooting rampage, killing video game programmers. He promised if they made such a game he'd donate thousands of dollars to charity. So somebody made such a game, and Jack Thompson welched on his promise.

Upset, another video game company cut a check to charity for the same amount, and donated it in Jack Thompson's name. Thompson's response? He called the company terrorists and reported them to the police.

Jack Thompson- video game censors in a nutshell.

[TechBear_Seattle]

5. Ah, THAT guy

I didn't realize that this guy had a history with the video game industry.

[YOY]

7. Jack has a beautiful Wikipedea page dedicated to his Born-Again-Censorship

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Thompson_(attorney)

Make sure and read his confrontation with Janet Reno.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

9. Good stuff.

2 Live Crew stuff was interesting too.

[YOY]

11. I use some very nice words to describe him on the gaming board

He makes my list of top 10 conservative douchebags yearly.

Whenever someone on our side starts doing the Hillary Clintonesque/Leibermanish complaining about video games I like to suggest Jack as a possible ally. Let them know just who they're agreeing with.

:evilgrin:

[Reverend_Smitty]

17. looks like he's made a career out of tilting at windmills

I don't understand why people are still listening to him

[YOY]

19. Yeah, but don't insult Cervantes by the comparison

;)

[Rocknrule]

14. I'm sick of this fuck

He blames videogames for everything from the crucifixion to Hurricane Katrina. I'm surprised he hasn't tried to blame 9/11 on videogames.

[YOY]

15. He's a fundie

Don't expect rhyme or reason...just demagoguery...and not even very good demagoguery at that.

[Scriptor Ignotus]

4. well as long as this guy is "pretty sure" it's harmful

I mean, I always trust a stranger's instincts over my own judgement. :sarcasm:

[EarlG]

6. People were expecting this game to be controversial

It's made by the same people who made the Grand Theft Auto series. But Bully has been rated T for Teen, as opposed to MA.

Thompson has already referred to it as a "Columbine simulator" although it appears that he actually has no clue what it's about. "I'm pretty sure that the game is harmful to minors" - what?

[MrCoffee]

8. How else are you gonna sell the same game over and over again?

i've never seen Bully, but i'm doubting that it has any revolutionary programming design, or even anything particularly interesting about the gameplay/graphics/theme.

Nothing like a little pre-release controversy to boost sales of what sounds like a mediocre game.

[rman]

12. It is rather different than GTA

"...main character has to defend himself from school bullies as well as form alliances with different cliques in the school.
Tackling the bullies and stopping them from picking on other children is a key feature of the game"

Sounds like a rather unique game concept.

[semillama]

18. If you've never seen it, what are you basing your opinion on?

I mean, you know you're making the same mistake Jack Thompson is making in characterizing the game. Jeez.

[rman]

10. The basic premise is the opposite of that of GTA:

in GTA the player is the bad guy, in Bully the player is opposing the bad guys.

But this point seems to be lost on Mr Thompson.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

13. Well, not really.

The protagonists are anti-heroes in both games. In Bully, the protagonists gives his share of wedgies, swirlies, spit-wads, and pantie-raids.

It's just that everybody else is basically a bully too, other kids, teachers, school administration, etc.

[Rocknrule]

16. Maybe the point of this game

is to make people like Jack "videogames are the root of all evil" Thompson realize that bullying is the problem, not Sonic and Mario. What a novel idea!