I meant to update this post much sooner, but I have been ridiculously busy. “I-need-coffee-on-a-drip” busy.
Japanese game industry, except for the ever so wise Nintendo, has been hit hard. Apprehensive due to the declining birth rate (meaning fewer kids to play the games than before), JPN game makers have tried to scour ways to entice foreign markets, abandoning what made their games unique once, and failing miserably. Square-Enix has combined their powers with a U.S game maker to make a… war game!? Konami is jumping onto this bandwagon…. But not only will they fail, they will fail with enraging millions.
In November 2004, the USA army has surrounded the city of Fallujah for their “war against terror.” Konami thought it would make a perfect sense to make a video game based on this event, which still is a source of controversy! http://au.gamespot.com/events/konami09/story.html?sid=6207816
I haven’t played the game myself. Although Konami and its cohort Atomic Games defend their controversial action by stating, “for us, the challenge was how do you present the horrors of war in a game that is also entertaining, but also gives people insight into a historical situation in a way that only a video game can provide? Our goal is to give people that insight, of what it’s like to be a Marine during that event, what it’s like to be a civilian in the city and what it’s like to be an insurgent.” I simply don’t buy it. How can you make a game about such an atrocity? Games by nature is supposed to be entertaining to be the player; the one that is doing the action. Would the Konami manufacturer would be saying the same thing if they made a game out of Tokyo Sarin poisoning case or 9/11 hijack event? Yeah sure, you would be understanding the perspective of the terrorists. Games, by nature, make you feel sympathetic to the protagonist. We really do not need any games where such a thing, in this case where at least 1,000 civilians died, many more thousands became a refugee, is glorified.
Protests have began in several parts of the world.
Stop The War Coalition spokesperson Tansy E Hoskins has made the following statement:
“There is nothing to celebrate in the death of people resisting an unjust and bloody occupation. To make a game out of a war crime and to capitalise on the death and injury of thousands is sick. There will never be a time when it is appropriate for people to ‘play’ at committing atrocities. The massacre in Fallujah should be remembered with shame and horror not glamorised and glossed over for entertainment.”
This news came just a few months after the over the top raping game “RapeLay” (Rape Play) caused stir by appearing on Amazon.com, which was then quickly banned. To surmise what this game is about, I have copied and pasted from the website:
From the website:
RapeLay is a molestation simulation that allows you to terrorize a woman and her two teenage daughters, with events ranging from groping on a train to gang rape and forced abortions.
You can read more about this here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/4611161/Rapelay-virtual-rape-game-banned-by-Amazon.html
Although the rape game was created by and for a niche market, a bunch of underground pervs who will never gain prominence, Konami, whose game has been sold worldwide should know better. There are some subjects that should not be glorified.
Konami, go back to creating games where bunch of Caucasians stumble in a creepy town with knife-wielding zombie nurses.
To read more about what the protesters are saying about the new Konami game, read it further in here:
http://www.techradar.com/news/gaming/iraq-game-amentary-under-fire-590737
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