Gaming's 10 Biggest Scandals

GamePolitics has a list of ten of the most well known gaming scandals to hit the games industry. Starting back in 1993 with the senate hearings on Night Trap (a game that arguably led to today's ESRB), the list catalogs some things that the companies responsible would probably just as soon forget. "Hot Coffee (2005) - needs no introduction. Cheeky Rockstar programmers left hidden sex animations (accidentally or otherwise) buried in the PS2 code of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Modders made sure they didn't stay buried for long. Rockstar's denials only made things worse. And then Hillary got involved ..." At the post's close they call for additional nominations, as it's definitely not an exhaustive list. They left off the ESRB's decision to re-rate Oblivion , for example. What 'scandalous' gaming events can you see rating with this topics?

Comments

Hit whoring

[My name is Bucket]

Wondering how to get people to read your crappy-ass article when you've already reported on XBox's Red Ring fiasco? Find nine random things that are related in some obscure way and make a list out of them.

Re:WhereTF is Mortal Kombat?

[WhatHappenedToTanith]

Ripping a head off someone's body with their spine dangling down would only be bad in mainstream censorship society if the person was naked whilst doing it. I refer you to episode s8e01 of south park for the best commentary ever done on this topic.

Jack Thompson

[grapeape]

Jack Thompson should get his own category beyond just a mention in the Hot Coffee incident after all he has been stirring up controversy in gaming since the late 90's when he became bored with the PMRC crowd.

Re:Jack Thompson

[The PS3 Will Fail]

No, Jack Thompson should be forgotten about. He's had no real impact on the gaming world. He's just a loud voice that sensationalist news outlets get for their incredibly shallow examination of any gaming issue. I can't think of a single time he's really been on top of an issue or caused any real change. It certainly wasn't Thompson that brought Hot Coffee to light.

He's not worth mentioning.

Re:WhereTF is Mortal Kombat?

[shird]

"Top 10" style article written in 5 minutes, check.
"Digg it" link at the bottom of the article, check.

Welcome to the new age of "publishing".

I bet they did...

[SanityInAnarchy]

I mean, they were busy blaming everything they could get their hands on for Columbine. There was so much blame that even on PBS, there was barely time left to mourn...

Here's my all-time favorite quote, though:

Michael Moore: If you were to talk directly to the kids at Columbine or the people in that community, what would you say to them if they were here right now?
Marilyn Manson: I wouldn't say a single word to them, I would listen to what they have to say. And that's what no one did.

Re:DC Sniper

[steveo777]

The DC Sniper claimed he learned how to murder people by playing GTA, which is ridiculous. GTA isn't even a FPS.

Ridiculous? I find your conclusion just as or more so. Neither GTA nor a FPS (none that I'm aware of) really show how to hold, fire, care for, and maintain a firearm. But either can easily point out tactical and strategic positions for shooting from a distance.