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Violent Video Gaming Comes To the Wii

TuringTest writes "In an attempt to bring the Wii closer to the hardcore gamer's taste, Sega is preparing to release MadWorld, a violent 'hack and slash' game. This has brought attention from family-conscious lobbies: 'The decision to release a violent game on a console which has based its reputation on family fun has shocked anti-violence pressure groups. Mediawatch-UK, Britain's longest-running pressure group campaigning for decency in TV, films and games, said MadWorld will "spoil" the Wii.' The game features black & white cel-shaded graphics, except for the blood blobs which are in brilliant red. MadWorld is announced to be released in early 2009."

21 of 263 comments (clear)

  1. 2 things by AvitarX · · Score: 5, Insightful

    1) are Hitman and Manhunt non-violent games?
    2) I want this

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    1. Re:2 things by Kamokazi · · Score: 5, Insightful

      1) Do lobbyists every use logic and reasoning?
      2) Me too.

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    2. Re:2 things by Krakhan · · Score: 4, Insightful

      And then there's other ones too, like the Godfather release, No More Heroes and Mortal Kombat: Armageddon.
      It's not hard to find plenty of violent games for the Wii.

      Then again, these lobbyists are usually the first in line for lobotomies, so the logic they use is as expected.

    3. Re:2 things by renegadesx · · Score: 2, Insightful

      1) No, neither CoD3, Red Steel, Godfather, Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil: Umbrella chronicals. And when you think of it, Zelda and Metroid are violent too if you want to get extreme. But then again lobbiests have never been consistant.

      2) Me too

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  2. Resident Evil? by Kjella · · Score: 4, Insightful

    WII Release Date: Nov 13, 2007 (US).

    If this doesn't qualify as violent, I'm not sure what does...

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  3. Crazy idea by Moraelin · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Here's a crazy idea: so then they don't have to buy it.

    I mean, it's not like they were tricked by some game presented as "Princess Peach Pony Adventures" rated E and discovered a secret level which involved skinning people alive. They know from the start it's a violent game, Sega makes no secret about it, and if their console is really for "family fun" and they have kids... don't buy it.

    Crazy talk, I know.

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    1. Re:Crazy idea by OrangeTide · · Score: 2, Insightful

      never mind what he allows his wife to get away with

      Not the best choice of words there, this isn't 1950 where wives need permission from their husband.

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    2. Re:Crazy idea by MagdJTK · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Exactly. I really don't understand how video games are any different from VHS or DVD or the web. All can be used for kid-friendly fun. All can be used to watch people getting killed / touched in rude places.

      I don't understand where this whole "games are for kids" thing came from anyhow. The early arcade games (e.g. Space Invaders) which popularised the medium were played by twenty-somethings not pre-teens.

  4. Re:Oooooh Sin City! by HungryHobo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I've been wishing they'd bring a few more adult oriented games to the wii for a while.
    Sure it's a fantastic console for parties and for my nephew but the childish games wear on you after a while for solo gaming.

  5. It'll Spoil the Wii... by Bieeanda · · Score: 5, Insightful
    ...in the same way that seeing Janet Jackson's breast on live television turned their children into sex-crazed maniacs.

    Oh, wait. That's what puberty did.

  6. Were the lobby groups sponsored by Sega? by wisty · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Just wondering, do 'controversial' companies sponsor these lobby groups (and maybe even help write the press releases) as a free publicity stunt? I'd be somewhat surprised if they didn't.

  7. I don't see what the big deal is... by stephanruby · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This is not TV. This is not even a cable channel that comes as part of a premium package. It's still a game that must be purchased separately. I don't see what the big deal is.

  8. Re:Oh noes!!!11!!! by randyest · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Just because all of the games released up to the now have been family-friendly

    But that's not even true at all, not even a little bit: Manhunt, Resident Evil, Call of Duty, No More Heroes, Godfather, Scarface, etc.

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  9. Re:A violent game. How shocking. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Violence isn't even a problem. Sex and violence is a problem. Horror and violence is a problem. Violence with a graphic, realistic portrayal is a problem. (When I say problem here, I'm talking about it being a problem for some people, not necessarily meaning that it is a problem per se or that I personally have a problem with it.)

    Just violence though? Please. My Wii came with a boxing game. Boxing is a violent sport. Super Mario Galaxy? You kill things by jumping on them and hitting them. How is that not violent?

    Strangely, violence and disturbing content is not always a problem though: see any SpongeBob game.

  10. Doesn't work that way by OrangeTide · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Just like letting gays get married will somehow ruin marriage for everyone else. Having a violent video game on Wii will ruin it for everyone. (as if Manhunt 2, Call of Duty 3, etc weren't already on the Wii).

    There is a certain personality type that wants to "protect" the lifestyles of other people by projecting their own values onto the rest of the world. And they believe they cannot be happy until everyone else shares their world view.

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  11. Re:Oooooh Sin City! by LWATCDR · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Why do people keep making the mistake of calling Violent video games Adult oriented? Most adults are not male between the ages of 12 and 25. Most of the Adults I know tend to play casual games and Ultra Mega Bloodfest IV.
    Also please get over it. Resident Evil, Bully, Hitman, and Manhunt all are violent games like this one which we are speaking of.

    We live in the world where media targeting 16 year old boys is label "Mature" or "Adult" content.

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  12. Ridiculous by Eravnrekaree · · Score: 4, Insightful

    While I do not enjoy violent games the notions that this game will "ruin" the wii is absolutely absurd. Will users of the wii be forced to play the game? Of course not. If you dont like the game dont play it.

  13. Re:Oh noes!!!11!!! by sm62704 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "Family friendly?" Right now I live alone, but I have two grown daughters; we are family. I used to play Quake with them on our networked computers when they were teenagers. So to me, a violent, bloody video game IS family-friendly.

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  14. Re:Oooooh Sin City! by philspear · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Not only do I want to play games besides nintendo's "Fun for the whole family you don't personally have," but the wii NEEDS to have those games.

    On boards dedicated to consoles, theres a lot of whining about "casual" players destroying gaming with the wii. It basically comes down to 13-21 year old boys wanting to kill stuff, it has nothing to do with how serious of a gamer one is. The reason it matters is that they spend the most on games, and I think it's no coincidence that the 3rd party offerings on other systems (IE, games not from microsoft on the XBOX 360) are generally of a higher caliber than the wii.

    The wii has a ton of "shovelware." Companies realize that almost anything they put on the wii (no matter how cliche, buggy, or just generally lacking in fun) will be profitable, since the people who own the wii are on average read less reviews, have lower expectations, and complain less about the duds (personal hypothesis there.) Ninjabread man was called by almost anyone who played it the worst game of this generation of consoles, every review article read "do not buy this game for anyone!" But I'm pretty sure they made a profit. They couldn't have spent more than a grand developing it, and enough confused grandparents bought it for their grandchildren who own a wii (or quite possibly another console) that they made their money back.

    So the wii is getting a ton of games that should not be played. Since there are no "adult" games on it, you don't get the key demographic of teenage boys buying games for it, you never get any quality games for the system that aren't from nintendo. Anyone who puts time and effort into their game makes only a little bit more profit than if you ported solitare to the wii and sold it for $20.

    It's made worse by the fact that apperantly, the moral nannies have decided that since so many kids have the wii, no adult games should come out on the wii ever.

    It's really too bad, if the teenage boys could be enticed to the wii, I think you'd see some of the best games ever coming out for it, combining the unique control scheme with innovative new ideas for games and a sufficient budget to make it work. Instead we're going to get a console with a promising controller, some great games from nintendo, and a bunch of crap that will go the way of ET for the atari.

  15. Typical... by adamofgreyskull · · Score: 3, Insightful
    A nanny-knows-best, Mary Whitehouse-loving bunch of fucking morons, proving to the rest of the world that the UK will not be found lacking when it comes to the complete abdication of parental responsibility and self-control.

    To MediaWatch-UK, you bunch of lack-witted, thumb-sucking buboes...

    Point 1:
    Just because the sensationalist hacks at the Daily Fail run a story about your latest bout of whining does not lend any credence to your crusade against the right-thinking portion of the British populace and their desire to be able to decide for themselves what is or isn't appropriate entertainment for themselves and their families.

    Point 2:
    I have a DVD player. When I have children, they can watch Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen's back-catalogue, High School Musical and Bambi to their hearts' content. I can use it to watch Oldboy, Battle Royale and Cannibal Holocaust. It is up to me to control who watches what. It is my choice. If someone has the money to purchase a Wii, and then to purchase games for it, and yet is too fucking stupid to make an informed choice about the games they buy then there is no hope for humanity. If things have become *that* bad then "Campaigning for decency and accountability in the media" is just polishing the brass on the Titanic. Seriously, you'd be far better off doing something useful like chemically castrating these bozos.

    Point 3:
    Following on, Nintendo markets the Wii on its main strength, family-fun and party games. This is not out of some altruistic desire to promote family values, it is because it cannot compete with the 360 or PS3 when it comes to graphical content. Nintendo play to their system's strengths which are a unique and novel control system and a large catalogue of party games. I enjoy playing Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz but I also enjoy playing Red Steel and Call Of Duty 3. Both of which were available ON THE DAY OF LAUNCH.

    Points 4-8:
    This is not the first game to be released for Wii that I would consider inappropriate for the whole family based on violent or sexual content...nor will it be the last. Games already released which Alone In The Dark - Survival Horror

    The entity speaks directly through Anna, demanding the stone, which Edward doesn't have, before attempting to kill him. No matter what Edward throws at the possessed Anna, she merely shrugs it off and keeps coming after him, and he is only able to permanently kill her by setting her on fire. After proceeding to another elevator shaft and jumping down into an elevator, Edward meets Sarah Flores, an art dealer. They are then attacked by more possessed humans...

    Bully

    Jimmy can also kiss certain boys. The ESRB claimed it was fully aware of the homosexual content when they gave it a T rating.Other sexual themes involve a gym teacher who is stated to have hit on the girls in school, dissecting a rat's testicles, and a student reading a men's magazine.

    Call of Duty 3 - World War II First Person Shooter
    Shooting people, throwing grenades, shooting flammable barrels next to people to incinerate them. While not graphic, this is a war-themed game that was available at UK release, and which I wouldn't let children play.

  16. Re:A violent game. How shocking. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Speaking of how violent Super Mario Galaxy is, did you ever notice you win by asking the star people to commit mass suicide? Or would you call that a suicide-genocide since they all died...