SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
The UK's Video Standards Council Rating Board has refused to issue a UK Certificate of Classification (archive) for the JRPG game Omega Labyrinth Z, due to it "clearly [promoting] the sexualisation of children". The publisher's appeal of the decision was rejected. This is the first game to be banned in the UK since Manhunt 2, which was initially refused classification by the British Board of Film Classification, but eventually classified "18" after censorship, a second refusal, and an appeal.:
The game is explicit in its setting within a "school" environment and the majority of the characters are young girls - one child is referred to as being a "first year" student and is seen holding a teddy bear. The game clearly promotes the sexualisation of children via the sexual interaction between the game player and the female characters. The style of the game is such that it will attract an audience below the age of 18.
There is a serious danger that impressionable people, i.e. children and young people viewing the game would conclude that the sexual activity represented normal sexual behaviour. There is a constant theme of sexual innuendo and activity throughout the game that suggests behaviour likely to normalise sexual activity towards children. As a means of reward gained by successfully navigating the game, the player has the means to sexually stimulate the female characters by using either a hand held remote device or touch screen software.
The VSC Rating Board believes this content in a game, which would have strong appeal to non-adult players, is an issue which would be unacceptable to the majority of UK consumers and, more importantly, has the potential to be significantly harmful in terms of the social and moral development of younger people in particular.
Omega Labyrinth Z was released in Japan on July 6, 2017 for the PlayStation Vita and PS4 platforms, and will be released in North America and Europe in early 2018. The game was also refused classification in Australia and Germany, and will not be released in New Zealand or Ireland.
The UK's Digital Economy Act 2010 shifted responsibility for classifying most video games from the British Board of Film Classification to the Video Standards Council.
In unrelated news, Luigi may or may not have a penis.
Also at BBC, Gamasutra, and Kotaku.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by cocaine overdose on Saturday March 17 2018, @11:08PM (10 children)
In looking through Omega Labyrinth Z pictures and videos, I was expecting this game to be a PS4-sponsored hentai JRPG. What I got was the equivalent of Honey Pop without any sex scenes. The game can't even be called sexual, unless you have a fetish for low-polygon chibis (though, I know the FBI cracked down on one of the 2D 16x16 pixel-art multiplayer-online child rape simulators I was aware of). The only sexual content is your run of the mill Japanese fetishisation of high schoolers -- in the few pictures in the game. Maybe big giant titties are inherently sexual?
Idk, UK. First you tell me children are inherently unable to have the maturity to make sexual decisions, then you go at me with the "but, if they get exposed to this game they might be." Seems like someone's worried their perfect little Johnnies and Sallies will get some no-no thoughts, and we can't have that can we? Sarcasm aside, who cares. Either way, nothing's changed.
Xbox Live had hentai visual novels on their indie store that I fondly remember masturbating to the thighs of a slime girl. Perhaps, the U.K. is right. We wouldn't want our children growing up to sexual deviants. Ah, whatever. People are retarded.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 17 2018, @11:15PM (5 children)
It's fine. People can still easily download the game online. Apparently, these retards have never heard of the Streisand effect.
The US seems overall okay when it comes to freedom of speech when compared to countries like the UK, or perhaps even all other countries. It's sad that the bar is so low.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by JoeMerchant on Saturday March 17 2018, @11:40PM (4 children)
Might have been a bit different if we had let Tipper Gore live in the White House.
🌻🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 1, Redundant) by PartTimeZombie on Sunday March 18 2018, @11:31PM (3 children)
I don't know, you guys let the hilariously awful Nancy Reagan live there, and liked it so much you asked her back, along with that half wit husband of hers.
Tipper seemed almost human in comparison.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by JoeMerchant on Monday March 19 2018, @12:58AM (2 children)
Tipper's from my ancestral home of Eastern Tennessee - ultra-conservative Baptist roots, she wanted to make sure the "F-word" and all the other words that go with it were minimized out of children's ears by whatever methods would achieve that goal, including censorship.
Nancy was relatively agenda-less by comparison.
🌻🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by PartTimeZombie on Monday March 19 2018, @01:13AM (1 child)
I have no doubt tipper is ultra consevative, because even the most liberal of American politicians are by the civilised world's standards, but Nancy was a long way from agenda-less.
Ignoring AIDs because only gay people got it, and "Just Say No" to drugs being two of her worst ideas, but she also ran the White House according to the dictates of her Astrologer.
Total weirdo.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Monday March 19 2018, @03:29AM
I'll grant you "Just say no to drugs" was/is as idiotic as the drug war, but I've always viewed that as a simple puppet act - pretty much how I viewed all 8 years of Reagan's administration - the 4 of Bush Sr. seemed to be a bit more personally led, but Ronnie was an actor, he read his lines and stayed on script the whole time as far as I can tell. I hated them all at the time for making me choose: don't want to sign up for selective service? Well, then we won't be backing your student loans and you can just drop out of college - and all the saber rattling against the USSR seemed like un-necessary brinksmanship, but it paid off in 1989 - I may have disagreed with the methods, but I think the results were net positive.
🌻🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Saturday March 17 2018, @11:31PM (3 children)
Sounds to me like the Victorians know what good, healthy sex is, they're just not teaching the children directly and they are worried that their instruction by psionic projection is going to be overwhelmed by something more directly perceptible by the children.
🌻🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 18 2018, @12:16AM (2 children)
https://is.gd/zSsmUZ [is.gd]
You realize you are condoning rape of children right?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday March 18 2018, @12:43AM
You can't rape the willing.
(Score: 2) by cocaine overdose on Sunday March 18 2018, @12:51AM