nokori3byo
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Having been born in 1973 (two years after after the Beatles broke up and four years before the release Star Wars), I've been around to see a lot of game history in the making. I was visiting arcades with my dad back in 1980 and vividly remember playing the then-notorious "Death Race," in which the player was rewarded points for mowing down pedestrians. It wasn't long before the much-depolred "Custer's Revenge" came out on the Atari 2600. I never got to play it...which was just as well.
Like many gamers, I have an inerest in the topic of controveries in gaming and the related topic in censorship. I'm probably not the first to notice that many of the games which have attracted critism for various reasons over the years have, in fact, been tame, unremarkable, or simply not very good. Let's take a trip down memory lane to revisit some of the milestones of controversy and see how well they stand up to a contemproray gamer's scrutiny:
Death Race (1976): This game borrowed its premise from Roger Corman's now-classic B-movie "Death Race 2000", in which which David Carradine and Sly Stallone (in a rare film role depicting his on-screen death) compete in a long distance car race in which contestants score points by killing pedestrians.
Then: I honestly don't remember. As a graphical game of the pre-Pac Man era, its gameplay and visuals were of a rudimentary Pong-like nature. The thing I remember most vividly is the eerie Grim Reaper-behind-the-wheel art on the side of the game cabinet.
Now: I'll go out on a limb and say that Death Race would probably seem pretty tame to anyone who's played the Grand Theft Auto series or any other contemporary game featuring the killing of innocent people.
Custer's Revenge (1982): A game synonymous with both controversy and poor quality in gaming, CR was an early example of a third party publisher using a X-rated content to market a game on a major console.
Then:The idea of naked and aroused General Custer sexually assaulting tied-up Sioux women to score points, perdicably caused outrage from a number of special interest groups. Those who actually played the game might have noticed its gameplay was markedly inferior to other Atari 2600 games of the period.
Now: To this day, Custer's Revenge is a perrenial contender for worst game ever made. Gametrailers.com saw fit to include it in a list of the best and worst ever, awarding it the title of Third Worst.
As far as CR's sexually explicit content is concerned, I find it unlikely that any contemporary gamer would be aroused by two blocky stick figures bumping uglies. But the flippant presentation of rape seems mean-spirited even today. (And, of course, we're reliably imformed that the gamepley [footage of which can be seen here, at the 4:02 mark: http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=n29udvDv2_w&mode=related&search= ) is as shitty and uninteresting today as it was back then).
Night Trap (1992): An FMV game featuring the late Dana Plato as a special agent trying to foil a series of vampire attacks on college co-eds.
Then: Conservative critics of electronic gaming showed as just how bored they were by launching a vehement attack on a mediocre, and basically inoffensive adventure game. A summary of their accusations and their dubious relation to the game's actual content can be viewed here: http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=EHvrFClZeoM .
Now: This game is destined to be remembered as one of countless, otherwise forgettable media products which gained immortality through controversy, and undesereved controversy at that. Still, watching footage from the game now has a certain camp appeal.
Mortal Kombat (1992): A popular fighting game notable for copious on-screen gore and violence, and for the introduction of fatality moves:
Then: The appearance of Mortal Kombat in arcades sparked a kind of moral panic which resonates to this day. Jack Thompson was a early critic.
Now: Critics of the original MK ( a large number of whom are Street Fighter 2 fans) will often point out that the original game was stiff and lacked the varied gameplay of other fighting games. Personally, I have a soft spot for the first 3 games in the MK franchise and hav always found the games benefitted from their unique character--derived in no small part from their cheerful depiction of brutality.
Doom (1993): Though not the first FPS, Doom is prehaps the first bona fide classic of the genre, and the game most responsible for soldifying the FPS's status in the gaming world.
Then: Without a doubt, Doom's massive popularity helped make it the focus of countless attacks by critics of violence in gaming. The depiction of Satanic imagery rankled with Christian groups, while others reacted, more conventionally, to the presence of blood and gore. Critic, David Grossman, called it a "murder simulator", an accusation which, it has been claimed, was bourn out in the notorious "Klebold Levels."
Now: Long considered a classic, Doom continues to recieve praise for the many innovations it introduced to contemporary gaming. Some critics have gone so far as to say its gameplay remains superior to that of its 2004 "reimaging", Doom3.
Duke Nukem 3D (1996): This monster hit of an FPS was arguably the first to surpass Doom in terms of quality, gameplay, and controversy:
Then: In addition to the usual protests about the depicition of violence, Duke also attracted criticism for its explicit depicition of nude women, fulfilling the roles of strippers and alien abductees. The fact that women could be killed by the player added fuel to the controversy, as did the discovery of the word "killbitch" in the game's code.
Now: Like so much else in the history of gaming, Duke's controversial material seems rather tame by today's standards. Like Doom before it, Duke has retained much of it's classic stature and still commands wide recognition among present day gamers. that said, the game's humour can seem a little butt-headed at times, and in hindsight, it's hardly surprising that it attracted the criticism it did.
Grand Theft Auto 3 and GTA: San Andreas (2001 and 2004):
Then: GTA3 took flak for a number of reasons. One obvious source of concern for opponents of violence in gaming was the tendency of the average gamer to embark on rampages within GTA3's virtual world. Furthermore, the player's ability to patronize prostitutes, the kill them (after services rendered) to recoup the expense fueled attempts to have the game banned from the Australian market.
San Andreas would up the ante for lurid content with its notorious "Hot Coffee" mod, in which CJ, the game's protagonist was shown having sex with his girlfriends onscreen. Trouble with Jack Thompson would soon follow.
Now: It would seem that, controversy or no controversy, little could endanger the GTA franchise's classic status with gamers. And, as far as the "Hot Coffee" mod goes, I for one have never found the spectacle of two 3D models dry humping to be particularly scandalous. The number of people I've killed in various GTA games numbers in the tens of thousands, and someone was worried about a little soft-core, digital ribaldry?
Woah, I got a little carried away with this post. I guess the main point was that, historically, notorious games have sometimes (though not always) been overrated. Uh...there you have it.
Like many gamers, I have an inerest in the topic of controveries in gaming and the related topic in censorship. I'm probably not the first to notice that many of the games which have attracted critism for various reasons over the years have, in fact, been tame, unremarkable, or simply not very good. Let's take a trip down memory lane to revisit some of the milestones of controversy and see how well they stand up to a contemproray gamer's scrutiny:
Death Race (1976): This game borrowed its premise from Roger Corman's now-classic B-movie "Death Race 2000", in which which David Carradine and Sly Stallone (in a rare film role depicting his on-screen death) compete in a long distance car race in which contestants score points by killing pedestrians.
Then: I honestly don't remember. As a graphical game of the pre-Pac Man era, its gameplay and visuals were of a rudimentary Pong-like nature. The thing I remember most vividly is the eerie Grim Reaper-behind-the-wheel art on the side of the game cabinet.
Now: I'll go out on a limb and say that Death Race would probably seem pretty tame to anyone who's played the Grand Theft Auto series or any other contemporary game featuring the killing of innocent people.
Custer's Revenge (1982): A game synonymous with both controversy and poor quality in gaming, CR was an early example of a third party publisher using a X-rated content to market a game on a major console.
Then:The idea of naked and aroused General Custer sexually assaulting tied-up Sioux women to score points, perdicably caused outrage from a number of special interest groups. Those who actually played the game might have noticed its gameplay was markedly inferior to other Atari 2600 games of the period.
Now: To this day, Custer's Revenge is a perrenial contender for worst game ever made. Gametrailers.com saw fit to include it in a list of the best and worst ever, awarding it the title of Third Worst.
As far as CR's sexually explicit content is concerned, I find it unlikely that any contemporary gamer would be aroused by two blocky stick figures bumping uglies. But the flippant presentation of rape seems mean-spirited even today. (And, of course, we're reliably imformed that the gamepley [footage of which can be seen here, at the 4:02 mark: http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=n29udvDv2_w&mode=related&search= ) is as shitty and uninteresting today as it was back then).
Night Trap (1992): An FMV game featuring the late Dana Plato as a special agent trying to foil a series of vampire attacks on college co-eds.
Then: Conservative critics of electronic gaming showed as just how bored they were by launching a vehement attack on a mediocre, and basically inoffensive adventure game. A summary of their accusations and their dubious relation to the game's actual content can be viewed here: http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=EHvrFClZeoM .
Now: This game is destined to be remembered as one of countless, otherwise forgettable media products which gained immortality through controversy, and undesereved controversy at that. Still, watching footage from the game now has a certain camp appeal.
Mortal Kombat (1992): A popular fighting game notable for copious on-screen gore and violence, and for the introduction of fatality moves:
Then: The appearance of Mortal Kombat in arcades sparked a kind of moral panic which resonates to this day. Jack Thompson was a early critic.
Now: Critics of the original MK ( a large number of whom are Street Fighter 2 fans) will often point out that the original game was stiff and lacked the varied gameplay of other fighting games. Personally, I have a soft spot for the first 3 games in the MK franchise and hav always found the games benefitted from their unique character--derived in no small part from their cheerful depiction of brutality.
Doom (1993): Though not the first FPS, Doom is prehaps the first bona fide classic of the genre, and the game most responsible for soldifying the FPS's status in the gaming world.
Then: Without a doubt, Doom's massive popularity helped make it the focus of countless attacks by critics of violence in gaming. The depiction of Satanic imagery rankled with Christian groups, while others reacted, more conventionally, to the presence of blood and gore. Critic, David Grossman, called it a "murder simulator", an accusation which, it has been claimed, was bourn out in the notorious "Klebold Levels."
Now: Long considered a classic, Doom continues to recieve praise for the many innovations it introduced to contemporary gaming. Some critics have gone so far as to say its gameplay remains superior to that of its 2004 "reimaging", Doom3.
Duke Nukem 3D (1996): This monster hit of an FPS was arguably the first to surpass Doom in terms of quality, gameplay, and controversy:
Then: In addition to the usual protests about the depicition of violence, Duke also attracted criticism for its explicit depicition of nude women, fulfilling the roles of strippers and alien abductees. The fact that women could be killed by the player added fuel to the controversy, as did the discovery of the word "killbitch" in the game's code.
Now: Like so much else in the history of gaming, Duke's controversial material seems rather tame by today's standards. Like Doom before it, Duke has retained much of it's classic stature and still commands wide recognition among present day gamers. that said, the game's humour can seem a little butt-headed at times, and in hindsight, it's hardly surprising that it attracted the criticism it did.
Grand Theft Auto 3 and GTA: San Andreas (2001 and 2004):
Then: GTA3 took flak for a number of reasons. One obvious source of concern for opponents of violence in gaming was the tendency of the average gamer to embark on rampages within GTA3's virtual world. Furthermore, the player's ability to patronize prostitutes, the kill them (after services rendered) to recoup the expense fueled attempts to have the game banned from the Australian market.
San Andreas would up the ante for lurid content with its notorious "Hot Coffee" mod, in which CJ, the game's protagonist was shown having sex with his girlfriends onscreen. Trouble with Jack Thompson would soon follow.
Now: It would seem that, controversy or no controversy, little could endanger the GTA franchise's classic status with gamers. And, as far as the "Hot Coffee" mod goes, I for one have never found the spectacle of two 3D models dry humping to be particularly scandalous. The number of people I've killed in various GTA games numbers in the tens of thousands, and someone was worried about a little soft-core, digital ribaldry?
Woah, I got a little carried away with this post. I guess the main point was that, historically, notorious games have sometimes (though not always) been overrated. Uh...there you have it.
