Product Mini Profile Madworld in: Fighting (Wii) links » p/reviews

By now, this should seem to you like the same old tired news we've been used to the past couple of generations at least, but there's some good entertainment and positivity to be found in it: "Britains longest running pressure group campaigning for decency in TV, films and games" Mediawatch-UK has taken it upon themselves to slam the upcoming Wii title MadWorld and ask for it to be banned.  The game, of course, is known for its violent content.

Spoof site Mediawatch.org.uk describes the organization as follows:

"MediaWatch-UK is a collective of grumpy old men and frumpy old women singularly dedicated to spoiling the fun of the rest of the British population… For members of the bigoted right wing press who are having trouble making up enough anti-gypsy and anti-asylum seeker stories to fill their pages, our press page contains a wide range of outraged and reactionary stories that you can seize on to."

The news is coming from tabloid journalism outlet The Daily Mail, who start off with the headline "Parents horrified as most violent video game ever to launch on 'family friendly' Wii"; Mediawatch says the game will 'spoil' the 'family fun' image of the console. Most violent video game ever? Don't know about that. In any case, yes, the Wii is known to be a family friendly console and this will spoil its image, but that's why this is so darn awesome. I think MadWorld will do well to 'make up' for all the criticism Nintendo gets for only allowing fairy games and whutnots on its system. And you know, good on them. And their comment on the whole thing, courtesy of a spokesman, is glorious:

"Wii appeals to a wide range of audiences from children and teenagers to adult and senior citizens, anyone from 5 - 95, as such there is a wide range of content for all ages and tastes available. Mad World will be suitably age rated through the appropriate legal channels and thus only available to an audience above the age rating it is given."

"The game is not made by Nintendo but by Sega."

Actually, it's made by Platinum Games and published by Sega, but you know.

I'd also like to bring the point up of double standards. MadWorld bears a few fundamental similarities to the film (which in turn is based on a graphic novel) Sin City (i.e violence, art style). Yet I don't recall anyone slamming that or calling for it to be banned. Why? Because video games are interactive and therefore liable to cause people to go out an emulate these things in real life? An age old argument that's been debunked a thousand times over. Statistics show the opposite. In any case, movies are also interactive, just in a different way. Your mind is still interacting with what's being perceived, taking in the information, and deciding what to do with it. The only real difference with a game like MadWorld is you choose what's happening instead of passively observing, which, in a sense, I would argue is less harmful, if it was harmful at all, as there is choice and a sense of consciousness involved.

Mediawatch: do find something more constructive to do with your time. People are dying out there for real, nevermind a video game.