Wed, Feb 09, 2011 | 15:04 GMT
EA responds to accusations from Fox News over Bulletstorm content
EA has responded to a Fox News article which claimed the game was being marketed to children despite it’s M rating, and that children as young as nine could be exposed to the game’s violence and cursing, which could “significantly damage” their minds and encourage real-world violence.
According to Carole Lieberman, a TV psychologist speaking with Fox News, videogames play a “large part” in the increase of rape and that the US ESRB ratings system is not enforced.
“The increase in rapes can be attributed in large part to the playing out of [sexual] scenes in video games,” she said, without mentioning any research or statistical data to prove her opinion.
The article goes on to quote Billy Pidgeon, an M2 Research’s games analyst, who claimed that using extreme violence or sexuality to market a game is done to hide the lack of quality in in the title.
“Games without sufficient quality of gameplay — games that include highly objectionable violent or sexual content — often pump up the level of this kind of content to gain media attention,” said Pidgeon. “This tactic typically fails, as can be seen in the poor sales performance of titles such as BMX XXX and Postal.”
In response, EA’s vice president of public relations told Game Informer: “Epic, People Can Fly and EA are avid supporters of the ESA and believe in the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) rating system. We believe in and abide by the policies put in place by the ESRB.
“Bulletstorm is rated M for Mature for blood and gore, intense violence, partial nudity, sexual themes, strong language and use of alcohol. The game and its marketing adhere to all guidelines set forth by the ESRB; both are designed for people 17+. Never is the game marketed to children.
“Epic, People Can Fly and EA support the right of artists to create works of entertainment fiction for consumers of all ages, including adults who enjoy action adventures like Bulletstorm. Much like Tarantino’s Kill Bill or Rodriguez’s Sin City, this game is an expression of creative entertainment for adults.”
People Can Fly and Epic have both insisted many times that the violence in the game is very tongue in cheek, and that it prides itself on being funnily absurd, making it closer to cartoon violence than actual real-world atrocities.
Just one look at a trailer for the game would prove their point.
Bulletstorm is out this month on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.
15 comments
#1
Broncanus
09/02/11, 3:09 pm
What’s that Fox? Do go on…
#2
NinjaMidget
09/02/11, 3:16 pm
People actually listen to Fox news?
Good response from the EA rep though!
#3
DiodeX
09/02/11, 3:19 pm
And there’s their free advertising!
Win!
#4
Phoenixblight
09/02/11, 3:21 pm
EA gutted FOx before with the whole Mass Effect for being a full “porn” game. Fox just twists the news to fit whatever their opinion is.
#5
OlderGamer
09/02/11, 3:25 pm
Fox is just twisted, thats for sure.
#6
Blerk
09/02/11, 3:32 pm
They’re fair AND balanced, you know.
No, wait – the other thing. Unbalanced.
#7
Moonwalker1982
09/02/11, 3:35 pm
Fox news, sigh…bunch of closeminded idiots. Funny how these idiots always go at videogames and never movies. The stuff kids can see nowadays on tv, but yet you don’t hear them about it. Foxnews is a joke anyway though.
#8
Texamon
09/02/11, 3:47 pm
I don’t think there was even a need to reply to this. I mean come on, its Fox!
#9
Bellisner
09/02/11, 4:11 pm
There are three types of people in this world- Truth tellers, liars and bullshitters.
Truth tellers (not to be confused with truthers!) care about the truth and as such try to uphold it and defend it where possible.
Liars (ironically enough) also care about the truth but when it contradicts their ideology or desires they try to subvert it
Bullshitters on the other hand don’t care about the truth ans are simply out to impress you.
In the above tale Fox are liars they know what is right but there is an opportunity to take a pot shot at the gaming industry for cheap points.
Carole Lieberman on the other hand the “TV psychologist” (an oxymoron if ever I saw one) is a bullshitter there is no empirical evidence to back her claims nor does she care she is desperately out to impress you and there can be no co-incidence that she has only recently released the following http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bad-Girls-Learn-Their-Secrets/dp/292386512X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1297267633&sr=8-2
She needs to keep herself in the spotlight in order to sell her wares so churning out ill informed copy to get a book plug on Fox is a sure fire way to do that; one hand washes the other and both parties bullshitter and liar alike come away winners.
#10
Phoenixblight
09/02/11, 4:33 pm
@9
1000+ interwebz
Couldn’t have said it any better.
#11
Fin
09/02/11, 4:36 pm
Here we go, it’s started already:
http://www.amazon.com/Bad-Girls-Carole-Lieberman-M-D/product-reviews/292386512X/ref=cm_cr_dp_hist_1?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&filterBy=addOneStar
#12
The_Red
09/02/11, 5:54 pm
Really? They responded to Fox News? It’s more pointless than answering to the air coming out of my ass. At least my ass is smarter than Fox though.
#13
DarkElfa
09/02/11, 6:46 pm
Fox News is the troll of modern journalism.
#14
Timber-_-wolf
09/02/11, 7:11 pm
Fucking Fox one siding as a fucking leper
#15
Isaaclarke37
09/02/11, 7:20 pm
I read this article yesterday and tbh i started laughing at how they were taking it so serious for something that was supposed to be taken down for fun and having a good time experiencing something new as it’s not the standard FPS although the language is a little bit “colorful” which is something unusual for a video game but it’s different and new and above all…fun.