banned US games? [Archive] - Retrogaming Roundtable

ghostangelofcky

03-17-2007, 10:05 PM

So I jusr recently picked up the latest issue of Retro Gamer, (BTW great article ASSEMbler a must read for all collectors) and I saw that the game Thrill Kill was banned for violence.

So, I was wondering what other games were banned in the US and why?

Blitzwing256

03-17-2007, 10:32 PM

legend of the ogre king is the only psx game that comes to mind.
(also called killwheel)

tonyvortex

03-17-2007, 11:22 PM

i never really thought of thrill kill as being banned for violence.that just sounds so much cooler than EA not wanting to seem like such an unfamily like publisher.

diskoboy

03-17-2007, 11:33 PM

I think Tony is right. Thrill Kill wasn't really banned. It was just shunned by its publisher. I believe this was around the time Mortal Kombat's violence was getting all the negative attention.

Honestly, I don't know of any game that's been outright banned in the US. Even the more controversial games (think Death Race, Custer's Revenge, or the early VCS porn games) get limited releases. Usually when a game doesn't come out - there's a reason behind it (usually by the publishers choice or the developer gives up on development). But no game has ever been outright banned.

The government has tried, but i think games were considered artistic expressions - therefore covered by the 1st amendment. Thanks for making that crystal clear by all those frivilous lawsuits, Jack! :)

EDIT - I think the only possible way the government could step in and ban a game is - say for example, a game is found out to cause epelictic seziures to a good majority of the gaming public, or millions of people start breaking their legs playing DDR. The government may step in for health reasons, but they would never ban a game based on it's content.

RCM

03-17-2007, 11:56 PM

If a console game receives an AO it's essentially banned. A lot of retailers won't touch it and I believe Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft don't allow AO games for their new consoles.

Blitzwing256

03-18-2007, 01:51 AM

isn't the new conan game spose to be adults only?

Neil Koch

03-18-2007, 04:11 AM

No, they're aiming for a M rating ala God of War.

Has there ever been an AO game?

Gamebrain

03-18-2007, 04:59 AM

Hentai games are not banned in the US but they usually have an AO rating which means you need to buy them from specialty shops or online.

Not my kind of thing.

Other than that, I dont really know of any games that are banned in the US.

ghostangelofcky

03-18-2007, 06:57 AM

I remember hearing that the Man Game was banned due to one of the topless spring break girls turned out to be only 17.

jajaja

03-18-2007, 07:46 AM

Has there ever been an AO game?

Didnt GTA:SA get that rating after the hot coffee shit? Hehe.

Lady Jaye

03-18-2007, 08:09 AM

Yeah, it did get that rating temporarily.

Well, giving a game the AO rating isn't banning it outright. It's more akin to the dreaded NC-17 movie rating -- killing the potential popularity of the given title (due to policies by chains like Wal-Mart and Blockbuster). Banning it would mean that it's actually 100% illegal to sell or buy the given title (which isn't the case with the AO-rated games).

According to wikipedia, only 23 games were ever given the AO rating.

oh yeah, the GUY Game (not Man Game) was indeed banned and became a straight-to-video release instead of a videogame.

http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/puzzle/theguygame/news.html?sid=6128746

c2000

03-18-2007, 08:25 AM

The original Night Trap for Sega-CD

Pantechnicon

03-18-2007, 09:41 AM

Diskoboy pretty much summed up everything I could say about the subject. The 1st Amendment is a pretty surefire gurarantee that a game can and never will be banned in the U.S. despite its content. I'll only add to this that its important to note that ratings boards such as the ESRB, MPAA etc are not extensions of the U.S. government but are instead supported by the respective industries for which they provide ratings. Therefore ratings systems aren't a matter of law, but rather of industry self-regulation. Thus (@RCM), while an AO rating might make a particular game difficult to obtain, it will never be the case that it is against the laws of the land for you to do so. To put it another way: You can legally own a copy of Time Magazine and you can also legally own a copy of Hustler, but there's no reason for you to expect to be able to purchase both at the same time while standing in the supermarket checkout. Talking about games being "essentially banned" only amounts to so much griping.

Lady Jaye

03-18-2007, 10:22 AM

Well, as mentioned above, the Guy Game was banned after it was revealed that a minor appeared in the game.

Vectorman0

03-18-2007, 11:05 AM

Well, as mentioned above, the Guy Game was banned after it was revealed that a minor appeared in the game.

Maybe, but no one takes the ban seriously and it's readily available. The fact there was "child porn" in it is also a damn good reason to ban it since it is illegal. That should be the only reason to ban a game. If the game isn't illegal when it comes out, there shouldn't be reason to make it illegal after the fact.

TurboGenesis

03-18-2007, 11:11 AM

The original Night Trap for Sega-CD

I wouldn't say 'banned" but it was 'pulled' off the shelf. Later it would be released in an edited form.

Wasn't Maniac Mansion also pulled from shelves because of the hamster in the microwave thing? I remember this being big news when I was child.

exit

03-18-2007, 11:54 AM

I wouldn't say 'banned" but it was 'pulled' off the shelf. Later it would be released in an edited form.

Wasn't Maniac Mansion also pulled from shelves because of the hamster in the microwave thing? I remember this being big news when I was child.

I don't remember anything about that, but I do know it was taken out in later re-versions of the game.

Shemp

03-18-2007, 12:07 PM

tonyvortex

03-18-2007, 12:57 PM

I was working in retail when Kakuto Chojin for the Xbox was recalled by Microsoft. We were told there was some religious chant in one of the stages that some people might find offensive. No big loss, as the game wasn't very good anyway.
at the time i just figured that was their way of getting people to rush out and buy it like when disney puts movies in "the vault".

UndeadKing

03-18-2007, 03:35 PM

I've often heard that Night Trap was rereleased in edited form but no one ever goes into detail. What exactly was edited? How can you tell if you have an "uncut" version? I've always been curious.

Pantechnicon

03-18-2007, 03:51 PM

I've often heard that Night Trap was rereleased in edited form but no one ever goes into detail. What exactly was edited? How can you tell if you have an "uncut" version?

I'm not sure what exactly was edited out. I think it was one scene where one of the potential victims - a hottie in a negligee - gets a drill stuck through her head or something like that. I could be wrong.

As for how to tell uncensored vs censored it's a question of the box art.

Original release looks like this:
http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/games/coverg/31/611431.jpg

Edited release:
http://darkwatcher.psxfanatics.com/console/nighttrap.jpg

I have the original, but haven't played it all the way through yet. Controversy aside, it is not really a great game.

Kitsune Sniper

03-18-2007, 05:19 PM

In regards to Adult Only rated console games... Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude: Uncut and Uncensored (http://www.mobygames.com/game/leisure-suit-larry-magna-cum-laude-uncut-and-uncensored) comes to mind. MobyGames says there's XBox, PS2 and Windows versions of the game... and they're ALL Adult Only.

The original release, with censored naughty bits, was rated M. I have no idea if this was really released for the consoles. I do own a copy of the Windows version but I've never bothered playing it. :p

slapdash

03-18-2007, 06:09 PM

For what it's worth, the Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AO-rated_products) doesn't list the Leisure Suit Larry AO "Uncut" version as available for PS2 or XBox.

Regarding San Andreas though, are there actual existing versions of it with the AO rating on the box? Or was it just given that rating to essentially force Rockstar to make the second version? Moreso, the Wikipedia article says that the new M version (sans Hot Coffee) was "labeled 'Second Edition'" -- I wasn't aware that the packaging had actually changed; does it really say that on the box?

exit

03-18-2007, 07:16 PM

The hot coffee versions just had retailer put AO stickers on them, later the "fixed" version was released as Greatest Hits, or at least that was the next time my store got them.

tonyvortex

03-18-2007, 07:24 PM

Moreso, the Wikipedia article says that the new M version (sans Hot Coffee) was "labeled 'Second Edition'" -- I wasn't aware that the packaging had actually changed; does it really say that on the box?

it sure does.its written small on the bottom.

Kitsune Sniper

03-18-2007, 08:05 PM

I've seen these "Second Edition" versions come in regular packaging, not in Greatest Hits versions.

Of course, it's obvious that any GH versions -would- be the neutered ones. ;)

Blitzwing256

03-18-2007, 08:51 PM

I don't remember anything about that, but I do know it was taken out in later re-versions of the game.

the game was never re-issued with the microwave hamster taken out, all released copies of the game have it.

(video game mags anounced it would be re-issued but it never was)

Porksta

03-18-2007, 09:02 PM

San Andreas came in four varieties I believe:

Regular M Version (with or without AO sticker)
AO Version (not sure if it was ever released as an AO title)
Second Edition
Platinum Hits

Poofta!

03-18-2007, 10:28 PM

San Andreas came in four varieties I believe:

Regular M Version (with or without AO sticker)
AO Version (not sure if it was ever released as an AO title)
Second Edition
Platinum Hits

the AO version does not exist. you have the original M version, and some retailers put stickers on them. thats all.

snes_collector

03-18-2007, 10:57 PM

Kitsune Sniper

03-18-2007, 11:04 PM

Has there ever even been a Hentai game released in the US?

Several. Jast USA is (or was) a huge hentai game retailer and distributor a few years ago. I have no idea if they're still around, but I do believe they've released some games in the US of A, in English.

Gapporin

03-19-2007, 12:08 AM

Several. Jast USA is (or was) a huge hentai game retailer and distributor a few years ago. I have no idea if they're still around, but I do believe they've released some games in the US of A, in English.

There were also some other games released here in the US, but with all the nudie scenes excised. I don't remember if Jast handled these or not.

j_factor

03-19-2007, 12:30 AM

Technically, The Guy Game wasn't banned in the US. Sales were haulted by a restraining order resulting from a civil lawsuit. For a game to be banned it would have to be banned by Congress or a regulatory body, or deemed prosecutable under obscenity (or similar) laws. The company that makes it was ordered to discontinue it, but it's not illegal to possess it, and it's not illegal for a store or individual to sell it.

The Guy Game doesn't fall under any child porn law, because it hasn't been ruled to be pornographic. All it does is show breasts, which isn't really pornography. It was pulled because the girl being 17 meant that the release she signed was invalid, and so they had no legal right to use her image in the game.