Seems like Rockstar Games, maker of the popular "Grand Theft Auto" series of video games has outdone themselves this time.

I guess nothing is sacred anymore. Make as much money as you can, no matter how you can do it. If you need to single out an entire ethnic group, oh well! Bummer :huh:

Sad....very sad
MNKid

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MIAMI, Florida (Reuters) -- Miami's Haitian and Cuban communities are up in arms over a top-selling computer game that exhorts players to "kill the Haitians" and "kill the Cubans."

Haitian and Cuban representatives said on Tuesday "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City" incited hate crimes and they were considering taking action, whether legal or in the form of a boycott, against creators Rockstar Games and its retailers.

"The game shouldn't be designed to destroy human life, it shouldn't be designed to destroy an ethnic group," said Jean-Robert Lafortune of the Haitian American Grassroots Coalition.

Grand Theft Auto III takes players into the "glamorous, hedonistic metropolis of Vice City," a Miami-like seaside city teeming with Caribbean and Latin American immigrants.

In the game, an ex-convict has to recover stolen drug money and take on the Cuban and Haitian gangs that run the streets.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc., the parent company of Rockstar, said it meant no offense.

"We empathize with the concerns of the Haitian community and we are giving serious consideration to them," it said.

"Some statements made by fictional characters in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City have been taken out of context. There was no intention to offend any ethnic group."

'Money out of blood'
Ringo Cayard, executive director of the Haitian American Foundation, said the last thing the Haitian community wanted was for the controversy to boost the game's popularity.

"They've made money out of the blood and tears of a whole nation," he said.


Source and rest of article:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/fun.gam...eut/index.html

IMHO

1. It's a game, it's fiction. It's not real.

2. If no one bought it I guess they would not make anymore.

I am not defending the gamemaker, but people have the right to make their own choices. If I don't like something of that nature I don't buy it. If enough people don't buy it then gamemakers won't make it. But if there is a market for it it will continue to be there - I guess society is to blame....maybe we can sue them...

Let the trial lawyers assemble.... :ph34r:

/JD

Nationalities that have a large stake (reality) in organized crime in Miami (vice city):
Cubans
Haitians
Jamaicans
Columbians
Russian
Italian (italian-american)
Jewish
Americans

*edit* if I left out your nationality, sorry it was not intentional..lol

It hardly incriminates all people in these nationalities, but is none the less real.Taken in this context, it hardly seems worth a mention, IMHO

Z

I moved this to political discussion.. though some one might wish to move it to the funny forum.

I'm Jewish, and I do not think that video games are ment to hurt ethnicities.


Then again.. I'm innocent when it comes to stuff like this, so if you can teach me a few ideas, I would appreciate. :)

You could break gamers down into 2 catagories. Adults and children ( mentality-wise anyway ;) ).
The adult mentality is already formed, and if formed right, doesn't have a racial hatred issue to deal with.
But the child mentality, and I know some pretty old children ;) , needs to be encouraged not to feel superior to other races and nationalities.
So you could say that this wouldn't be an issue if children were brought up with the proper guidance.
If I were to think of the top 10 things to do for children, in that list would be:

Teach them that ignorance is very unhealthy, and can even kill.