List of banned video games

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Censorship

By media

Banned books · Banned films Re-edited film · Internet · Music Press · Radio  · Thought Speech and expression Video games

Methods

Book burning · Book challenging Bleeping · Broadcast delay Chilling effect Conspiracy of silence Content-control software Euphemism · Expurgation  · Gag order Heckling · Memory hole Pixelization · Postal Prior restraint · Revisionism Self-censorship · Speech code Whitewashing · Verbal offence Strategic lawsuit

Contexts

Corporate · Political · Religious Ideological · Criminal speech Hate speech · Media bias Suppression of dissent

By country

Censorship · Freedom of speech

v • d • e

This is a list of video games that had been censored or banned by governments of various states in the world. Governments have been criticized for banning games for many reasons, in that such bans violate rights, increase piracy, inhibit business opportunities, and that users can still purchase or download such games online.^[1] This list is not exhaustive in total, nor is it exhaustive for any country mentioned in particular.

Contents 1 Australia 2 Brazil 3 Canada 4 China (People's Republic of) 5 France 6 Germany 7 Greece 8 Ireland 9 Italy 10 Japan 11 Mexico 12 New Zealand 13 Russia 14 Saudi Arabia 15 Singapore 16 South Korea 17 Thailand 18 United Arab Emirates 19 United Kingdom 20 United States 21 Venezuela 22 See also 23 References

[edit] Australia

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2008)

Video games in Australia cannot be rated R18+ as the rating only exists for film. This has led many games to be edited (to obtain an MA15+ rating) or refused classification. There is currently a debate over the need for the introduction of an R18+ rating in video games fueled by research that indicates the average age of the Australian video gamer to be 30 years old.^[2]

Name	Reason
7 Sins	Banned because of high impact of sexual references.
50 Cent: Bulletproof (game related to real celebrity 50 Cent (rapper))	Banned because of high impact violence and cruelty.[3] A censored version was later released.[citation needed]
Alien Vs Predator	Banned because it was Refused classification. Decision was later overturned.
Blitz: The League	Banned because of drug use.
BMX XXX	Banned because of sexuality and nudity in relation to incentives and rewards.[4] A censored version was later released.[citation needed]
Dark Sector	Banned because of high impact violence. A censored version was later released.
Dreamweb	Banned because of a scene of sexualized violence. However, the game was censored, and re-released with an M rating in 1996 for "Medium level animated violence."[5]
Fallout 3	Banned because of in-game drug use. Edited world wide due to the insignificant change that was done. Therefore Australia got the same version as other countries with a MA15+.
F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin	Banned because of high impact violence, Warner bros. interactive later appealed the decision and received an MA15+.
The Getaway	Original released uncut, more content was found that was deemed too much for the MA15+ rating. A censored version was later released.
Grand Theft Auto III (Most of the GTA games have been banned)	Banned because of sexual violence. A censored version was later released. PC version was released uncut.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	Had its classification revoked following the Hot Coffee controversy and sexual violence. A censored version has since been classified MA15+.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City	Pre-Censored before submission because of sexual violence. PC version was released uncut.
Grand Theft Auto IV	Pre-censored before submission because of sexual violence. An uncut version was later released for the PC. A patch was later released to completely uncensor the PS3 version and the 360 version. All expansions are unedited.
Left 4 Dead 2	Refused classification as it failed to gain a MA15+ rating. An edited version with all the gore taken out has been released.[6]
Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude	Banned because of sexuality and nudity in relation to incentives and rewards.
Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure	Banned because of high impact violence and the glorification of graffiti.
Manhunt	Was available for a while, but banned afterwards because of high-impact scary violence and cruelty.
Manhunt 2	Never submitted for rating in fear of it being banned.
NARC (2005 update)	Banned because of high impact violence and illegal drug use.
NecroVisioN	Banned because of high impact violence.
Postal 2	Banned because of gross, abhorrent content (urination, high impact violence, animal cruelty, homophobia, etc.)
Phantasmagoria	Banned because of high impact violence, cruelty, and a scene of sexual violence involving rape.
Reservoir Dogs	Banned because of high impact violence and cruelty.
Risen	Banned because of sexual activity and drug use related to incentives or rewards.
Sexy Poker	Banned from being released on WiiWare due to nudity used an incentive. Edited worldwide and this edition received a lucrative M rating
Shellshock: Nam '67	Banned because of high impact violence; however, it was re-rated MA15+ by the Classification Review Board in its uncut form, upon appeal.
Shellshock 2: Blood Trails	Banned because of high impact violence.
Silent Hill: Homecoming	Banned because of High impact violence such as: Drilling into body parts. Konami has since modified the game to meet MA15+ guidelines.
Singles: Flirt Up Your Life	Banned because of sexuality and nudity in relation to incentives and rewards.
Soldier of Fortune: Payback	Banned because of high impact violence. Activision has since modified the game to meet MA15+ guidelines.
Tender Loving Care	Banned because of high impact violence; however. It was however submitted for rerating and has since been re-rated MA15+.
The Punisher	Banned because of high impact violence. Edited worldwide and this edition was passed through with an MA15+. Australia got the same version as America.
Voyeur	Banned because of a scene of explicit sexual dialogue.

[edit] Brazil

In December 1999, citing a man who killed three and injured eight, Brazil banned six games. Vendors were required to surrender the games to police or face a fine equal to about $11,000 USD a day.^[7]

Name	Reason
Blood	Banned because of high impact violence.
Bully (including Scholarship Edition)	Banned for showing violence and harassment in a school setting.
Carmageddon	Banned because of high impact violence against pedestrians.
Carmageddon II: Carpocalypse Now	Banned because of high impact violence against pedestrians.
Counter-Strike	Banned because of high impact violence. In June 2009, the game was allowed to be sold again.[8]
Doom	Banned because of high impact violence.
Duke Nukem 3D	Banned because of high impact violence.
EverQuest	Banned because of high nudity and X18+ refrences.[9]
Mortal Kombat	Banned because of high impact violence.
Requiem: Avenging Angel	Banned because of high impact violence.
Postal	Banned because of high impact violence.

[edit] Canada

No games have been banned in Canada. However, there has been controversy surrounding the game industry and certain games, much like the controversy in the United States. Games such as Manhunt and Soldier of Fortune have been given "Restricted" film ratings, thereby preventing them from being purchased by any person under the age of eighteen in Ontario and British Columbia respectively, and under the age of seventeen in Québec.^{[10][11][12][13][14]} As in the United States, games receiving an "Adults Only" rating from the ESRB have been edited for re-classification.

[edit] China (People's Republic of)

The government of the People's Republic of China often places a higher value on censoring content pertaining to political issues (such as the ostensible indivisibility of China) rather than moral concerns.

Name	Reason
Command & Conquer Generals	Banned for "smearing the image of China and the Chinese army" despite the fact that the game presents China as a quasi-protagonist.[15] Additionally, the Chinese campaign has the player destroy questionable targets such as the Three Gorges Dam and the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Football Manager 2005	Banned for recognizing Tibet as an independent country. A edited version globally was later released.
Hearts of Iron	Banned for portraying Tibet, Sinkiang, and Manchuria as independent countries and Taiwan as under Japanese control.[15]
I.G.I.-2: Covert Strike	Banned because of "intentionally blackening China and the Chinese army's image."[16]

[edit] France

Censorship in France is very limited. Thus, as of 2009, no game has ever been banned in the country. Technically, the PEGI rating system is recognized, but its decisions are not legally enforceable in France.

[edit] Germany

A game can be considered banned in Germany if it has been confiscated by court order because it violates a section of the Strafgesetzbuch (criminal code). Private possession (and thus playing it) and acquisition (such as downloading a demo from the Internet) is still legal, but any dissemination is not. The seller would break the law if a sale took place, not the buyer. On December 10, 2002, however, one German court (Oberlandesgericht Hamm) decided that a single sale of a single copy does not qualify as dissemination.^[17] Unlike indexing by the BPjM, which restricts the sale of all content-equal versions, the versions that are confiscated are enumerated in the court order. Being put on the index by the BPjM or, since April 1, 2003, being refused a rating by the USK does not equal a ban. Rather, it imposes strict trade restrictions on the title. While only very few games have been confiscated, the list of indexed games is very long.^[18]

In December 2006, Bavaria and Lower Saxony proposed legislation, to be presented to the national parliament, that would make even playing games that feature "cruel violence on humans or human-looking characters" an offense punishable with fines or jail time of up to 12 months.^[19][20][21]

§ 86a outlaws the use of symbols of unconstitutional organizations, § 130 Volksverhetzung (agitation of the people), and § 131 instructions for crimes. In the official lists, these three sections are always bundled, so that action games where the object is to kill Nazis (and thus contain swastika flags and/or any depiction of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler) are listed alongside racist propaganda pieces.

Name	Reason
Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines (English version 1999-06-24)	Banned because of Nazi references.
KZ Manager (1990-10-29/1990-11-19)	Banned because of Nazi references.
Mortyr (2001-10-24)	Banned because of Nazi references.
Wolfenstein 3D (PC 1994-01-25, Atari Jaguar 1994-12-07)	Banned because of Nazi references.
Soldier of Fortune: Payback	Banned due to high levels of gore (decapitations, dismemberments, and excessive blood-letting)

§ 131 outlaws representation of violence in media "which describe cruel or otherwise inhuman acts of violence against human beings in a manner which expresses a glorification or rendering harmless of such acts of violence or which represents the cruel or inhuman aspects of the event in a manner which injures human dignity."^[22]

Name	Reason
Condemned: Criminal Origins (Decision AG Munic February 2008)	Banned because of high impact violence and cruelty.
Manhunt (all versions, 2004-07-19)	Banned because of high impact scary violence and cruelty.
Mortal Kombat (all Sega platforms, 1994-11-11)	Banned because of high impact violence and cruelty.
Mortal Kombat II (all versions except Game Boy, 1995-02-08)	Banned because of high impact violence and cruelty.
Mortal Kombat 3 (Sega Genesis, PlayStation, SNES 1997-06-12)	Banned because of high impact violence and cruelty.

Gears of War and Dead Rising were refused rating by the USK. Gears of War EU version was put on the Index (part A) on November 26, 2006, and therefore cannot be advertised nor disseminated to minors. Dead Rising was put on the Index (part B) and confiscated by Hamburg County Court's decision of June 11, 2007. Microsoft refrained from publishing them in Germany. In a recent announcement, Sega has confirmed that recently announced The House of the Dead: Overkill and MadWorld will not be distributed in Germany.^[23]Sega will also not be publishing Aliens vs. Predators.^[24]

[edit] Greece

In 2002, the Greek government banned all electronic games in public places in an attempt to fight illegal gambling. See Greek electronic game ban.

Currently, this law has been suspended, being deemed unconstitutional.

[edit] Ireland

Because IFCO almost never rates video games, and leaves decisions to PEGI and BBFC, there have not been a lot of games banned. Only one game so far, Manhunt 2, has passed IFCO's rating of 18. But the ban was later lifted.

Name	Reason
Manhunt 2	Banned for "gross, unrelenting, and gratuitous violence."[25]

[edit] Italy

On 2007, a ban was decided for Manhunt 2, blocking its distribution over Europe. Later, the ban was lifted.

[edit] Japan

Games are very rarely banned in Japan, as it holds a place as one of the top producers of video games in the world.^[26]

Name	Reason
Grand Theft Auto III	Though not necessarily banned, sales are restricted in the Kanagawa Prefecture for violence and cruelty, citing "teens might try to mimic."[27]
Call of Duty: World at War	Banned for strong, gore violence against Japanese soldiers.
Fallout 3	The name of a weapon in the game "Fatman" had to be renamed because fatman was the title of the atomic bomb used on Japan near the end of World War II. Also the side-quest The Power of the Atom has been changed and the name of the bomb was changed because it was deemed inappropriate, while there is also reference to ghoulified Chinese soldiers.[clarification needed][28] (Ghoulification is a fictional skin condition caused by radiation that makes one look like a living corpse)

[edit] Mexico

Though no video games have ever been nationally banned, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 was banned in the state of Chihuahua due to Mexican Rebels being antagonist and stereotyping the city of Chihuahua and Ciudad Juarez.^[29] However, the game can still be found in shelves in other states.

[edit] New Zealand

In New Zealand, games are classified by the Office of Film and Literature Classification. If they are dubbed "objectionable" in all cases, then they are considered banned. In this case, the game in question is not only illegal to sell, but illegal to own, possess, or import.

Name	Reason
Manhunt	Banned because of high impact scary violence and cruelty.[30]
Manhunt 2	Banned because of high impact scary violence and cruelty.
Postal 2	Banned because of gross, abhorrent content (urination, high impact violence, animal cruelty, homophobia, racial/ethnic stereotypes, etc.)[31]
Reservoir Dogs	Banned because of high impact violence and cruelty.

[edit] Russia

As of 2009, no games have ever been banned in Russia, altough there was a pressure to ban Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. However, Russian authorities and Activision instead removed the mission "No Russian" (which includes massacring an airport full of civilians as an act of terrorism) instead of banning the game.

[edit] Saudi Arabia

Name	Reason
God of War II	Banned because of violence and cruelty.
Call of Duty 4	Banned because of violence (including against Islamic soldiers) and cruelty.
Assassin's Creed	Banned because of violence and cruelty.
Grand Theft Auto (series)	Banned because of violence and cruelty.
Pokémon series (trading cards only)	Banned because of "promoting Zionism and gambling." [32][33] However, that ban only applied to the trading card games, as Pokémon video games are still sold today in Saudi Arabia.

[edit] Singapore

Name	Reason
Mass Effect	Banned because of a lesbian encounter between an alien and a human.[34] The ban was later lifted.[35]
The Darkness	Banned because of excessive violence.[36]

[edit] South Korea

South Korea has typically banned any game that mentions a fictional war between North and South Korea in order to avoid tensions between the two countries. However, in December 2006, South Korea announced that these games will no longer be banned in order to comply with the principle of free expression. However, Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Manhunt, and Manhunt 2 are still banned because of violence and cruelty." In addition, Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction was also banned, although this was later lifted.^[37]

Name	Reason
Grand Theft Auto III	Banned because of violence and cruelty.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City	Banned because of violence and cruelty.
Manhunt	Banned because of violence and cruelty.
Manhunt 2	Banned because of violence and cruelty.
Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction	Banned to avoid increasing diplomatic tensions with North Korea. Later lifted.

[edit] Thailand

Thailand will typically ban any games with sexual contents, such as many hentai games, with the same reasons as banning any pornographic films. Though, most of the banned games can still be found sold in Thailand and the police do not generally close down those shops.

All video games of Grand Theft Auto video game series are banned in Thailand since August 2008^[38] because of violence and cruelty. The GTA is banned after an 19-year old Thai player killed a taxi-driver like in GTA.^[39]

[edit] United Arab Emirates

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page. (June 2009)

Grand Theft Auto video game series is banned in the UAE. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is banned because in some cutscenes the player shoots Islamic soldiers.

[edit] United Kingdom

There is currently no legislation in force, owing to a legislative mistake in 1984. It is anticipated that the system described below will continue on a voluntary basis, and the legal structure enacted in November 2009.^[40]

Games in the UK only usually receive a ban when they contain extreme and gratuitous violence; sex and nudity are not the main concern. Games are refused classification (RC) by the BBFC. It is illegal to sell (although not illegal to buy and play) a game that has not been classified by the BBFC in the UK. This only applies to games stored on physical media, not to downloadable media.^[41]

Carmageddon and Manhunt 2 are among the games that have been refused classification by the BBFC. Both bans were later overturned; Manhunt 2 was allowed classification after edits.

Name	Reason
Carmageddon	Originally refused certification in it's uncut form due to excessive violence against pedestrians. It was altered to replace humans with zombies in order to circumvent this.[42] The restriction was later lifted and a patch released to restore the original content.
Manhunt 2	Banned because of excessive violence.[43] Ban later lifted.
Rule of Rose	Banned because of violence towards children and sexual references to minors. The ban was not put in place in Europe, just in the UK.
Thrill Kill (canceled game)	Banned because of extreme violence. Did not receive a release in any country, but an unfinished version was leaked on the Internet.

[edit] United States

No games have been banned in the United States due to excessive violence or nudity because of freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, although several have been refused a rating below Adults Only (AO) by the ESRB. Although these ratings are not law, console makers will not license AO or unrated games and most retailers will not stock them, forcing a sort of self-censoring to obtain a lower rating. A rare game called Thrill Kill (which most are reproduction carts) for the PlayStation was canceled shortly before its release, although with a mod chip a few select people still acquired the game. EA Games refused to release the game once a public outcry made it to the media because it was "senselessly violent".

[edit] Venezuela

In November 2009, the Government of Venezuela announced that it would ban all video games that the objective was to shoot people. The ban was due to widespread violence in the country.

[edit] See also

• Video game controversy
• List of recalled video games

[edit] References

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.