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List of controversial video games
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This is a list of video games considered controversial. The list includes games that have earned controversies for violence, sexual content, racism, and review bombing from fans. Some of the video games on this list have been banned or regionally censored.
 | This list related to video games is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (October 2021) |
Video game series
| Release dates | Series title | Platform | Primary developer/publisher | Reason(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984–2009 | Punch-Out!! | Arcades, NES, SNES, Wii | Nintendo, Next Level Games (2009 version) | Numerous instances of ethnic stereotyping, mainly of the opponent boxers that the player fights.[1][2][3] |
| 1992–present | Mortal Kombat | Arcade, PC, Consoles, Mobile devices, Stadia, Nintendo Switch | Midway (later Warner Bros. Interactive) | Blood, violence and gore. First fighter to introduce "Fatalities" to finish off opponents.[4][5][6][7][8][9] When released for home console formats, it became the first "big budget" game to raise the issue of violence in the medium. Possible catalyst to the implementation of a rating system such as ESRB. |
| 1996–present | Pokémon | Game Boy, Nintendo 64, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Nintendo DS, Wii, WiiWare, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, Nintendo Switch | Nintendo, Game Freak | Jynx, one of the series' titular creatures, came under heavy backlash following a 2000 article by Carole Boston Weatherford that accused its design of perpetrating blackface imagery.[10] The resulting controversy forced a drastic redesign of Jynx, changing its skin from black to purple and shrinking its eyes and mouth. The series was also attacked by fundamentalist Christian groups, who argued that it promoted Satanic themes. In response, the Vatican broadcast its public approval of Pokémon in April 2000, claiming that the game was based on "intense ties of friendship", and lacked "any harmful moral side effects."[11] |
| 1997–present | Grand Theft Auto | Android, Amazon Fire TV, Dreamcast, Fire OS, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, iOS, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS1, PS2, PS3, PS4, PS5, PSP, Shield Portable, Shield Tablet, Shield Android TV, Windows Phone, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X | Rockstar Games (formerly DMA Design, now Rockstar North) (Take-Two Interactive) | Sexual themes, drug use, racism, nudity, foul and sexually explicit language, drunk driving, violence (against civilians, law enforcement members and military personnel). Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was originally rated "Mature" in the U.S., but was reviewed and re-rated "Adults Only" after controversy surrounding a fanmade Hot Coffee mod which unlocked a hidden sex scene (which was in the game's code, but left out of the final version). It was again re-rated "Mature" after Rockstar Games removed this scene from the game's code.[12] In Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned, one mission features full frontal male nudity, while in Grand Theft Auto V, one mission sees the character Trevor Philips torturing another character in several different ways, including waterboarding, pulling out teeth, and administering electrical shocks to the nipples. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars featured a drug-dealing mini-game. |
| 1997–present | Postal | PC, Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PS4 | Running with Scissors/Various | Violence and anti-law, most of which is committed against both civilians and government authorities, as well as racism, sexual themes, drug use, language, and animal cruelty.[7] Postal 2 was banned in Germany, New Zealand and Australia.[13] |
| 2003–2007 | Manhunt | PS2, PC, Xbox, Wii, PlayStation Portable | Rockstar Games (Rockstar North) (Take-Two Interactive) | Excessive violence and gore. Manhunt gained significant controversy after it was alleged that the game inspired a teenager to commit a murder. Banned in Australia.[citation needed] Manhunt 2 has been labeled as possibly the most violent video game ever made and is infamous for being one of only four video games to have received an "Adults Only" rating due to violence. Further controversy surrounds the Wii version, due to the fact that it actually simulates the violence through motion control, causing it to be dubbed a "murder simulator".[5][7][14] |
| 2007–present | Mass Effect | PS3, Xbox 360, PC, BlackBerry 10, iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Wii U, PS4, Xbox One | BioWare/Microsoft Game Studios (later Electronic Arts) |
Falsely accused by evangelical blogger Kevin McCullough of containing "rape and sodomy", which later led to the removal of McCullough's blog entry on Townhall.com. The game was featured on the Fox News Channel following the controversy,[15] with host Martha MacCallum, which included the headline "full graphic sex".[16] The game was briefly banned in Singapore due to the controversy.[17] While critically acclaimed overall, the ending of Mass Effect 3 was highly criticized as, among other issues, rendered all the decisions players had made in the trilogy, carried over through save files, moot, in contrast to marketing material BioWare had put forth for the game.[18] Due to a large reaction from the player base, BioWare released free downloadable content that provided a more cinematic ending sequence that addressed some of these concerns.[19] Other controversies included the release of Mass Effect 3: From Ashes as day-one paid DLC;[20] public outrage over the alleged link between the series' in-game combat violence to the perpetrator of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, which was eventually debunked;[21][22] and the portrayal and representation of women as well as sexual minorities.[23][24][25][26][27][28] |
| 2011–present | Gal Gun | Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, PS Vita, Nintendo Switch, PC | Inti-Creates | The Gal Gun series has been criticized by western critics due to allowing players to sexually exploit teenage girls. Inti-Creates was forced by Microsoft to censor the Xbox 360 version due to players being able to look up the girls' skirts, while the PlayStation 3 version remained completely uncensored.[29] The sequel, Gal Gun: Double Peace, which was released internationally, was banned in New Zealand for the same reason.[30] |
| 2018–2021 | Super Seducer | PC | Red Dahlia Interactive | Super Seducer was billed as "the world's most realistic seduction simulator". The player is taught by a pickup artist how to pick up women by going through multiple choice questions accompanied by video clips. The game came under fire by a number of left wing critics; one described it as the "world's sleaziest game",[31] and another criticized the game for "normalizing rape culture"[32] Prior to its release, the game had its crowdfunding campaign suspended by Kickstarter. According to its press release, this was due to "inappropriate content, including but not limited to offensive or pornographic material", and "spamming or abusive behavior, offering rewards in violation of Kickstarter's rules."[33][34] During release, the developer came under fire for ordering a DMCA takedown request against a YouTuber after he made a video critiquing the game.[35][36] Its release on PlayStation 4 was pulled by Sony shortly before it was due for release.[37] The original and second installments were blocked from release by Nintendo over explicit contents in 2021.[38] Despite releasing the first two installments, the third installment was pulled from Steam;[39] despite this, they allowed them to remain on their store.[40] |
1970s–1980s
| Release date | Title | Platform | Developer/Publisher | Reason(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Gotcha | Arcade | Atari | Controversial due to the controls being perceived as pink rubber bulges that were meant to represent breasts and were squeezed in order to control the action.[41] |
| 1976 | Death Race | Exidy | The object of the game is to run over stickmen "gremlins", who then scream and are replaced by tombstones, which for the time was seen as overtly violent.[4][42] | |
| 1982 | Custer's Revenge | Atari 2600 | American Multiple Industries | The game depicts a crudely rendered General Custer dodging arrows to reach a naked Native American woman tied to a post with the goal of sexually penetrating her to earn points. The game was protested as being racist, sexist, and promoting sexual violence.[4][5][6][43][44] |
| 1984 | Raid over Moscow | Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Commodore 64, Plus/4, ZX Spectrum | Access Software | The game's premise, based on stopping a pre-emptive nuclear attack on the United States by bombing Soviet military bases, led to significant political controversy in Cold War Europe, being added to the BPjM index in West Germany, restricting sales to adults only, and was deemed by the East German Stasi to be one of several games of "a particularly militaristic and inhumane nature".[45] In Finland, the distribution of the game was questioned by an MP of the Finnish People's Democratic League, leading to diplomatic protests from the Soviet Union.[46] |
| 1985 | International Karate | Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Commodore 16, MS-DOS, MSX, ZX Spectrum | System 3 | Data East USA sued Epyx, the publisher of the game in the United States (under the name of World Karate Championship) due to similarities between International Karate and Data East's Karate Champ. Although the suit was dismissed,[47] Data East was successful in obtaining an injunction to prevent further sales of World Karate Championship, which was subsequently appealed and reversed.[48][49] |
| 1986 | 177 | NEC PC-8801 | dB-SOFT | A bishoujo game revolving around rape, it ignited a public furor that reached the National Diet of Japan.[50] |
| 1986 | Arkanoid | Arcade | Taito | Due to its resemblance to Super Breakout, the game instigated a lawsuit by Atari, Inc.[51] |
| 1986 | Chiller | Arcade, NES | Exidy | The game features scenes of torture chambers, graphic violence, and gore, which caused many arcade owners to avoid purchasing it in order to maintain a family-friendly image.[52] |
| 1986 | Twister | ZX Spectrum | System 3 | Originally titled Twister: Mother of Harlots but was renamed after a controversy regarding the title and sexualized promotion with skimpily dressed dancers at the PCM Show, an industry event.[53][54][55][56][57][58][59] |
| 1987 | Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior | Acorn Electron, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari ST, BBC Micro, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, ZX Spectrum | Palace Software | The cover art of the game, which featured bikini-clad Maria Whittaker, a model who was then associated with The Sun tabloid's Page Three topless photo shoots, and Michael Van Wijk, who was only wearing a loincloth, provoked outrage in the United Kingdom. Electron User magazine received letters from readers and religious bodies, who called the image "offensive and particularly insulting to women" and an "ugly pornographic advertisement".[60] Barbarian's violent content also sparked significant controversy and was restricted to adults only in Germany by the Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende Medien because of it.[61] |
| 1987 | The Great Giana Sisters | Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, C64, MSX2 | Rainbow Arts, U.S. Gold | Nintendo had objected to its close resemblance to Super Mario Bros.[62][63][64] Later games in the series such as Giana Sisters DS and Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams were officially released on Nintendo systems. |
| 1987 | Katakis | Amiga | Factor 5 | Activision Europe, who held the rights to R-Type, objected to the game's obvious similarity.[65] |
| 1988 | The Race Against Time | Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum | Codemasters | The original packaging had an image of American athlete Jesse Owens on its front cover. However, after the game had been released, Owens' estate objected. Codemasters had neglected to obtain permission from the family to use Owens' likeness, and they declined to grant permission retroactively. Therefore, Codemasters was forced to recall all of the copies of the game that had already been produced, and to change promotional materials. The company replaced the image of Owens with one of Carl Lewis, who had offered the use of his likeness for free.[66] |
| 1989 | Super Monaco GP | Arcade, Sega Genesis, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Game Gear, Master System, ZX Spectrum | Sega | Phillip Morris sued Sega (and some other video game companies, including Namco and Atari Games on behalf of their Final Lap game) because the arcade version of the game contains advertisements that resemble those for Marlboro cigarettes.[67][68] |
1990s
| Release date | Title | Platform | Developer/Publisher | Reason(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | J.B. Harold Murder Club | TurboGrafx-16 | NEC | Sexual themes, including a reference to an unsolved rape.[69] |
| 1992 | Wolfenstein 3D | DOS, SNES, 3DO, Atari Jaguar, Game Boy Advance, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, iOS, Android | id Software | Violence, gore, Nazi symbolism, and the inclusion of Adolf Hitler as the final boss (this was particularly problematic to German distributors, who banned the sale of the game outright).[70] |
| 1992 | Night Trap | Sega CD | Digital Pictures, Sega | Violence, child abuse and sexual themes.[4][5][7] |
| 1992 | Freedom! | Apple II | MECC | Freedom! was modelled similarly to MECC's previous The Oregon Trail to be used as an educational software game to teach students about escaping as a slave along the Underground Railroad; the game was developed with an African-American consultant as to utilize language patterns of the time period, and intended to be used with in-class curriculum to augment the game. However, in practical use, most students played the game without guidance, leading to parents to demand the game be pulled due to perceived insensitivities the game took towards the plight of the slaves. MECC tried to work with concerned groups to address faults in the game, but ultimately pulled the game instead.[71] |
| 1993 | Fighter's History | Arcade, SNES | Data East | Capcom sued Data East in the United States and Japan on grounds of copyright infringements pertaining to Street Fighter II property. The U.S. case was ruled in favor of Data East (which argued Karate Champ was the true originator of the competitive fighting game genre), as the "copied" elements were excluded from copyright,[72] similar to Apple's graphical user interface lawsuit against Microsoft. |
| 1993 | Doom | PC, Atari Jaguar, SNES, 32X, 3DO, Sega Saturn, PS1, GBA, Xbox 360, iOS, Android, Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One | id Software | First-person violence, gore, and satanic themes.[4][6][7][8] Was once blamed for the Columbine High School massacre. |
| 1995 | Phantasmagoria | Microsoft Windows, MS-DOS, Sega Saturn | Sierra On-Line | The game's at-the-time relatively uncommon horror themes, featuring violence and sexual content (including a rape scene), sparked significant controversy. US computer retailer CompUSA announced that they would not stock the game.[73] The game was outright refused classification in Australia by the Office of Film and Literature Classification in September 1995.[74] |
| 1996 | SimCopter | PC | Maxis | A programmer named Jacques Servin introduced unauthorized "himbo" characters into the game, who would appear on certain dates and kiss.[75] |
| 1996 | Duke Nukem 3D | PC, Sega Saturn, PS1, PS3, PS Vita, PS4, Nintendo 64, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Android, iOS | 3D Realms | Violence, sexual themes, nudity [76][77] |
| 1996 | Tomb Raider | PC, Sega Saturn, PS1 | Eidos | An unauthorized software patch nicknamed "Nude Raider" was created by fans, which allowed players to play as a naked Lara Croft.[78] |
| 1996 | Battlecruiser 3000AD | PC | 3000 AD | The developers of this game claimed that neural networks could be used by the player to command objects and characters within the game to perform certain tasks using an AI feature, however, such a concept was nearly impossible for the technology standard of the mid-1990s and various players of the game claimed such a feature was not actually possible (which would be false advertising) and as a result of this controversy, years of heated debates about this validity of the topic took place in online forums, with over 70,000 documented entries taking one side of the debate or the other.[79] |
| 1997 | Carmageddon | PC, Mac, N64, iOS, PS1 | SCi, Interplay Entertainment | Violence against pedestrians[80] and animals. |
| 1997 | Formula 1 97 | PC, PS1 | Psygnosis | The game was withdrawn from shops six weeks after its release due to legal proceedings with the FIA (Formula One's governing body), which objected to the use of the FIA logo on the game's packaging. It was re-released without the logo, but the FIA were left unsatisfied. The FIA lost a court case however, and the game continued to be sold without the logo.[81] |
| 1998 | Thrill Kill | PS1 | Virgin Interactive | After Electronic Arts acquired the assets of Virgin Interactive in mid-1998, it quickly cancelled the release of Thrill Kill (which was due to be released in time for the holiday season) due to objections over the game's high level of violent content.[citation needed] |
| 1999 | Kingpin: Life of Crime | PC | Interplay Entertainment | Excessive violence, especially in light of the then-recent Columbine High School massacre which took place before the game's release.[82] Developer Xatrix implemented a "safe" mode which tones down the game's gore and bleeps out profanities in an effort to appease watchdog and parent groups. |
2000s
| Release date | Title | Platform | Developer/Publisher | Reason(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Dance Dance Revolution Solo | Arcade | Konami | In 2002, a local arcade in San Diego, California removed a Solo 2000 machine after members of the local "Youth Advocacy Coalition" complained that the background movies of selected songs contained images that could promote drug and alcohol abuse, such as a scantily clad nurse, pills in "I'm Alive", and alcoholic drinks appearing in "Club Tropicana". The machine was replaced by a mix which did not contain the imagery.[83] |
| 2000 | Daikatana | PC | Ion Storm | A highly controversial advertisement regarding John Romero's involvement with the game, which caused an equally highly publicized outrage; the game was also criticized for its perceived "low quality" and "outdated graphics".[84] |
| 2000 | Soldier of Fortune | PC, Dreamcast, PS2 | Raven Software, Activision | In 2000, after receiving a complaint from a member of the public about the explicit content of the game, the British Columbia Film Classification Office investigated and decided the violence, gore and acts of torture were not suitable for persons under 18 years of age. In a controversial decision, the game was labeled an "adult motion picture" and was rated as a pornographic film. In Germany, the game was placed on the Index List of the Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young Persons. |
| 2000 | Perfect Dark | N64, Xbox 360, Xbox One (Rare Replay) | Rare, Nintendo, Microsoft Studios (now Xbox Game Studios) | While the game itself was largely met with critical acclaim, some felt that it was inappropriate for Nintendo to be producing, as they had already established a lengthy reputation for being a family-friendly video game company at the time.[85] |
| 2001 | Conker's Bad Fur Day | N64, Xbox One (Rare Replay) | Rare, Nintendo, Microsoft Studios (now Xbox Game Studios) | Controversial for its "over-the-top" and "lewd" humor.[86] |
| 2001 | Tear Ring Saga | PS1 | Tirnanog | The game, whose development was spearheaded by Shouzou Kaga, the creator of the Fire Emblem series, was subject to legal actions both during and after development by Nintendo, which owned the Fire Emblem intellectual property (partly due to the game being released for a competitor console). However, Nintendo was ultimately unable to stop the development or the sales of the game. Initially titled Emblem Saga during development, the game's name and other features were later changed to remove all direct references to Fire Emblem.[87] |
| 2002 | Ethnic Cleansing | PC | Resistance Records | A game centered around the belief that acts of violence towards entire racial/religious groups is acceptable; Ethnic Cleansing is largely viewed in a negative light by the general public for its content. Groups such as the Anti-Defamation League have had congressional hearings over the game in the hopes that it is made illegal to possess or sell.[88] |
| 2002 | Kaboom! | Browser | fabolous999 | Players control a suicide bomber, the aim of the game being to kill as many people as possible.[89] |
| 2002 | State of Emergency | PC, PS2, Xbox | Rockstar Games (Take-Two Interactive), VIS Entertainment | Contains graphic gun violence, including political assassinations and coup d'états. Additionally, the game caused controversy in Washington due to the game's similarities to the World Trade Organization riots in Seattle.[90] |
| 2002 | Kakuto Chojin: Back Alley Brutal | Xbox | Dream Publishing, Microsoft Game Studios | The theme song for the Middle Eastern character Asad had Quran verses chanted in the background.[91][92] Kakuto Chojin is a fighting game and this song played in the background of Asad's stage, where Asad and other characters fight each other.[93][92] Senior geopolitical strategist Kate Edwards consulted with an Arabic speaker within Microsoft.[91] The Arabic speaker asked for Kakuto Chojin not to be released because the game's "incredible insult to Islam".[91] The game was released in North America anyway because the publisher though that the verses would not be noticed.[91] When the verses in the song were indeed noticed, Microsoft was pressured into destroying un-shipped units of Kakuto Chojin and recalling the game to remove the Quran verses from the song.[94] While this amended version of Kakuto Chojin was released, many uncensored copies still inadvertently made it to retailers in places where this kind of content is particularly sensitive.[94] One of those places was Saudi Arabia, a country where Islam is the state religion.[95] Kakuto Chojin made headline news and the Saudi Arabian government formally protested to Microsoft, forcing the full recall of the game worldwide.[91] |
| 2003 | Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball | Xbox | Tecmo | Many critics have commented that the game's use of female bodies is often ridiculous at best, and some have found it offensive.[96] |
| 2003 | Whiplash | PlayStation 2, Xbox | Crystal Dynamics | The game generated some controversy over the depiction of animal cruelty, mainly by the RSPCA.[citation needed] |
| 2003 | Laden VS USA | Panyu Gaming Electronic Co. | The game was based on the September 11 attacks and the packaging used a 9/11 photograph; two American stores banned the sale of the game outright and numerous American retailers refused to stock the game due to its perceived insensitivity.[97][98] | |
| 2004 | The Sims 2 | PC | Electronic Arts | A player-made mod allowed for the blur effect that appears when a character is nude to be removed. However, the nude Sims are featureless.[99] |
| 2004 | JFK Reloaded | PC | Traffic Games | The player is given the role of Lee Harvey Oswald as he assassinates U.S. President John F. Kennedy. The game was criticized for its controversial content matter in recreating the assassination, and was condemned by a spokesman for Senator Ted Kennedy as "despicable".[100] |
| 2004 | The Guy Game | PC, PlayStation 2 | Topheavy Studios/Gathering of Developers | An adult trivia game that treated winners to full motion videos of young women in bikinis. One of the women that was part of the footage was unaware that she would be appearing in the game, nor was said woman old enough to participate when the video was filmed. In the subsequent lawsuit against Topheavy, Gathering of Developers, Microsoft, and Sony, an injunction banned further sales of the game. Topheavy however, released an edited version (removing footage of the woman in question) that added new footage, and was later published as an interactive DVD title.[101] |
| 2004 | The Punisher | PC, PS2, Xbox | Volition | Interrogation, torture, intense gun fights, drugs, and indiscriminate killing. Originally merited an "Adults Only" rating before being edited on appeal.[102][103][104][105] |
| 2005 | Super Columbine Massacre RPG! | PC | Danny Ledonne | The game simulates the events of the Columbine High School massacre, having the player take on the roles of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold and reenacting the massacre.[106][107][108][109] |
| 2005 | Gun | PC, PS2, Xbox, GameCube, Xbox 360 | Activision | The game's offensive depictions of American Indians prompted the Association for American Indian Development to call a boycott against the game.[110] |
| 2006 | Bully | PS3, Xbox 360, PS2, Wii, iOS, Android, Shield Android TV, Shield Tablet, Shield Portable | Rockstar Games (Rockstar Vancouver) (Take-Two Interactive) | Based upon its title, it was perceived that Bully glorified bullying. The fact that the main character, Jimmy, could also kiss another boy was a matter of controversy.[111] Classification boards generally restricted Bully to a teenage audience: the US-based Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) classified the game with a T rating,[112] the British Board of Film Classification gave it a 15 rating, the Australian Classification Board rated it M,[113] and the New Zealand OFLC restricted it to persons 13 years of age and over. In 2007, Yahoo! Games listed it as one of the top ten controversial games of all time.[114] |
| 2006 | The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion | Xbox 360, PC, PS3 | Bethesda Softworks | Re-rated to "Mature" by the ESRB after a third-party mod revealed a naked topless corpse hidden in the game's data files. While the corpse did not warrant a re-rating of the game in and of itself, upon review, the ESRB noted that the game contained much more explicit violence than had been submitted to them in the original rating submission.[115] |
| 2006 | Hitman: Blood Money | PC, PS2, Xbox, Xbox 360, PS3 | IO Interactive | Excessive violence and assassinations; a magazine ad featured sexualized and violent imagery of a (fictional) dead woman in lingerie.[116] |
| 2006 | Mind Quiz | Nintendo DS, PSP | Ubisoft | Recalled in the United Kingdom due to use of the word "spastic", which is considered highly offensive in said country.[117] |
| 2006 | Left Behind: Eternal Forces | PC | Left Behind Games | Accusations that the game promoted religious "convert or kill" violence, sexism and racism.[118][119][120] Some reviewers denied that the game contained any truly controversial gameplay,[121] but instead took issue with the game's clumsy controls, in-game advertising and lackluster AI.[122] Ars Technica called it "a relatively harmless and well-done piece of propaganda".[123] |
| 2006 | Resistance: Fall of Man | PS3 | Insomniac Games | The Church of England objected to the game's use of Manchester Cathedral's interior as a backdrop during a gun battle, and called for the game to be withdrawn, or for the cathedral to at least be removed from the game.[124] |
| 2006 | RapeLay | PC | Illusion Soft | Rape is a core part of the gameplay, as the player takes on the role of a chikan who stalks - and subsequently assaults - a mother and her two underage daughters. Three years after its initial release, significant controversy was raised in the UK Parliament and elsewhere, and Equality Now eventually pressured its distributor to withdraw distribution of it in Japan.[125] |
| 2006 | Rule of Rose | PS2 | Punchline | The Mayor of Rome called for the game to be banned from Italy, saying children "have the right to be shielded from violence".[126] The then European Union justice and security commissioner wrote an open letter condemning the game for "obscene cruelty and brutality". An Italian magazine, Panorama, claimed that in order to win the game, players must bury a girl alive, which the game's European publisher disputed.[127] On the UK release day, the publisher announced that Rule of Rose would not be published in the UK, despite the game being approved for release by the Pan European Game Information (PEGI) and Video Standards Council regulatory bodies.[128] |
| 2007 | BioShock | Xbox 360, PC, PS3, iOS | 2K Games | An article in The Patriot Ledger, the local paper of developer Irrational Games,[129] argued that the game is "testing the limits of the ultra-violent gaming genre with a strategy that enables players to kill characters resembling young girls."[130] The game presents an ethical choice to players, whether to kill 'Little Sisters' for extra abilities or save them and receive less. President of 2K Boston Ken Levine defended the game as a piece of art, stating "we want to deal with challenging moral issues and if you want to do that, you have to go to some dark places".[131] Jack Thompson took issue with advertisements for the game appearing during WWE SmackDown's airtime, writing to the Federal Trade Commission and stating that M-rated games should not be advertised when large numbers of under-17s are watching.[132] |
| 2007 | Mario Party 8 | Wii | Nintendo | Use of the phrase "Turn the train spastic! Make this ticket tragic!" by the character Kamek caused controversy in the United Kingdom, where the word spastic is considered offensive (which is the same issue that Mind Quiz raised). This led to a recall of the game; it was later re-released with the word changed to erratic.[133] |
| 2008 | Spore | PC | Maxis | Spore's use and implementation of SecuROM digital rights management, including the game's activation policies, was subject to widespread criticism and lawsuits; the game was listed as the most pirated game of 2008.[134][135][136][137][138] |
| 2008 | Muslim Massacre | PC | Eric 'Sigvatr' Vaughn | The game's contents and subject have been the subject of strong negative response; a spokesperson for the Muslim Council of Britain said "The makers of this 'game' and the ISPs (Internet service providers) who are hosting it should be quite ashamed of themselves. Anti-Muslim prejudice is already on the increase and needs to be challenged and not reinforced through tasteless and offensive stunts like this."[139] |
| 2008 | Invaders! | Douglas Edric Stanley | An art game exhibited at the 2008 Games Convention in Leipzig. It represents the September 11 attacks in the style of Space Invaders. Players move their bodies to move the cannon, and use arm movements to fire.[140] Like the original Space Invaders, death (game over) is inevitable.[141] Many people considered it tasteless and inappropriate, and Taito threatened legal action for unauthorized use of Space Invaders content.[142] The creator later pulled the game.[142] | |
| 2008 | Silent Hill: Homecoming | PS3, PC, Xbox 360 | Double Helix Games | The game was initially banned and a rating refused in Australia and Germany for extreme violence and disturbing images, which included graphic sexuality, nudity, copious blood sprays, decapitations, partially dismembered corpses, and numerous scenes of attacks, fights, torture and death.[143] The Australian version was subsequently released with the MA15+ rating and censored graphics, while the Japanese release was cancelled altogether.[citation needed] |
| 2008 | LittleBigPlanet | PS3 | Media Molecule | Lyrics from a licensed song, "Tapha Niang", were removed due to fears that Muslims would be offended, on the basis that it allegedly contained words from the Quran. This led to controversy about the removal itself.[144] |
| 2008 | Too Human | Xbox 360 | Silicon Knights, Microsoft | The game was revealed to being developed using a stolen version of Unreal Engine 3, following a successful counter-suit by Epic Games (makers of the Unreal Engine), Silicon Knights having initially sued Epic Games for "breach of contract".[145][146] In November 2012, the counter-suit was ruled in favor of Epic Games, forcing Silicon Knights to recall and destroy all copies of the game, as well as another Unreal Engine-developed game, X-Men: Destiny, as well as cancelling other titles that had been planned to use the engine.[147][148] |
| 2008 | Limbo of the Lost | PC | Majestic Studios | The game's use of plagiarized assets from other games and movies prompted publishers, Tri Synergy, to stop publishing the game.[149] |
| 2009 | MadWorld | Wii | PlatinumGames, Sega | On August 19, 2008, Sega announced that MadWorld would not be released in Germany.[150] Despite the fact that Australia is also known for strict video game classification, the game was released there unedited, with an MA15+ rating for "strong bloody violence and strong coarse language".[151][152]
In a preview, Eurogamer commented: "It's difficult to understand why there's so much controversy surrounding MadWorld when the violence is so very Tom and Jerry... It really is hard to be offended... because it's just so ridiculous."[153] On March 10, the National Institute on Media and the Family issued a press release expressing its disappointment in Nintendo for allowing MadWorld to be released on the Wii.[154] |
| 2009 | Resident Evil 5 | PS3, Xbox 360, PC, PS4, Xbox One, Shield Android TV, Shield Portable, Shield Tablet, Nintendo Switch | Capcom | The game came under controversy for a pre-release trailer that contains scenes of racism,[155] according to Newsweek journalist N'Gai Croal in an April 2008 interview. He also stated that organizations and retailers would object to the game, and that it would cause controversy upon release.[155] |
| 2009 | Saw | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Konami | Several news publishings stated that the game's only purpose was to torture and kill people in violent ways with no sense of restraint or morality whatsoever. Some editorials called it "depraved and inhumane", and stated that "Konami should be ashamed".[156] It was also listed in the "Top ten most controversial games of 2009".[157] |
| 2009 | Left 4 Dead 2 | Xbox 360, PC (Steam) | Valve | The cover art in the UK had to be altered due to a potentially offensive hand gesture being depicted.[158] The game was initially banned in Australia for its excessive violence and gore, but the uncensored version was later rated R18+ in 2014.[159] The game's New Orleans setting so soon after Hurricane Katrina was considered "a bad call".[160] |
| 2009 | Fat Princess | PlayStation 3 PlayStation Portable |
Titan Studios, Sony Computer Entertainment | Critics argued that the game concept and title were hostile to women.[161] |
| 2009 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | PS3, Xbox 360, PC, | Infinity Ward, Activision | An optional mission in the game entitled "No Russian" has the player assume control of an undercover Central Intelligence Agency operative, joining a group of Russian nationalist terrorists who perpetrate an airport massacre. The player is given the option to skip it at any point,[162][163] and a message before the campaign also warns players of the disturbing material. The game was discussed briefly in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom after the issue was brought to the attention of MP Keith Vaz, a longtime opponent of violence in video games, with fellow Labour Party politician Tom Watson arguing that the level was "no worse than scenes in many films and books" and criticising Vaz for "collaborating with the Daily Mail to create moral panic over the use of video games".[164] The mission was made optional before release[165] and removed from the game entirely.[166] Some countries have removed the mission in their versions of the game.
Activision later removed the Favela multiplayer map from Modern Warfare 2 following complaints from Muslim gamers, which shows picture frames on the second floor bathroom of one building within Favela. When viewed through a scoped weapon, the frames contain a quote from Muhammad that translates to "Allah is beautiful and He loves beauty", according to Islam Today. One of the paintings is located directly above a toilet.[167] |
2010s
| Release date | Title | Platform | Developer/Publisher | Reason(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Medal of Honor | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Danger Close Games, Electronic Arts (EA Digital Illusions CE) | The multiplayer mode created controversy when it was revealed that players could play as the Taliban.[168] The developers responded by stating that the reality of the game necessitated it, but due to pressure from various military officials and veterans organizations, the word "Taliban" was subsequently removed from the multiplayer part of the game in which players would directly play as the Taliban, instead replaced with the term "Opposing Force." However, even in light of this change, the game is still not to be sold on military bases. The AAFES Commander Maj. Gen. Bruce Casella said, "Out of respect to those touched by the ongoing, real-life events presented as a game, Exchanges will not be carrying this product." He continued, "I expect the military families who are authorized to shop the Exchange are aware, and understanding, of the decision not to carry this particular offering."[169][170] |
| 2010 | Six Days in Fallujah | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Atomic Games, Highwire Games | A game to have been set during the Second Battle of Fallujah, Six Days was met with criticism by war veterans from the United Kingdom, as well as from a British pressure group, Stop the War Coalition.[171] The game was subsequently cancelled in 2010 by its original developers Atomic Games. In 2021, a new studio Highwire Games announced they were reviving the game, but had spoken to over 100 veterans of the battle to make sure it is an accurate depiction of the events.[172] |
| 2010 (start of development) | School Shooter: North American Tour 2012 | PC | Checkerboarded Studios | An uncompleted mod for Half-Life 2 hosted by Mod DB, School Shooter was condemned in the mainstream media and within industry publications for making a violent video game where the protagonist is a school shooter who kills defenseless targets.[173][174][175] In response to the controversy, Mod DB pulled the game from its website.[176] |
| 2011 | Bulletstorm | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Electronic Arts | Fox News Channel called out the title as the "Worst Video Game in the World" due to the extreme amount of violence; claims made in the original article were dispelled by video game journalists, including Rock Paper Shotgun, but Fox News continues to assert that the game is too violent.[177] |
| 2011 | Portal 2 | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Valve | CBS News has deemed the game offensive to adopted children, because the character Wheatley insults the protagonist by saying "Fatty fatty no parents". The daughter of the parents who reported this is, in fact, adopted.[178] |
| 2011 | Call of Juarez: The Cartel | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Ubisoft | Residents of Ciudad Juárez and Mexico protested the announcement of the game, believing it to highlight the Juárez Cartel, who are believed to be responsible for over 3,000 homicides in the city in 2010.[179] |
| 2011 | We Dare | PS3, Wii | Ubisoft Milan | The game received a 12 rating by PEGI[citation needed], and a PG rating by the ACB[citation needed], implying that the game is suitable for children, despite Ubisoft marketing it as an "adult party game." This drew criticism for both rating boards considering the questionable content in the trailer for the game. Consequently, Ubisoft shelved plans for a North American[180] and UK release (despite it eventually releasing in the UK), while also blocking the trailer from being viewed on YouTube. |
| 2011 | Dead Island | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Deep Silver | After a development build of the game was released on Steam by mistake, it was revealed that the skill 'Gender Wars' (which the character Purna uses) was called 'FeministWhorePurna' within the game's code. Developer Deep Silver apologised, and released a patch for the game to replace the offensive name.[181] |
| 2011 (start of development) | Star Citizen | PC | Cloud Imperium Games | A crowdfunded game, Star Citizen has attracted criticism for the constant, frequent delays of the game's release deadlines, while continuing to raise additional funds,[182][183] with the developers facing legal actions from Derek Smart[184] and Crytek,[185] as well as taking similar legal actions against critics of the development and funding practices associated with the game.[186][187] |
| 2012 | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | PS3, Xbox 360, PC (Steam) | Valve | In 2016, the game came under fire on the grounds of several players using third-party betting through the use of skin gambling, wherein players sell in-game cosmetics for real currency. This led to concerns of potential underage players participating in "skin gambling", which may lead to future gambling addictions, as well as the potential of match fixing within the game's competitive scene (see iBUYPOWER and NetcodeGuides.com match fixing scandal). Valve has since ordered a cease and desist against many Counter-Strike gambling websites.[188][189] The game also was denounced by consumer rights' organization Facua, who asked that ETA symbology would be removed prior to the game's release, alleging sensibility and respect to the memory of the victims and their relatives.[190] The game allows to emulate terrorists denominated "Separatists", who are depicted wearing white hoods and black berets, such as the ones worn by ETA during their communicates.[191] |
| 2012 | Medal of Honor: Warfighter | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Danger Close Games | Several members of the Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU) who worked as consultants for the game were disciplined for releasing classified information to the game's creators.[192][193] |
| 2012 | Street Fighter X Tekken | PS3, Xbox 360, PC, iOS, PlayStation Vita | Capcom, Dimps | It was revealed that the game's downloadable characters were already on the disc in a ready-to-unlock form, leading to heavy criticism.[194][195] |
| 2012 | Persona 4 Arena | PS3, Xbox 360 | Atlus, Arc System Works | The PlayStation 3 version of the game includes a regional lockout, allowing the game to be played only if the game's region matches the console region, despite the fact that PlayStation 3 games are normally region-free, leading to a massive fan outrage.[196][197] The game's sequel, Persona 4 Arena Ultimax however, is region-free.[198] |
| 2013 | Payday 2 | PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch | Overkill Software | Payday 2, while having featured a large array of downloadable content, had been claimed by its developers would never include microtransactions. However, a major game update released in October 2015 included rewards that required the player to use real-world money to purchase keys to unlock, and with rewards that may not be usable if the player did not buy certain pieces of downloadable content. Fans of the game reacted negatively to the change.[199] In May 2016, Overkill was able to acquire full rights to the Payday series, and among other announcements relating to the series, announced they would remove the microtransactions from Payday 2.[200] |
| 2013 | Tomb Raider | PS3, Xbox 360, PC | Crystal Dynamics | During an interview with Kotaku, executive producer Ron Rosenberg stated that one scene in the game depicts Lara Croft about to be sexually assaulted by a scavenger. She is forced to fight back and kill him in self-defense. Prior to the game's release, this quickly led to controversy concerning the possible "attempted rape" sequence. Studio manager Darrell Gallagher later denied this, stating that one of "the character defining moments for Lara in the game, which has incorrectly been referred to as an 'attempted rape' scene is the content we showed", where "Lara is forced to kill another human for the first time. In this particular selection, while there is a threatening undertone in the sequence and surrounding drama, it never goes any further than the scenes that we have already shown publicly. Sexual assault of any kind is categorically not a theme that we cover in this game."[201][202] |
| 2013 | Saints Row IV | Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC | Volition | Despite changes in the Australian Classification Board to adopt rules to use the R18+ rating for video games in January 2013, Saints Row IV was the first video game under these new rules to be denied classification, due to the presence of drug use and an in-game alien anal probe weapon.[203] Volition eliminated these elements from the game to obtain a MA15+ rating by removing the mission these elements were used in,[204] thus rendering the game's co-operative mode incompatible with versions from other countries.[205] |
| 2013 | The Stanley Parable | PC | Galactic Cafe | An in-game instructional video called "Choice" contained an image of a white man lighting a black child on fire.[206] |
| 2014 | South Park: The Stick of Truth | Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC | Obsidian Entertainment, South Park Digital Studios |
The game was censored (by Ubisoft's decision) in Europe and Australia due to its depiction of an anal probing by aliens, and the player-character performing an abortion. In their place, the game displays either a still image of a statue holding its face in its hand, or a crying koala, with an explicit description of events depicted in the scene. The German version was specifically censored due to the use of Nazi- and Hitler-related imagery, including swastikas and Nazi salutes, which are prohibited under German law, outside of the context of "art or science, research or teaching".[207] The PC version remains completely uncut in Europe.[208] |
| 2015 | Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number | PC | Dennaton Games | The sequel, like the first Hotline Miami, incorporates a large amount of violence as the player sets to kill off agents of the local mafia, but a preview build for the sequel includes a scene that is set up wherein the player's character then appears to rape a female antagonist, though this is later presented in the context of being part of a staged movie scene. Journalists felt that even though the game made it clear of the scene's setup, the inclusion of this scene went too far in taste levels.[209] Despite some changes and assurances made by the developer, the scene in the game caused the Australian Classification Board to refuse to classify the game, effectively preventing legal sale of the title in that country.[210] |
| 2015 | Hatred | PC | Destructive Creations | A game about a suicidal mass murderer, in which the primary mechanic is about shooting innocent civilians in the murderer's fit of rage. The CEO behind Hatred has been accused of having neo-Nazi and anti-Islamic affiliations, due to liking some pages on Facebook related to such beliefs.[211] The title has been highly controversial, and when the developers attempted to place it on the Steam Greenlight service, it was pulled by Valve due to the game's content; however, it has been brought back onto Greenlight by Gabe Newell, who apologized for the removal.[212] The game was rated "Adults Only" (AO) by the ESRB, which prevents retail sales and its release on consoles, and would likely prevent its sale on digital storefronts for personal computers.[213] |
| 2015 | Playing History 2 - Slave Trade | PC | Serious Games | The game was created by Serious Games as an edutainment title to teach the user about slave trading. One game mode in the title was called "Slave Tetris", with the goal to try to fit as many African slaves on a boat as possible, using gameplay similar to Tetris; the developer had intended to show how inhumane the slave traders were, and how such trade boats were packed to capacity, stating "it really gets people to think about just how absurd and cruel it is". When the mode was discovered by a wider audience due to discounted sales of the game and Let's Play broadcasts of it, many critics expressed distaste for the mode, considering it to be highly insensitive. The developer pulled the mode from the game following this outrage.[214] |
| 2015 | Survival Island 3 | iOS and Android | NIL Entertainment | A first-person action game in which the white player-character has to fight and kill Indigenous Australians while destroying Australian fauna. After a Change.org petition, the game was pulled from the App Store and Google Play.[215] |
| 2015 | Pakistan Army Retribution | Android | Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=List_of_controversial_video_games |