Retailer drops Manhunt after media frenzy over teen murder
Posted by Dice on 29 July 2004 - 17:50 · 6 comments & 687 views
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(1 reply)
#1 Posted by Korgun on 29 Jul 2004 - 18:13
- games don't get kids to kill people
bad parenting gets kids to kill people -
#1.1 Posted by angrybrit on 29 Jul 2004 - 18:55
QUOTE (#1.0) games don't get kids to kill people
bad parenting gets kids to kill people
Preach on brother!!!
I am really obsessed with Counter-Strike. And I don't own any BullPups.... Yet.
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(1 reply)
#2 Posted by Darkness2k on 29 Jul 2004 - 19:19
- Looks like Game has stopped selling it as well (well its not on their website)
Play.com, Amazon, Gamestation and Gameplay are still selling it.
Even if it was banned in England, it would just make it more popular. It could still be imported, or... obtained by some other means.
The kid shouldn't have even had it in his possession. -
#2.1 Posted by Caelamia on 29 Jul 2004 - 20:20
- Yeah, this is true. The game is 18+ for a damn good reason. I heard the kid's mother on the radio today and who does she think she is, preaching to us about what should be allowed in society? I think it's so naive that games get blamed for things like this. Movies or TV shows don't have any influence? Kids don't get to see knives and weapons at school (as in recent tragic events) or in their neighbourhoods?
The underlying mental instability/potent aggression has to be there for something to "trigger" it, and sometimes all it takes is a bad mood, someone saying something nasty about you and that's it. I've been playing games since I was 4 and I'm a balanced person; hard-working, honest and could never hurt anyone, let alone kill them by hitting them repeatedly with a claw hammer...
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#3 Posted by CrimandEvil on 29 Jul 2004 - 21:17
- Ah, damn it! I'm going to have to get this game then. LOL
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#4 Posted by mikemyres on 29 Jul 2004 - 23:09
- I say sue the mother, the boy is 17 the game is 18, whos broken the law?
British electronics retailer Dixons has removed Rockstar's Manhunt title from stores, after newspapers and TV news shows reported allegations that the title had influenced a teenager found guilty of the murder of a younger boy.
According to reports in a number of British tabloid newspapers and TV news shows, 17 year old Warren Leblanc, who yesterday pleaded guilty to the brutal killing of 14 year old Stefan Pakeerah with a claw hammer and knife, was "obsessed" with Manhunt.
The title, which was released in the UK last Christmas, is a "Running Man" style game where players take on the role of a convict given a chance to escape death by killing opponents in a run-down cityscape - with extra bonuses being awarded for particularly gory or sadistic deaths.
The game is rated with an 18 certificate by the British Board of Film Classification. No media source has yet commented on how Leblanc, a 17 year old minor, was able to acquire or allowed to play the game.
Click "...Read More" to view rest of the article.
Cont...
Speaking outside Leicester Crown Court yesterday, Giselle Pakeerah, mother of the murdered boy, said that "I think that I heard some of Warren's friends say that he was obsessed by this game. If he was obsessed by it, it could well be that boundaries for him became quite hazy."
"I can't believe that this sort of material is allowed in a society where anarchy is not that far removed," she continued. "It should not be available and it should not be available to young people."
Despite the allegations now being made about the influence of the game on Leblanc, the actual motive given for the killing by prosecutor Peter Joyce QC was a rather more obvious one; the teen had lured his friend to a deserted car park with the intent of robbing him to pay a drugs-related debt.
A spokesperson on behalf of British game publisher trade body ELSPA today commented on the affair, stating that "we sympathise enormously with the family and parents of Stefan Pakeerah. However, we reject any suggestion or association between the tragic events in the Midlands and the sale of the video game Manhunt."
"The game in question is classified 18 by the British Board of Film Classification and therefore it should not be in the possession of a juvenile," the statement continued. "We would also add that simply being in someone's possession does not and should not lead to the conclusion that a game is responsible for these tragic events."
Dice says: It is true that the violence is intense, but please don't come out and blame a single game for it. Look at every other game, the upcoming Doom 3, Unreal Tournament, Half-Life 2, Hitman! There are many games that consist of pure violence. So pathetic when they blame one game for the problems when its a global issue. Honestly I love those kind of games :P No problem with me :D