Bully's False Reputation Apparently Precedes It In The UK

from the what's-the-problem-now? dept

Wed, Oct 18th 2006 12:54pm — Mike Masnick

While just about every review of the video game Bully from Rockstar games has noted that the game is much more social satire, like plenty of popular movies out there (Rushmore and Ferris Bueller's Day Off are mentioned), lawyer Jack Thompson has continued his crusade/marketing effort for the game. He insisted that the only people allowed to see the game were those who were somehow "loyal" to Rockstar and would absolutely write positive reviews. Considering that some of those reviews came from places like the NY Times and USA Today, that seems hard to believe. Last week, he convinced a judge to look at the game, to see if it was a public nuisance. The judge realized what everyone else (even anti-bullying advocates) have realized: there's nothing wrong with the game at all. It's not violence for the sake of violence at all. The game came out in the US yesterday and, again, the mainstream press notes that the game seems harmless. However, while all the fuss may drive up sales, some of those sales won't occur at Currys or PC World in the UK. Those two stores have banned the sale of the game. Apparently, all of the false stories about how it promotes violence at school have convinced the retailers that they're better off selling more wholesome games... like Take Two/Rockstar's other popular game Grand Theft Auto. Yes, that's right. They have no problem keeping GTA on the shelves, but Bully is somehow a problem.

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13 Comments

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eric, 18 Oct 2006 @ 1:14pm

why can't we all get along?
you guys are always banging your head against the fact that some decisions aren't rational, they're emotional. Why are you continually surprised by that?
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BillGod, 18 Oct 2006 @ 1:14pm

What??
Yes, that's right. They have no problem keeping GTA on the shelves, but Bully is somehow a problem.

God the USA cracks me up... wait this is the UK??? HAHAHAHAHA
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JoJo, 18 Oct 2006 @ 1:15pm

A pity...
Because with my NUS discount card I save 10% at PC World.
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J3ff, 18 Oct 2006 @ 1:59pm

Perhaps...
Perhaps they were bullied as children? Too many bad memories of being pants and/or wedgied? Or maybe they still are getting the treatment, just from Parliment now (that is still the governing force there right?).
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Quack, 18 Oct 2006 @ 2:04pm

It's that mans job to attack videogames. If he didn't do that he would have nothing to do. I am sure he goes home and plays Hot Coffee with his kids when he gets home.
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Sanguine Dream, 18 Oct 2006 @ 2:05pm

Maybe...
Thompson doesn't like the game because it may teach a kid to stand up to the bully. Yes violence it wrong but you have to learn to defend yourself.
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chris (profile), 18 Oct 2006 @ 2:07pm

language difficulties perhaps?
maybe bully is one of those weird british curse words that means nothing to americans, like bugger.
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Anonymous Coward, 18 Oct 2006 @ 2:13pm

Re: why can't we all get along?
Who's surprised? Just because it's reported doesn't mean we're surprised. Apparantly you don't ever read ANY news since just about everything reported everywhere is the same thing wrapped in a different situation. Hope being as clever as you are is workin' out for ya.
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Anonymous Coward, 18 Oct 2006 @ 2:49pm

Re: language difficulties perhaps?
No that's not it. Bully means the same here as in the US, unless you yanks have some stupid arse meaning that means nothing to anyone but you?

Besides the offical response from DSG International the group who owns PC World and Currys stated something like this:

"We're fully aware people will be able to buy this game elsewhere, but we feel this game is not appropriate for Currys' family-friendly image"
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Tashi, 18 Oct 2006 @ 5:03pm

I picked this up yesterday. GTA at a prep school isn't misleading, but it does have a surprising amount of depth. If a filmmaker wanted to make this a movie, I'd pay to see it. It's freaking hilarious.
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bigSteve, 19 Oct 2006 @ 3:54am

just wait and see
If the retailers make decisions on what they're going to based on their "family-friendly image", or some emotional crap, they won't be retailers for long.

Retail is a funny thing. If you stop selling products to make a political statement, it's true you'll get 32 seconds of news coverage... but what you'll also get is a set of customers willing to buy that product somewhere else. Many times, those customers never come back. People are looking for a 1 stop shop.

I'd be willing to bet they start selling it in the next week when they realize that nobody shops at their stores anymore.
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MadJo (profile), 19 Oct 2006 @ 5:16am

Re: Re: language difficulties perhaps?
I hope they don't realize that the game Bully is called Canis Canem Edit in Europe. :)
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Bob Jones, 19 Oct 2006 @ 10:58am

I thought the religious right only existed in the US.
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