How Do You Ban Someone From Posessing A 'Recording Device'?

NY Politician Demands Ban Of Video Game... Not Available In The US

from the moral-panic dept

Tue, Feb 24th 2009 11:18am — Mike Masnick

There was a flutter of controversy last week, when someone realized that a rather despicable video game, where the goal of gameplay is apparently to rape someone, was available for sale via Amazon's marketplace (where 3rd party sellers offer items, rather than Amazon itself). Amazon was quick to block the sale of the game, but that hasn't stopped a politician in NY from using the story as an opportunity to grandstand. New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn is demanding US publishers boycott distributing the game, which seems pretty silly since no US publishers are distributing the game (it's only been released in Japan), and there's no indication anyone wants to distribute the game in the US. But why should that stop a good opportunity to create some moral panic?

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Filed Under: ban, christine quinn, moral panic, politics, video games

29 Comments

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FreshD, 24 Feb 2009 @ 11:38am

Title?
What is the name of the game?

does anyone have a link?
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UBW, 24 Feb 2009 @ 11:39am

just a couple things
To be fair, she only demanded a boycott, not a ban, which is rather different (perhaps she might understand there is a right to make such a game, regardless of how despicable people may find the content)

"where the goal of gameplay is apparently to rape someone"
The game is full of rape scenes and multiple females, rather than just trying to rape one individual.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 11:40am

Re: Title?
The title is RapeLay, here is a safe for work review -- http://www.honestgamers.com/systems/content.php?review_id=4775
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 11:45am

"Won't somebody pleeeeaase think of the children??"
Give me a break!
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Lucretious, 24 Feb 2009 @ 11:47am

there's a HUGE amount of such games on the Japanese market. Most of them are simple point-and-click things meant to titillate a very small niche demographic. Can't wait till she stumbles on the tentacle rape genre.

Its also very telling that even though Amazon blocked the game (which it isn't legally obligated to do), this opportunistic bag of shit STILL jumped on Amazon for having it AT ALL.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 11:54am

Re:
"opportunistic bag of shit"

Haaa!
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Rebel Freek, 24 Feb 2009 @ 11:57am

This is further proof of why people need to learn what they are commenting on before speaking...
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ChurchHatesTucker (profile), 24 Feb 2009 @ 12:04pm

Big Black
Rapeman.

Google it.

(It's actuallly pretty awesome)
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Some IT Guy, 24 Feb 2009 @ 12:28pm

Might as well boycott all games...
Well nearly every recent video game out there has some sort of violence in it....the thing about games is that they are just that; "games". Meaning you play it and don't act on it!

Think about the Grand Theft Auto franchise....
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ehrichweiss, 24 Feb 2009 @ 12:32pm

Re: Big Black
Rapeman? You mean the band? Or is Big Black the band and they produced something called Rapeman as well? There's a band by each name so I don't quite get what you're saying..
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Yakko Warner, 24 Feb 2009 @ 12:39pm

What's her record?
Maybe she's just desperate to be successful in something, and what better way than to call for a boycott of something no one is carrying?
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Chronno S. Trigger, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:01pm

Re: Re: Title?
I read that review and I have one thing to say to New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn:

"Welcome to the Internet. Much more insane (and disgusting) crap from japan is in aisle 4(Chan)"
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:13pm

That may well be the most successful boycott in the history of boycotts.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:18pm

Nice job promoting it... I wonder if she's getting kickbacks.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:20pm

Re:
not necessarily, it makes me want to get the game just to see what it is like....
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Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased), 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:21pm

Re: Re: Re: Title?
Yes...Japan is gross.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:23pm

the game has had an english translation for years now, and is reviewed here http://www.somethingawful.com/d/hentai-game-reviews/rapelay.php (probably NSFW)
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Jesse, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:30pm

That is really sick. I'm going to go ahead and guess anybody involved in this game (playing, buying, developing, supporting or even not opposing it) knows anyone who has been raped. That is, unless they themselves were the rapists.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:33pm

I tried to have a game banned some years ago. Most of the game involved some irresponsible plumber carelessly stomping on mushrooms and turtles. And I found the whole idea of him saving a princess rather misogynistic.
No one listened. It's good some politicians still care enough to not just think of the children but act on behalf of the children.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:44pm

the thing most people don't seem to understand if that sick twisted people will be sick and twisted regardless of whether or not they play the latest and greatest rape simulator, on the other hand people who feel no compulsion to act on those feelings will not suddenly decide to throw away all of their previous behavioral patterns on the basis of a pixelated fantasy.
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Chronno S. Trigger, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:48pm

Re: Re:
The Australian ban of Postal was the reason I got it and it's squeals and now the movie.

Now I kinda want to get RapeLay, but just out of spite,I would never play it otherwise.
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Anonymous Coward, 24 Feb 2009 @ 1:51pm

Re: Re: Re:
I actually try to maintain a collection of banned games, I play them once to see what they are really like so I can chime my opinion about them, but many of them are not the sorts of games I go out when I just want to waste my time having fun.
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Lucretious, 24 Feb 2009 @ 2:29pm

Re:
Believe it or not, most people (and children) are intelligent enough to separate reality from fiction and draw some kind of entertainment value from it. It may not be your cup of tea (nor mine) but I don't feel the need to take some kind of moral high ground and start labeling people either. This is essentially an interactive cartoon. No real person got raped.

How about getting "outraged" over this....this elected official has felt it more important to spend taxpayer money pursuing this ridiculous cause rather than perhaps addressing the fact that some rapists with multiple offenses get released with a minimum of treatment or how likely they might be to re-offend. That NYC's murder rate is once again climbing.....or any number of far more important issues are NOT being addressed because of this grandstanding slob.
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andBeans, 24 Feb 2009 @ 2:40pm

Re:
I lol'd!
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The infamous Joe, 24 Feb 2009 @ 3:03pm

Re: Re: Re:
I thought Postal Two was pretty funny, of course my CD got scratched and god only knows where the CD key is.

Google, show me the way. :)
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wulfman, 24 Feb 2009 @ 4:04pm

i just found the game on usenet
i would have never known about it unless somebody made a stink

LOL

/me downloads
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Michael, 24 Feb 2009 @ 7:34pm

its a ruse!
He just couldn't download his torrent fast enough, so he's using the Streisand effect to get more seeders...
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Rekrul, 25 Feb 2009 @ 6:19am

"i just found the game on usenet"

Thanks for the tip! :)

"i would have never known about it unless somebody made a stink"

Me neither.
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DS, 25 Feb 2009 @ 7:00am

Torrent please!

Oh, and this thread is useless without pics.
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