Video Game Pulled Globally From Military Stores Over Taliban Inclusion

[FastCargo 412]

 

From Kotaku.com

 

As all stores located on Army and Air Force bases will no longer be allowed to sell Electronic Arts' upcoming military shooter Medal of Honor because an aspect of the game includes playable Taliban characters.

 

The Army and Air Force Exchange Services has confirmed to Kotaku that they requested the game pulled from the 49 GameStop's located on bases in the continent U.S. The ban, an AAFES representative told Kotaku, also extends to all military PXs worldwide.

 

In an email to employees, GameStop says the decision was made "out of respect for our past and present men and women in uniform."

 

"GameStop has agreed out of respect for our past and present men and women in uniform we will not carry Medal of Honor in any of our AAFES based stores...," the email, obtained by Kotaku, reads. "As such, GameStop agreed to have all marketing material pulled by noon today and to stop taking reservations. Customers who enter our AAFES stores and wish to reserve Medal of Honor can and should be directed to the nearest GameStop location off base.

 

"GameStop fully supports AAFES in this endeavor and is sensitive to the fact that in multiplayer mode one side will assume the role of Taliban fighter."

 

The stores on bases contacted by Kotaku all confirmed that they no longer will be selling the game and referred us to GameStops in town to pick up the title when it comes out.

 

Electronic Arts declined to comment further for this story.

 

They have, though, made their opinion on the matter clear.

 

The commanding general of the Army and Air Force Exchange Services confirmed told Kotaku that his decision was based on the inclusion of Taliban in the game and impacts all PXs located on Army and Air Force bases worldwide and all GameStops located on U.S. bases.

[FastCargo 412]

 

PX Commanding General Explains Global Ban on Medal of Honor Game

 

From Kotaku.com

 

The commanding general of the Army and Air Force Exchange Services told Kotaku today that his decision to have Medal of Honor pulled from U.S. military bases worldwide was spurred by "well-documented reports of depictions of Taliban fighters engaging American troops" in the game.

 

"Out of respect to those we serve, we will not be stocking this game," the Army & Air Force Exchange Service's Commander Maj. Gen. Bruce Casella, told Kotaku. "We regret any inconvenience this may cause authorized shoppers, but are optimistic that they will understand the sensitivity to the life and death scenarios this product presents as entertainment. As a military command with a retail mission, we serve a very unique customer base that has, or possibly will, witness combat in real life."

 

The determination to not offer Medal of Honor, first broken by Kotaku, impacts all Army and Air Force Exchange operations worldwide, including its website and 49 on-base and post GameStops. Any reserve or preorders placed through shopmyexchange.com will be cancelled. Preorders originally placed through GameStops on Army and Air Force installations will be transferred to the nearest GameStop off the Base or Post.

[Icarus999 70]

Probably not a good idea, I would let servicemen vote with their wallet rather than make the choice for them.

[+Dave 2,322]

So much for it being just a game.

[tflash 3]

Well, I must say I'm not some moralist whatsoever, but I think it is a defendable decision. Some decency has its place everywhere, even in something that is just a game. It just isn't right to give Taliban fans a little game for practice.

 

Whether it was greed or just bad taste that pushed EA to spoil their nice series with this, the commercial implications are for them to assess.

 

I had the same uneasy feeling when my kid chose to play with the terrorists side in Counterstrike. Somehow I would never do such a thing, must be I'm getting old ;-)

[Phillip58 1]

It was because of this kind of stupidity that I got out of the Army after 12 years of service. I wanted to do a full 20, but I could stomach only so much. High ranking officers who had lost a grip on real life.

 

Man, it's just a game! Whatt about Battlefield 2 ? You can play the "Other Side" in that. What's next?

 

Sad day for the Military.

 

Phillip

Edited September 4, 2010 by Phillip58

[Silverbolt 104]

Such a stupidity, they want to turn the armed forces in a dictarotialship? lol

[krgf15 1]

LOL im 12 years deep and still going, and I have never seen a gamestop in the BX

[+Dave 2,322]

The PX Commanding General is a moron....

[Nixou 25]

Agreed with everything said by above posters. Moreover, "Taliban fans" who take the game for reality will still be able to find the game anyways...

Edited September 4, 2010 by nixarass

[MAKO69 186]

Well thats to bad. What about the WWII era games you play the "AXIS" in multiplayer too, and all the COD series which also allows multiplayer insurgent bad guys.Oh and the flight sims that allows you to fly a MIG, FW-190, Zero and shootdown allied aircraft. Its just a game.

[MAKO69 186]

What about the pluses. Keeps the troops hand eye & SA up.

[+ojcar 157]

Ban IL-2 as well!!! You can play as a Nazi or Stalinist pilot! And not forget to ban these Lord of the Rings games as well. You can play as Mordor!!!

What a nonsense.....

[+streakeagle 871]

Games permitting players to be NAZIs are prolific. But no one has a problem with that. What about games where VC are user playable, i.e. Battlefield Vietnam?

Obviously, the difference is time. As long as you wait 20 years or more after hostilities have ceased, it is no longer offensive to release a game where players can pretend to be US enemies and kill US troops per historical reality. The kind of logic that requires removing that game from store shelves is the kind of logic that requires censoring tv, movies, and books. I have no interest in playing games like Grand Theft Auto series, so I simply choose not to buy it. Do bases permit selling GTA? I personally find that more offensive than any tactical first person shooter. I wouldn't ban any games. Is a game any different than a book? I see it as a free speech issue.

[+hgbn 91]

Well if EA is smart they will sue that decision..... I don't see a illegal product... just a Judgment of taste nothing else...

[xclusiv8 35]

Seriously, when does this s**t stop.

[+Spectre8750 167]

Sounds like Fascism. Lets Ban all Games where you can play on other sides other than the prefered side chosen by some dweeb. Like Combat Flight Sims that have German Luftwaffe or Japanese Empire. Lets Ban all games that have violents, that way no-one will be affended. That's what i Love about Freedom in America, anyone can can be banned. Don't let the Globalist Elite that

Control Giant Corporations and Military Industries control our Lives!

Edited September 5, 2010 by Spectre8750

[FastCargo 412]

Okay folks, get a grip.

 

First, some perspective. The only thing that has happened is that the PX general has told Gamestop within the PX/BX to not carry the game.

 

The game has not been banned in the US.

 

The game has not been censored by the US government.

 

No military personnel or dependents have been told or ordered to not purchase or not play the game. There are plenty of other sources to get the game if you want...and probably at a comparable (or even cheaper) price.

 

Seriously, comparing it to fascism? I get REALLY tired of this kind of hyperbole about anything.

 

Keep your head on straight and discuss.

 

FC

[Nixou 25]

Okay folks, get a grip....

 

Preventing someone to sell or buy a product based on your own interpretation of morale, without leaving the choice, IS a fascist behaviour as far as i am concerned.

[FastCargo 412]

You proceed under a false assumption.

 

There is nothing preventing someone (including military members) from buying or selling the game...privately.

 

The only thing that has been done is prevent the game from being sold at a specific, government leased, location.

 

FC

[JediMaster 451]

This is no different than Target or Walmart declining to sell certain types of magazines or DVDs. You can get them elsewhere, you're allowed to, they just do not sell them in that place.

The BX isn't a commercial company anyway. There are lots of things they don't carry, this will just be another. Will it hurt their sales? Likely not that much. It won't affect those living in the US, only those abroad, and they can always ask for people at home to buy one and mail it to them. It makes a slight inconvenience, nothing more.

[+Spectre8750 167]

So why did He Bother? It's just a damn Game.

[+Erik 1,812]

So why did He Bother? It's just a damn Game.

 

Simple.

 

Out of respect for the lives that were lost fighting against such forces.

 

It has been mentioned that this is not about banning or preventing the purchase of a game where you can play from the opposition's POV.

 

This is about not making a mockery of the blood that has been shed by our armed forces.

 

As an American I not only understand but I support the decision 200%.

 

[ Take a moment to remember someone who lost their life for this country. ]

 

[ Pause ]

 

[ Thank you.]

[xclusiv8 35]

Simple.

 

Out of respect for the lives that were lost fighting against such forces.

 

It has been mentioned that this is not about banning or preventing the purchase of a game where you can play from the opposition's POV.

 

This is about not making a mockery of the blood that has been shed by our armed forces.

 

As an American I not only understand but I support the decision 200%.

 

[ Take a moment to remember someone who lost their life for this country. ]

 

[ Pause ]

 

[ Thank you.]

 

With that mentality we should ban all games. I lost a friend in a motorcycle accident. Should MC games be banned? OR why not WW2 games? Lots of people died there aswell.

I dont see how someone is making a mockery when playing a game. It is afterall just a game. I belive these soldiers are mature enough to actually make theire own decision in what is mockery and what is not. But some stuck up guy just has to feel powerful by making that decision for everyone.

This has nothing to do with respect.