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Wired News Finds Bully Short on Violence, Long on Social Commentary
October 10th, 2006
What if the controversy over Bully turned out to have something of a Shakespeare flavor, as in much ado about nothing?
It might happen that way if yesterday’s Wired News report is accurate. Journo Clive Thompson writes about his advance look at Rockstar’s much-discussed new title which is scheduled for an October 17th launch.
Of the bullying and violence which has sparked so much concern that one well-known critic labeled the game a “Columbine simulator,” Thompson writes:
“Bully is… an… intriguing glimpse into the today’s digital politics… It endured a vicious backlash more than year before being released… It turns out the game doesn’t glorify bullying at all. Indeed, it’s almost precisely the opposite… you are not, in fact, intended to be a bully. Instead, most of your early missions involve you defending the helpless… there’s no blood, and… One of the biggest ‘crimes’ is staying out after curfew, or wandering around when you ought to be in class.”
“What the Bully controversy proves is that politicians have never really appreciated the satirical edge of Rockstar’s games. Peel back the hood on the ludic violence, and Rockstar’s games have a surprisingly consistent moral view: Those with power will inevitably abuse it. It is a conclusion that would not displease Thomas Hobbes, or even Thomas Jefferson… (Rockstar) made a game that lets their snarkily clever social commentary shine through.”
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