Slashdot Log In
Violent Video Gaming Comes To the Wii
Posted by
timothy
on Thu Aug 14, 2008 02:23 PM
from the leisure-suit-larry-is-on-the-way dept.
from the leisure-suit-larry-is-on-the-way dept.
TuringTest writes "In an attempt to bring the Wii closer to the hardcore gamer's taste, Sega is preparing to release MadWorld, a violent 'hack and slash' game. This has brought attention from family-conscious lobbies: 'The decision to release a violent game on a console which has based its reputation on family fun has shocked anti-violence pressure groups. Mediawatch-UK, Britain's longest-running pressure group campaigning for decency in TV, films and games, said MadWorld will "spoil" the Wii.' The game features black & white cel-shaded graphics, except for the blood blobs which are in brilliant red. MadWorld is announced to be released in early 2009."
Related Stories
This discussion has been archived.
No new comments can be posted.
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
Full
Abbreviated
Hidden
Loading... please wait.
Oooooh Sin City! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Oooooh Sin City! (Score:5, Insightful)
I've been wishing they'd bring a few more adult oriented games to the wii for a while.
Sure it's a fantastic console for parties and for my nephew but the childish games wear on you after a while for solo gaming.
Parent
Re:Oooooh Sin City! (Score:5, Funny)
When solo gaming gets boring, try switching the controller to your other hand. It feels like it's someone else playing with your wii.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
When solo gaming gets boring, try switching the controller to your other hand. It feels like it's someone else playing with your wii.
I call it 'The Stranger'!
Re:Oooooh Sin City! (Score:5, Funny)
I've been wishing they'd bring a few more adult oriented games to the wii for a while.
I completely agree, they're missing on some many "adult-oriented" opportunities with this controller.
Parent
Re:Oooooh Sin City! (Score:5, Insightful)
Why do people keep making the mistake of calling Violent video games Adult oriented? Most adults are not male between the ages of 12 and 25. Most of the Adults I know tend to play casual games and Ultra Mega Bloodfest IV.
Also please get over it. Resident Evil, Bully, Hitman, and Manhunt all are violent games like this one which we are speaking of.
We live in the world where media targeting 16 year old boys is label "Mature" or "Adult" content.
Parent
Re:Oooooh Sin City! (Score:5, Funny)
you're obviously hanging out with the wrong old ladies.
Parent
Re:Oooooh Sin City! (Score:5, Insightful)
Not only do I want to play games besides nintendo's "Fun for the whole family you don't personally have," but the wii NEEDS to have those games.
On boards dedicated to consoles, theres a lot of whining about "casual" players destroying gaming with the wii. It basically comes down to 13-21 year old boys wanting to kill stuff, it has nothing to do with how serious of a gamer one is. The reason it matters is that they spend the most on games, and I think it's no coincidence that the 3rd party offerings on other systems (IE, games not from microsoft on the XBOX 360) are generally of a higher caliber than the wii.
The wii has a ton of "shovelware." Companies realize that almost anything they put on the wii (no matter how cliche, buggy, or just generally lacking in fun) will be profitable, since the people who own the wii are on average read less reviews, have lower expectations, and complain less about the duds (personal hypothesis there.) Ninjabread man was called by almost anyone who played it the worst game of this generation of consoles, every review article read "do not buy this game for anyone!" But I'm pretty sure they made a profit. They couldn't have spent more than a grand developing it, and enough confused grandparents bought it for their grandchildren who own a wii (or quite possibly another console) that they made their money back.
So the wii is getting a ton of games that should not be played. Since there are no "adult" games on it, you don't get the key demographic of teenage boys buying games for it, you never get any quality games for the system that aren't from nintendo. Anyone who puts time and effort into their game makes only a little bit more profit than if you ported solitare to the wii and sold it for $20.
It's made worse by the fact that apperantly, the moral nannies have decided that since so many kids have the wii, no adult games should come out on the wii ever.
It's really too bad, if the teenage boys could be enticed to the wii, I think you'd see some of the best games ever coming out for it, combining the unique control scheme with innovative new ideas for games and a sufficient budget to make it work. Instead we're going to get a console with a promising controller, some great games from nintendo, and a bunch of crap that will go the way of ET for the atari.
Parent
Re:Oooooh Sin City! (Score:4, Interesting)
but the wii NEEDS to have those games.
The sad truth is that the Wii doesn't need those games. It is selling like crazy, even now well over a year after its release and so far I haven't seen numbers that this trend is going to change, even things like the much more powerful Xbox360 selling for 50EUR less then the Wii in europe hasn't put a dent in the sales. The Wiis whole concept simply isn't build around classical games, instead it seems to be build around accessories, Wiimote, Balance Board, Zapper, Wii Wheel and so on. Accessories seem to give people something that they can instantly understand, which you can't have with classical game, which is also why you always see happy people jumping around in front of a TV in Wii commercials and never really much of the actual game.
When it comes to 'normal' games I have given up all hope for the Wii and never really had it much to begin with. Nintendo is doing something completly different with the Wii and simply doesn't care about the market segments of Xbox360 and PS3, when some third party still manages to sneak such a title on the Wii, fine, but there are always exceptions to the rule.
The interesting part is what will happen five years down the road? Will people still swing their controller as tennis rack and golf club or will they be tired of it and move on to the next trendy thing? I don't really know, but for the moment Nintendo seems to be doing more then fine with what they do.
Parent
2 things (Score:5, Insightful)
1) are Hitman and Manhunt non-violent games?
2) I want this
Re:2 things (Score:5, Insightful)
1) Do lobbyists every use logic and reasoning?
2) Me too.
Parent
Re:2 things (Score:5, Funny)
1)No but they do help let me know when there's interesting games out there.
2)Me too.
Parent
Re:2 things (Score:4, Insightful)
And then there's other ones too, like the Godfather release, No More Heroes and Mortal Kombat: Armageddon.
It's not hard to find plenty of violent games for the Wii.
Then again, these lobbyists are usually the first in line for lobotomies, so the logic they use is as expected.
Parent
Re:2 things (Score:5, Funny)
We had to chase the teddy bears into their cuddle bunkers, and then tickle them out with machine hugs and fun throwers. They say the more soldiers you tickle, the easier it gets. Well, sir, it doesn't.
(Grandpa Simpson)
Parent
A violent game. How shocking. (Score:5, Funny)
This will be quite a change from the very non-violent and family friendly Wii games like "Resident Evil 4", "Alone in the Dark" and "Bully".
How could such a thing happen?
Re:A violent game. How shocking. (Score:4, Insightful)
Violence isn't even a problem. Sex and violence is a problem. Horror and violence is a problem. Violence with a graphic, realistic portrayal is a problem. (When I say problem here, I'm talking about it being a problem for some people, not necessarily meaning that it is a problem per se or that I personally have a problem with it.)
Just violence though? Please. My Wii came with a boxing game. Boxing is a violent sport. Super Mario Galaxy? You kill things by jumping on them and hitting them. How is that not violent?
Strangely, violence and disturbing content is not always a problem though: see any SpongeBob game.
Parent
No more heroes? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:No more heroes? (Score:4, Informative)
Exactly.
The reason is, "No More Heroes" wasn't a big hit. Which is unfortunate, because it's one of the top 3 games on the Wii, in my opinion. It's fun, it's raunchy (but not TOO raunchy) and it's hilarious.
Parent
Resident Evil? (Score:5, Insightful)
WII Release Date: Nov 13, 2007 (US).
If this doesn't qualify as violent, I'm not sure what does...
Crazy idea (Score:5, Insightful)
Here's a crazy idea: so then they don't have to buy it.
I mean, it's not like they were tricked by some game presented as "Princess Peach Pony Adventures" rated E and discovered a secret level which involved skinning people alive. They know from the start it's a violent game, Sega makes no secret about it, and if their console is really for "family fun" and they have kids... don't buy it.
Crazy talk, I know.
Re:Crazy idea (Score:5, Funny)
That sounds like a fun game:
"Join Princess Peach and her pony pals as they go on a violent rampage to scalp Bowser"
Parent
Re:Crazy idea (Score:4, Funny)
"Pestilence pony, you're my favorite..." (or was it death pony?)
Parent
Re:Crazy idea (Score:5, Funny)
But if your kids ask for it, you have to buy it. Don't you understand that saying "no" to a child makes them hate you forever and scars their emotional development?
Parent
Re:Crazy idea (Score:5, Insightful)
Exactly. I really don't understand how video games are any different from VHS or DVD or the web. All can be used for kid-friendly fun. All can be used to watch people getting killed / touched in rude places.
I don't understand where this whole "games are for kids" thing came from anyhow. The early arcade games (e.g. Space Invaders) which popularised the medium were played by twenty-somethings not pre-teens.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
never mind what he allows his wife to get away with
Not the best choice of words there, this isn't 1950 where wives need permission from their husband.
Re: (Score:3)
Serious politicians are known by the company they keep and people may perceive Tipper's pet project as having Al's tacit approval.
Uh huh... (Score:5, Informative)
Clearly they missed the (re)release of RE4 [wikipedia.org] for the Wii last year, where one can be beheaded by a chainsaw, among other family friendly things.
Come on people. Really?
Hey, I am a hardcore gamer (Score:5, Funny)
I can't wait to see what can be done with vibrating and location-sensing functions of the controller once I strap it on a little differently from usual.
Oh noes!!!11!!! (Score:3, Funny)
How dare they attempt to make more money by attempting to appeal to a different segment of the market! Just because all of the games released up to the now have been family-friendly, does not mean that there were NEVER any plans to release any other type. That sort of thinking will limit your income possibilities.
Re:Oh noes!!!11!!! (Score:5, Insightful)
But that's not even true at all, not even a little bit: Manhunt, Resident Evil, Call of Duty, No More Heroes, Godfather, Scarface, etc.
Parent
Re:Oh noes!!!11!!! (Score:5, Insightful)
"Family friendly?" Right now I live alone, but I have two grown daughters; we are family. I used to play Quake with them on our networked computers when they were teenagers. So to me, a violent, bloody video game IS family-friendly.
Parent
It'll Spoil the Wii... (Score:5, Insightful)
Oh, wait. That's what puberty did.
Were the lobby groups sponsored by Sega? (Score:4, Insightful)
Ooooh, how unique! (Score:5, Informative)
It's not like there aren't other games rated M on the Wii. No More Heroes [wikipedia.org] is the first that comes to mind. There's also the Resident Evil series, I think Godfather and Scarface were ported over, etc.
From the video, the only unique thing about this game is the decision to make everything black and white but for the blood, which is bright red. Fewer colors is now a feature!
Overall, a pretty lame publicity grab. "Our game is so hardcore your mom won't let you buy it!" What they don't say is "Our game is so boring you won't play it after the novelty wears off and you've shown it to all of your friends."
Daily mail PR grab (Score:3, Interesting)
Overall, a pretty lame publicity grab.
If anyone's making a publicity grab, it's the Daily Mail. The last we saw them on Slashdot, they had come up with a dubious iPhone Nano rumour. They're making a reach for online marketshare by coming up with nonsense and starting storms in teacups, basically taking their approach to newspaper sales but applying it their website. This is a publication which runs features demonising games at random intervals [rllmukforum.com] because it gives them something other than Jews, gays and foreigners [wikipedia.org] to attack. They are the ones who
AHHHHHHHHH! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:AHHHHHHHHH! (Score:5, Funny)
"Porn has been made, now my DVD player is ruined... RUINED!!"
I Saran Wrap mine. No problems so far...
Parent
I don't see what the big deal is... (Score:5, Insightful)
This is not TV. This is not even a cable channel that comes as part of a premium package. It's still a game that must be purchased separately. I don't see what the big deal is.
Who cares what they think? (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah, that's what I thought.
Hardcore gamer (Score:4, Interesting)
Yes, I am one of those dirty filthy casuals that plays games to *gasp *horror* *shock* enjoy them. I tend to like the games that have innovative and fun gameplay. Unique visual audio styles are a plus.
Perhaps I'm just too old for the current definition of hardcore games and hardcore gamers but what I don't really get is how the number of pixels pushed or the volume of blood makes a game for the hardcore gamer.
I'd expect the hardcore gamer to want intricate and complex yet responsive control schemes that reward having faster-than-framerate reactions. Requiring six liquid cooled video cards just to render the game on its lowest setting or requiring a TARDIS built into the circulatory system of every mook to handle the amount of blood they spray when killed doesn't mean its "hardcore" to me. It generally says its cheaper to hire graphic designers than it is people capable of putting together a solid game.
Will this mean new Wii Hardware devices? (Score:5, Funny)
Imagine the Wii hardware addons that might come out of this:
Wii Truncheon
Wii Dagger
Wii Battle Axe
Wii Whoopass Stick
They've Got It All Wrong (Score:4, Interesting)
I'm not a big Wii fan and part of that is due to the fact its games don't interest me. However, I don't like that hardcore gaming is being equated with violence (and inevitably, sex). The Wii does come across as sort of a child-centric system to me but adding titles with blood won't necessarily make me think of it as more mature and won't make me think of it as 'hardcore'.
Personally, I don't think it gets more hardcore then Civilization. There's very little, if any, blood in the game but it's the complexity of the gameplay and the dedication one has have for it that makes it something of an elite gaming experience. If we 'hardcore' gamers don't demand complexity and innovation in games then all we're going to get is Halo/GTA clones.
Ridiculous (Score:5, Insightful)
While I do not enjoy violent games the notions that this game will "ruin" the wii is absolutely absurd. Will users of the wii be forced to play the game? Of course not. If you dont like the game dont play it.
In other news... (Score:4, Funny)
In an attempt to bring the World closer to the hardcore warmonger's taste, Lockheed Martin is preparing to release new cluster munitions, a violent 'hack and slash' type of bomblet loaded with shrapnel and high explosives. This has brought attention from family-conscious lobbies: 'The decision to release a violent weapon from a nation which has based its reputation on family fun has shocked anti-violence pressure groups. Mediawatch-UK, Britain's longest-running pressure group campaigning for decency in TV, films and warfare, said Lockheed Martin will "spoil" the World.' The weapon features drab steel casings, except for the bomblets which are in brilliant yellow. Cluster bombs are widely available, but new ones are announced to be released in early 2009.
link [designation-systems.net] FTW.
Typical... (Score:4, Insightful)
To MediaWatch-UK, you bunch of lack-witted, thumb-sucking buboes...
Point 1:
Just because the sensationalist hacks at the Daily Fail [voiceoftheturtle.org] run a story about your latest bout of whining does not lend any credence to your crusade against the right-thinking portion of the British populace and their desire to be able to decide for themselves what is or isn't appropriate entertainment for themselves and their families.
Point 2:
I have a DVD player. When I have children, they can watch Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen's back-catalogue [wikipedia.org], High School Musical [wikipedia.org] and Bambi [wikipedia.org] to their hearts' content. I can use it to watch Oldboy [wikipedia.org], Battle Royale [wikipedia.org] and Cannibal Holocaust [wikipedia.org]. It is up to me to control who watches what. It is my choice. If someone has the money to purchase a Wii, and then to purchase games for it, and yet is too fucking stupid to make an informed choice about the games they buy then there is no hope for humanity. If things have become *that* bad then "Campaigning for decency and accountability in the media" is just polishing the brass on the Titanic. Seriously, you'd be far better off doing something useful like chemically castrating these bozos.
Point 3:
Following on, Nintendo markets the Wii on its main strength, family-fun and party games. This is not out of some altruistic desire to promote family values, it is because it cannot compete with the 360 or PS3 when it comes to graphical content. Nintendo play to their system's strengths which are a unique and novel control system and a large catalogue of party games. I enjoy playing Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz but I also enjoy playing Red Steel and Call Of Duty 3. Both of which were available ON THE DAY OF LAUNCH.
Points 4-8:
This is not the first game to be released for Wii that I would consider inappropriate for the whole family based on violent or sexual content...nor will it be the last. Games already released which Alone In The Dark [wikipedia.org] - Survival Horror
Bully [wikipedia.org]
Call of Duty 3 [wikipedia.org] - World War II First Person Shooter
Shooting people, throwing grenades, shooting flammable barrels next to people to incinerate them. While not graphic, this is a war-themed game that was available at UK release, and which I wouldn't let children play.
I am so mad! (Score:5, Funny)
That really burns my biscuits! You mean Sega is going to force games containing content unsuitable for my impressionably proginy onto my Wii, strip the parental controls, and then force my kids to see them, with me in handcuffs so I can't properly supervise what they're doing?
What's that you say? I'd have to buy it? On purpose? And you're sure the disc won't jump out of its case and load itself up? And I won't be prevented from setting the parental controls in the wii, nor from monitoring my kids?
Huh.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
it was causing genuinely violent thoughts in my head.
against the devs for making such a terrible game?
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Arbitrary boundaries (Score:5, Funny)
Heck, I can buy Viva Pinata for my 360 period, and then call it a family friendly console. Hypocrisy is the name for this "debate".
Viva Piñata? Where you beat crying animals to death and get rewarded with candy, confetti, and cheers? That's family friendly?
Oh, you must mean the part where you can breed piñatas with their siblings and parents with their children.
Parent
Doesn't work that way (Score:5, Insightful)
Just like letting gays get married will somehow ruin marriage for everyone else. Having a violent video game on Wii will ruin it for everyone. (as if Manhunt 2, Call of Duty 3, etc weren't already on the Wii).
There is a certain personality type that wants to "protect" the lifestyles of other people by projecting their own values onto the rest of the world. And they believe they cannot be happy until everyone else shares their world view.
Parent