Saints Row: The Third became infamous for its dildo-shaped weapon, and it would appear that its sequel is trying to be even more tasteless. It showcases an item known as an "Alien Anal Probe", which can be inserted into the bottoms of unsuspecting foes.
Unsurprisingly, the inclusion of this weapon has resulted in the game being refused classification by the notoriously strict Australian Classification Board.
Here's what the board had to say:
The game includes a weapon referred to by the Applicant as an 'Alien Anal Probe'. The Applicant states that this weapon can be 'shoved into enemy's backsides'. The lower half of the weapon resembles a sword hilt and the upper part contains prong-like appendages which circle around what appears to be a large dildo which runs down the centre of the weapon.
When using this weapon the player approaches a (clothed) victim from behind and thrusts the weapon between the victim's legs and then lifts them off the ground before pulling a trigger which launches the victim into the air. After the probe has been implicitly inserted into the victim's anus the area around their buttocks becomes pixelated highlighting that the aim of the weapon is to penetrate the victim's anus.
The weapon can be used during gameplay on enemy characters or civilians. In the Board's opinion, a weapon designed to penetrate the anus of enemy characters and civilians constitutes a visual depiction of implied sexual violence that is interactive and not justified by context and as such the game should be Refused Classification.
Developer Volition has taken to Twitter to insist that the game will still appear in Australia at some point:
This suggests that Saints Row 4 could see some kind of patch which removes the offending item for Aussie players. We'll keep you posted when we know more.
[source eurogamer.net]
Comments 10
Australia is butthurt. You see what I did there?
Have they not discovered the fact that violence in video games is not in any way a contributor to actual violence in reality?
This is completely stupid!
Have they already forgotten that we have a R18+ rating now?!?
@2 Please stop spreading that ignorance through the internets.
Companies spend millions on advertising to effect people. It works and they know it.
So when millions of people sit down and voluntarily view and participate in depictions of violence for hours and hours every day, it doesn't effect them?
Sure not everyone will go out and kill someone because of it, but everyone will be effected.
The old axiom "By beholding you become changed" is absolutely true.
But as it stands the music industry is the main contributer to invoking anger and violence in society. Music is very powerful and has the most influence on people. But games, movies, tv, sports, are not blameless.
It is so silly to think that the things we fill our minds with, the things we observe and spend our time on do not change us!
Lmao. Guess they consider the "Down Under" thing serious business.
@ThreadShadow
The difference between "affecting us" and "causing actual violence" are the important thing to consider. Nobody should try and argue that games don't have an effect on the mind of the person playing them, just as books, music, movies, or art do. The argument @ObviouslyAdachi is making is that the games do not cause violence, a claim which can be backed up by the studies and tests that don't find a link between video games and violent behavior. Somebody who is prone to violence towards others isn't going to be made that way because of a video game; they are going to be that way because of their moral and ethical beliefs instilled in them by a combination of their upbringing, their society, or their life circumstances, not just a video game.
Really?! I honestly thought that we were past that kind of stupid decision when they introduced the R18+ rating in January. Apparently not.
That is not to say that I personally have any desire to run around anally probing innocent citizens, or find that amusing. ok. Maybe just once.
Clearly the Australian certification board still doesn't understand that games are not just for kids, and that as adults we are able to make informed decisions about what we want to watch/experience etc. I mean, they have classified the film The Human Centipede (1 and 2) for heavens sake, which are available at my local DVD store.
Please explain to me how this attempted humour is magically worse for humanity and we somehow much be protected from it.sigh
Wasn't planning to get this, but now I may just order from amazon to see what the fuss is all about!
@JayArr : Brilliant!
Classification board's game descriptions are the best publicity you can get, they manage to make a simple weapon sound way cooler than it actually is.
yeah not funny...I actually agree with the Australian Classification Board on this one, which is weird... because I have never really agreed with them on anything. Volition are just being gross and stupid because they don't have any better ideas.....Seriously, who wants to play a game where you shove things up NPC's asses?? How old are we really??
The sooner the immersive sim & witty sardonic humour make a comeback in games the better...and the sooner this sort of unimaginative rubbish dies the better.
@ThreadShadow Actually, studies show a CORRELATION between violence and violence in media. But correlation is NOT CAUSATION. You would know if you ever took a college-level psychology course, like I did, or did any research. This means that violent people play violent games, but games do not make people violent. And the same with movies and music. The only negative effects they have on us is desensitization. Our generation is very desensitized. By the way, it is THE Internet. There is only one. I am not the one spreading ignorance and I'd appreciate it if you weren't so condescending.
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