Modern Warfare 2 accused of promoting terrorism

360 News | Classification in question.

A little under two weeks before its release, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has come under fire by a lobby group who are requesting the OFLC review its rating decision.

The group, dubbed the ACCM (Australian Council on Children and the Media), has cited the game promotes terrorism and is still accessible to children despite its current MA15+ rating.

"The consequences of terrorism are just abhorrent in our community and yet here we are with a product that's meant to be passed off as a leisure time activity, actually promoting what most world leaders speak out publicly against," said Jane Roberts, President of the ACCM. "We understand that it's a game but ... we're not far off when you look at the images that you could actually put it on a Channel Nine news report and you'd think maybe that is real. If that material was on the internet about how to become a terrorist, how to join a group and how to wipe out people - that would be removed because it would not be acceptable."

The accusations come after in-game footage was leaked online detailing a mission where players join a group of Russian ultranationalist terrorists. During the course of the mission, players actively raid an airport and massacre civilians with assault weapons.

Modern Warfare 2 is currently scheduled to be released on 10 November this year on Xbox 360 and PS3, with a PC version to follow on 24 November. It is currently unclear if an official review is being carried out on the title’s classification.

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60 Comments

Mark Smith

3 years ago

Infinity Ward has expressed that the reason they put this terrorist part into the game is to show the atrocities of terrorism. In this scene you play as an undercover agent that has infiltrated the ranks of the terrorist organization. Whoever has seen this video probably felt uncomfortable, but that is the point. IW wants you to understand exactly how horrible these terrorist are and further your desire, as a player, to stop them. I really don't think that this game will be promoting terrorism.

Also, if kids are getting a copy of Modern Warfare 2 despite the MA15+ rating I don't think that it is a problem with the game. It's a problem with the parents. I don't think that changing the rating will change how many children will play Modern Warfare.

macca macca

3 years ago

Are these people serious? This game is not going to make a 15 year old become a terrorist....

rankodour

3 years ago

Have these clowns not heard of Counter Strike and the myriad of other games with terrorist roles?

Quit moaning and enjoy life!

Nietzsche

3 years ago

This is ridiculous. How could you see some footage and take it out of context so much?

mloder

3 years ago

You dont f*** with the call of duty series okay so Grand theft auto was still awesome with edited content and left for dead 2 was in the balance but call of duty?! nope they cannot possibly think to deny the rights of thousands of aussies who have been hanging out for this title for aaaaages! its the cinematic quality which makes the game so above the rest - the feeling and the emotion that the developers have managed to draw from their audiences is amazing - there have been movies with this sort of violence in them and are adorned in M15 ratings like Rankodour said

rankodour wrote

Quit moaning and enjoy life!

Qbert

3 years ago

I bet you that flim and music makers are so happy that games have come along. They are not the devil anymore, it's only games that seem to turn you into a terrorist.

RanerX

3 years ago

Rankodour is right
Counterstrike anyone?

And Mark smith brought up the point that needs to be said to the classification board, it just proves how stupid they are, They dont play the game they just look at it from afar.

Jellyfish

3 years ago

rankodour wrote

Have these clowns not heard of Counter Strike and the myriad of other games with terrorist roles?

Counterstrike came out before terrorism was a major concern around the globe. In addition to that I don't recall any other game where you could play as a terrorist where you massacre innocent civilians like this game does.

Sure IW says it has context within the story but a very small number of people who purchase this game will pay any attention to the story beyond finding out what their objectives are.

ManeKast

3 years ago

I want to crush the conservative ____ that are so backward in our country, I want them to tread on bindies, be sunburnt and dissapear. Trust them to use terrorism as a reason to ban more games, this is getting VERY annoying.

JUST MAKE AN R RATING. YOUR PROBLEMS, PARENTS, ARE SOLVED. THE KIDDIES, IF YOU HAVE ANY ______ PARENTING SKILLS WONT BE EXPOSED TO THIS. SIMPLE.

AAAAAAAAAARGH.

Qbert

3 years ago

Jellyfish wrote

rankodour wrote

Have these clowns not heard of Counter Strike and the myriad of other games with terrorist roles?

Because we all know terrorism didn't exist until 2001? I see what you're saying, but why does it matter if it came out before or after terrorism was conceived to be a major problem by the public? Does it make your actions in game morally any better? Any worse?

john_solids

3 years ago

im sure further in the game it counters all that happened in that one scene, to show its not a good thing.
but no have to find everything bad about everything never look at the good side of things.
the news promotes terrorism more then this game would (im sure if anyone was slightly interested in terrorism they would be more willing to go ahead after seeing a news report about another terrorist attack rather then a games one scene). are they going to stop the news too?

Quote

The group, dubbed the ACCM (Australian Council on Children and the Media), has cited the game promotes terrorism and is still accessible to children despite its current MA15+ rating.

is that the games fault? shouldnt they be barking about getting the R18+ rating.

3mt

3 years ago

This accusation is laughable. I think we need a televised debate to get the message out to the naive public on this blatantly misguided opinion.

Jellyfish

3 years ago

Qbert wrote

The missions in Counterstrike are pretty basic. Bomb this, rescue these people & protect this person. The only people in the game are either players or objectives and players are penalised for damaging their defensive objectives. In mission where you're dealing with civilians the basic premise is that they are merely flags that follow you instead of being carried, this game type is common throughout most first person shooters' multiplayer sections. So that's really no different to any other game other than the skins being terrorists which is perfectly fine.

In Call of Duty you have to massacre innocent people (I'm assuming including women and children). That crosses the line. Introducing people to the horrors of terrorism isn't an excuse for it, if people haven't taken terrorism seriously after the siege in a Russian cinema a few years back and every other act before it (Lockerbie Bombing, Tokyo Subway Gas Attack, London Underground bombings, Madrid Bombings, Mumbai Massacre, etc) then a video game isn't going to slightly enlighten them especially when the story is easily ignored.

x7h3CUREx

3 years ago

Oh for fuck sake ACCM. Go back to your homes with you triple dead bolt security doors and barred windows and let us rational human beings get on with life. Honestly, this sort of stuff really shits me. Gaming as a medium continues to be targeted by these simpletons, the same stuff has been going on in movies, art, tv, and everywhere else but as soon as it appears in a game these kinds of groups have a sook and claim that it immerses the player too much and causes them to want to live out the actions that they play in the game.
Yeah, because after playing every single GTA game ever released I'm still on those meds that are stopping me from driving down the sidewalk in my car. Geez.

sethangel19

3 years ago

Who the hell cares what these Helen Lovejoy wannabes say? Why even give them media play? Seriously, they are just trying to get attention, if you dont give them attention then they will eventually get bored and go away.

Meanwhile, that name is so funny, Australian Council on Children and the Media, if these Lovejoys gave two stuff's about their children they would be parenting them and spending more time with them. They're not concerned with the children, theirs or others, they just dont think you should have the right to play any videogames other than "jesus and friends", because they have mental issues and think its the work of the devil.

These are people with serious mental illness and dangerous delusions, paranoia and persecution complexes, and it has been scientifically proven that their temporal and fronal lobes do not work like the majority of the population, these people actually present a very real danger to themselves and others, most serial killers suffered similar mental illnesses and delusions, they are able to pass as normal for short periods of time although because of the nature of their delusions they actually present a lot more of a threat to society than most sociopaths.

These are the same people who throughout history have fought technological and social development tooth and nail every step of the way, and would be very happy indeed if we all were back in the "DARK AGES" and thought the world was flat and were illiterate, because in their deluded minds thats how god wants it. They have an irrational fear of technology and their assaults on the internet, videogames and television demonstrate this. Ask them, they honestly believe that the internet, videogames and television serve the devil, and they will tell you outright if you dont let on that you think they're a nutjob.

Thankfully they are a dying breed, proper brain functioning seems to be a dominant genetic trait and organised religion is in its death throes, not in small part to the technological and social acheivements organised religion has historically sought to suppress.

FU*K YOU RELIGIOUS IDIOTS!!

renegadesx

3 years ago

This is typical religious propaganda just making stuff up, skewing the truth so it suits their purposes. They are called the "faith over facts" crowd for a reason.

If we are going to be consistent how about we just ban the Bible? After all it promotes genocide, sexual assault (because the R word is censored), slavery and human sacrifice (and Im not talking crucifixion Im talking a young girl as a burnt offering).

At the end of the day the MW2 is supposed to be disturbing, giving the player a narrative on why the bad guys in the game are so evil. Just like with the mentioned above atrocities in a certain book, these zealots always skew context so it always suits their needs.

Qbert

3 years ago

Jellyfish wrote

Qbert wrote

Yeah, you're right, the level of what you do sounds pretty different (although obviously neither of us have played Modern Warfare 2 so we don't know for sure) but I really don't think the people who are complaining about this care or even know about this. They just see "video game + terrorist" and panic, not even realising that it's been done before.

Jellyfish wrote

In Call of Duty you have to massacre innocent people (I'm assuming including women and children). That crosses the line. Introducing people to the horrors of terrorism isn't an excuse for it, if people haven't taken terrorism seriously after the siege in a Russian cinema a few years back and every other act before it (Lockerbie Bombing, Tokyo Subway Gas Attack, London Underground bombings, Madrid Bombings, Mumbai Massacre, etc) then a video game isn't going to slightly enlighten them especially when the story is easily ignored.

Crosses what line? Your moral line? If so, don't play it? Introducing people to the horrors of terrorism isn't OK, but to the horrors of World War 2 is? Take World at War, you can play for enemy teams and no one seems to have a problem against that.

And I don't know about your last point about not enlightening them. We all know war etc. is bad blah blah, but we don't think about it 24/7. Sure people know it exists, people know it's bad, but you always think it will never happen to you. I certainly know I've come away from war movies thinking how fucked war is to a degree I hadn't before. Why couldn't a game do the same thing about terrorism?

GooberMan

3 years ago

Last I checked, depictions of terrorism weren't illegal or a classification guideline.

What exactly is the difference between going on a citizen killing rampage in Grand Theft Auto and this terrorism section? Are people saying that mass murderers are better than terrorists? I'm confused with the message these groups are giving out.

waz79

3 years ago

I blame conservative media for this beat up.

Jarrod

3 years ago

And here. We. Go.

RanerX

3 years ago

Why is everyone blaming religion FOR THIS!?
Seriously you guys have personal issues.

Global Warming
People getting Fat
Violence being looked at badly
Ads on TV targeting children

Its only now that these things are happening its our culture thats changing and our views, were becoming a more pussy nation by the year.

All Religion Fault? Get real and shutup

drinniol

3 years ago

Guys, have any of you even checked out this Council?

http://www.youngmedia.org.au/aboutus/board.htm

It's 9 individuals. This is hardly a large political movement. It's two professors, a doctor and a priest. Heck this is the first time they've been mentioned in just about any news story ever. Thanks media!

SoilMan

3 years ago

As much as groups like the ACCM shit me to tears, I have to say in this instance I can completely empathise with their intentions.

As Jellyfish noted the anyone who watches the news does not need an introduction to the horrors of terrorism - we cop that every week. The inclusion of a mission that requires you to kill non-combatants does not draw a parallel to the horros depicted within the context of a battlefield (i.e. soldiers fighting soldiers) Qbert.

I personally felt that the non-interactive opening to CoD4 was far more effective at conveying the attrocities of state-endorsed terrorism than shooting an airport full of people. And IW's context is lame - infiltrating a terrorist cell by partaking in terrorism? Come on, intelligence agencies try to stop such things and - ignoring the CIA conspiracy theories on Sep 11 etc. - is pretty unrealistic. The fact that IW have a disclaimer before the mission shows that they feel it will cross people's moral line - thus I wonder about their intentions - immersion in the game world or controversy and media attention for an already over-hyped game?

That this material is available to people under 18 is a sure sign of the need for an R classification - but no doubt groups like ACCM won't reason and would advocate a ban rather than a restriction to people mature enough to deal with such in game actions abstractly. Wasn't sold on MW2 after CoD4's single player left me wanting but this news is turning me even further away from a purchase - the world has enough horrible crap in it for me to want to try and enjoy it in interactive entertainment.

Bah, enough moralising from me - lets hear more people complain about the prospect of not getting MW2 - mloders post was classic.

Qbert

3 years ago

^Good points, however I wouldn't read too much into the warning, I mean there is one for Assassin's Creed every time you load the game!

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