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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to think that UK shops should follow Australia's lead and ban on Grand Theft Auto 5

115 replies

namechangeress · 04/12/2014 17:50

I have never understood why Grand Theft Auto has been acceptable as a main stream game with the amount of violence against women.

Isn't it about time British shops banned it too?

OP posts:
EatShitDezza · 04/12/2014 19:26

I haven't as I don't know the buttons but I've seen it done. When I played online the others did it to me!

Have you played GTA? The prositute thing isn't the game. It's a side thing that doesn't even need to happen. That's the players choice

I remember playing the first and loving it

MaidOfStars · 04/12/2014 19:26

Tiny

If the ONLY people you could fuck or kill in the game were black, that would be wrong.

If the ONLY people you could fuck or kill in the game were gay, that would be wrong.

If the ONLY people you could fuck or kill in the game were women, that would be wrong.

Greysanderson · 04/12/2014 19:26

The game does not put sex and violence together.
The prostitute is like everyone else in the game.

MaidOfStars · 04/12/2014 19:28

Sorry, mistake in name Timely

MaidOfStars · 04/12/2014 19:29

SEX and VIOLENCE are not natural or healthy partners for a GAME

This is your opinion. Do you have any arguments as to why sex and violence shouldn't be part if (age appropriate) gaming?

Bulbasaur · 04/12/2014 19:30

Why would that be a thing!???

Because it's funny. Grin

It's also a way to rub in that you just fragged them.

In any case, just don't play the game if you don't like it. There's far worse games and movies out there than Grand Theft Auto.

EatShitDezza · 04/12/2014 19:34

Bulb must admit the first time someone did it to me I wanted to know how so I could do it back Grin

BiscuitsAreMyDownfall · 04/12/2014 19:34

Its not JUST women though, if a player wants to they can beat up and kill any character in the game. Man, Woman, Black, White, Straight, Gay, Muslim, Christian etc. As far as Im aware there are no children characters. There is no sexism, racism or anything else that Im aware of. If a player decides to beat up just women in the game then that is the sexism of that player not the game.

*Disclaimer, Ive never played as I dont like video games, but DH often plays games including GTA, COD etc on an evening to wind down so I have seen how they work.

LongDistanceLove · 04/12/2014 19:37

From what I've read about this today the people shouting about this the loudest are the people who haven't played the game, but have read and watched skewed biased news items on the Internet.

Although the ability to fuck and kill a pixilated prostitute is there, it isn't integral to the game at all. The only prostitute within the storyline you meet, you kill the guy she is with and if you kill her you fail.

I think there is a very strong argument for PEGI to be properly enforced, and for parents to be educated about what the ratings mean.

TimelyNameChangey · 04/12/2014 19:40

Why do people want to kill prostitutes though?

And they must if it's in there.

GaryTheTankEngine · 04/12/2014 19:41

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

EatShitDezza · 04/12/2014 19:42

Why do people want to shoot soilders in a game?

Why do people want to throw banana skins and cause crashes in a game?

Why do people want to blow police cars in a game?

Why do people want to be an assassin in a game?

Why do people want to be a fast blue hedgehog in a game?

Because they do and people like different things. Doing it in a game doesn't mean you will do it or condone it in RL

GaryTheTankEngine · 04/12/2014 19:44

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

NotGoingOut17 · 04/12/2014 19:44

My boyfriend has this game and although at first cynical I did give it a go and found it quite addictive. I agree it's visually stunning and for the 1 week I was addicted to it (not played it in months now) I had a better virtual life than real life - rather than kill prostitutes (or anyone for that matter) or do the story lines I spent my time driving into the mountains, sailing boats, swimming, clothes shopping etc. You get the gist. The game is what you make of it.

If this game was about killing prostitutes or women I would absolutely agree with you but it;s not. Granted the storylines are based on crimes as the main characters are out to become rich and there is some violence involved. The characters have access to weapons (it is america after all) and it;s based in a city - just like in any city if i wanted i could go shopping or to a bar or i could walk round with a gun and kill people including prostitutes. I chose the former, if the latter is being done then it's generally the choice of the player.

Visiting a prostitute is the decision of the player, it wasn't part of any storyline i can remember (although granted i didn;t get very far). As the 3 main characters are male, 2 hetrosexual and the 3rd implied to be bisexual it stands to reason that the prostitute is likely to be female. Therefore if the player then decides to kill the prostitute it follows that they would be killing a female theyve had sex with rather than a male.

As has already been said however you can kill anyone you choose - it doesn't encourage you to kill prostitutes anymore than seeing a prostitute in real life encourages you to kill them - it's a choice.

For what it's worth my boyfriend played it for the storyline, I'd have been horrified if he spent his time virtually fucking prostitutes and killing them. There is a million things you can do with this game - it really is incredible, i;d be very concerned about someone who spent their time just fucking prostitutes and then killing them for fun.

MorelliOrRanger · 04/12/2014 19:45

Biscuits from what I remember there is a black character who uses the n word a lot, but I don't think any of white characters use it.

Like I said I don't play it, dp does, so I could be wrong.

Cornedbeefpie · 04/12/2014 19:49

The game hasn't been banned from shops here in Aus, one major retailer has chosen not to stock it. It is available at many other stores.

Andrewofgg · 04/12/2014 19:49

As long as it is left up to each retailer, who cares?

Any other old fart remember a game for ZX Spectrum called Dictator, where you had to decide how much to pay the Army, how many Secret Police to have, which of the Opposition to bribe, etc., etc.? It was great fun watching decent people turning into cyber-swine - and then they switched off and went back to normal. Is this really any different apart from having better graphics?

TaliZorahVasNormandy · 04/12/2014 19:51

I've played GTAV and never killed a woman. It happens because players choose to do it, most like myself, dont.

I have been playing games for most of my teen and adult years, I havent killed anyone and I'm not violent.

GTAV is basically a giant parody.

MaidOfStars · 04/12/2014 19:58

Survey of one person (husband): 15% of the game completed, not seen a single prostitute, let alone robbed/fucked/killed one.

Also note that he has played GTA series games for entire adulthood and never once hit a woman, used a prostitute, killed anyone or started a meth lab in real life.

LongDistanceLove · 04/12/2014 20:01

This is quite a good article.

m.uk.ign.com/articles/2014/12/04/targets-gta-5-snub-is-misinformed-and-achieves-nothing

bloodyteenagers · 04/12/2014 20:08

Not in GTAV I have killed females. I have sniped from a rooftop. I have massacred someone. I have run people over. I have killed with arrows. Slashed with blades. Poisoned. Broken necks. Plus many many other ways.
I have been playing games since the early 80's. I am not a serial killer in real life. The scenes on the screen are not real. The scenes on the screen are no different to watching a film.

BobbyBingoooo · 04/12/2014 20:27

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

EatShitDezza · 04/12/2014 20:28

I read the email address as 'lets b anal'

Grin
BobbyBingoooo · 04/12/2014 20:31

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MQv2 · 04/12/2014 20:31

"If the people getting fucked and killed were all black...would that be ok?"

But the people getting killed in it aren't all women so I'm not sure what your point is.
The vast majority are men.

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