Murder By Playstation

[Blokker_1999]

Most of you know the story by know. A 17yo kid killed his 14yo friend and according to the media the murder was based on the game Manhunt (PS2 version). Today this message seemed to be untry since the game Manhunt was located in the room of the 14yo victem.

I was bored today and mailed the lawyer that wants to ban all violent video games (van you imagine).

Here is the result so far:

Send:

Dear sir,

As you will probably know by now, the game Manhunt was not found at the

killer's house, but at the victim. Can you now explain as to how this game

is responsible for the murder? Or can you explain how a game rated M/+18

ended up in the hands of a 14 year old boy?

In the past years we have seen an effort from the industry to get a

correct rating of there games, still we see these games ending up in the

wrong hands. A 1é yo can go in a store and walk out with a game like

Manhunt. At that time you can note that the problem is not the game, nor

the industry. The stores do not check it, and the parents just don't care

as long as nothing happens.

I took a look at the website of Dixons, the store in the UK that stopped

selling the game Manhunt and discovered that 25% of the PS2 games and 33%

of the Xbox games listed in there online store is a violant game.

Now we could ban violant games all together altough banning all violence

would mean a ban on about 75% off all new games. But once we have done

that, what is next? Ban violance on TV and movies. That would mean that

almost everything needs to be cancelled, from Rambo over Jerry springer to

the Bold And The Beautiful. Even the news should be taken off the air!

If i may quote your website:

I am trying to protect our freedoms. How so? When the next Columbine

happens and the perpetrators are proven to be copycatters of adult-rated

violent entertainment, then the government, driven by parental concern,

really will contract freedom for all Americans. Safety will trump freedom.

When that happens, the entertainment industry will be to blame for our

loss of freedom because of its failure now to accept even reasonable

marketing standards.

--end quote.

Columbine had nothing to do with violant video games, and using it here is

setting a wrong example. As a lawyer you should know that such an argument

would not hold in a court of law, yet you use it on your site. Situations

like columbine happen because of the freedom you uphold. A kid can buy a

weapon in the states. It does not need a video game to start shooting.

You are talking about giving up freedom to create safety, but why start on

the wrong side. Stop guns first. Don't stop the sales of games (and later

on movies) but make sure they only get soled to the people that are

allowed to play/view them.

And yes, if you want to know. I have Manhunt, i don't like the game and

never play it. Yes i have Grand Theft Auto, and i love it. I'm even in a

team expanding the game to make it multiplayer so people can play it

online against each other. And if you want to know, i'm 20 and proud to be

Belgian.

Yours sincirely,

Hans Roes

Received:

Sure, the killer left it at the home of his friend, the victim. Next question?

Send:

How do you explain the following quote then?

We haven’t connected the game with the murder and we’ve already made that

statement, but some sections of the media chose to ignore it…the motive

was robbery.

--end quote

This is a quote from Narinder Pooni, media services officer for

Leicestershire Police.

btw, may i suggest you go visit a LAN party some day, like QuakeCon, so

you get to know the gaming community and you get to know the people who

play these games you so much hate.

Waiting for the next response

Btw, sales of Manhunt have boosted a lot since the media attention in the UK. Even though the biggest retailers have stopped the sales.

[MAD_BOY]

lol, nice one blokky, i wonder what;s the next answer

[Blokker_1999]

i think he only looked at the first lines and replyed, cause i expected a better reply from a lawyer

[Boss]

LMAO that is sad really ,"Mass murder ocurred on a LAN party,square spongebob tm said to be the violent game causing it".

Nice questions Blokker! ,can't really wait for the next reply!

[HAZJ]

Glad to see someone stop that foolish who think they can BAN the games.

The company isnt responsable of who buys their game, the responsables are the VENDOR who dont stop youger ppl buy violent games

[eAi]

Thats like going to a murder scene, finding the nearest blunt instrument and concluding that was the murder weapon, tottaly ignoring any evidence... Stupid lawyer.

eAi

Read http://biz.gamedaily.com/features_new/jack_thompson/ if you're bored and haven't already.

[Iggy]

*Iggy sneaks behind eAi and quickly wraps a paper bag around his head and drags him into the darkness*

Nice job Blokker, had a good time reading it, this guy shows that he doesn't even know much about the subject of gaming by replying your huge e-mail with 2 sentance reply. In fact that shows to me that he doesnt know much about the case at all, shouldn't he have more to defend himself with then 2 sentances?

[Slothman]

lol, read that gd interview, the guys a militant about this, and his logic is pretty warped. i sometimes wonder what makes a human into someone who is so blatantly fanatical about a cause, that they dismiss any contrary evidence simply because they don't like what they are hearing.

[vass69]

huh i like manhunt

wouldnt say it makes me angry or violent and im 14

[Black Dragon]

wouldnt say it makes me angry or violent and im 14

YOU PISSED ON A LAW! YOU SHOULD BE HANGED!

[Posty]

wouldnt say it makes me angry or violent and im 14

YOU PISSED ON A LAW! YOU SHOULD BE HANGED!

Then my parents should be hung for letting me have alcohol at new years and buying me gta3/vice city

[TmM-ROCKY]

Yea what a load of shit i played manhunt loads of times and it didnt make me go out and kill someone.The people who do this shit are all ready fucked up in the head and the law wants to know this.All us guys here who play games where you have to kill each other and steal cars and shit dont go out and do it for real.Thats the whole fucking point of having these so we can do the things are mind thinks of sometimes but dont atually get in trouble for it.When i am mad i get on vice city and start killing people and my anger goes but from now on mr lawyer i think i will get my girlfriend and kill her instead because i can't cope.I see the evil nasty murders in these games and it makes me want to go KILL! KILL! KILL! What a crock of shit.To all the people who are mad cunts and like to kill and shit dont play nasty murdering games go buy some ice cream then go kill and then the law will ban ice cream.Sorry i am taking the piss now but this is total utter bollocks.They are mad phycotic twats before they play the games and i hope you all agree with me thanks for listening.TmM_ROCKY played violent games all his life and i have never done shit like that end of story.

[Mr.Bill]

It's pretty obvious, people dont know what to blame, so they blame the nerest thing. happens all the damn time.

[HAZJ]

Take a look at this:

Following on from earlier coverage of the Stefan Pakeerah murder case, a representative of the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA) has issued an open letter to UK Home Secretary, Rt Hon. David Blunkett MP concerning the misleading coverage by various arms of the media.

It was unfortunate that Mr Vaz should speak out so irrationally against the companies concerned with the development and distribution of "Manhunt" and indeed our industry in general. Had he taken time to check with the Leicestershire Constabulary, he would have been informed that they do not and have not ever linked this brutal crime with any video game.

-- Roger Bennett, Director General, ELSPA

[Ransom]

mmm ban violent stuff? Never eva gonna happen.

Freedom of speech, press, all that crap. Yea.

If it does happen all of our children will be a bunch of pussies like in that movie Demolition Man. 3 sea shells here we come...

[orappa]

I love that machine that tells you off when you swear. It cracks me up every time.

Anyway, this lawyer guy isn't suing them because their game is violent though - he's suing them because it's marketed to children (supposedly, but I have yet to see proof of this). He's hoping to drive them out of business by suing them for all that they're worth, but they have a LOT of money, and he doesn't have a watertight case. So even if he does win, Rockstar will still be in business (thank god).

[Si|ent]

Iggy said:

*Iggy sneaks behind eAi and quickly wraps a paper bag around his head and drags him into the darkness*

No no no no no no NO. Paper bags no god, itll get soggy and rip easy, specially with eAi he dribbles ALL THE TIME. Use polythene, i recommend TESCO carrier bags.

Legal notice: this post in intended to be vaguely humorous and is NOT in fact explicit instructions guiding young people to commit genocide with high street supermarket plastic bags. Honest.

[Iggy]

Uh oh.....it was a little to late by the time I read that legal notice..