14 DAY TRIAL // Politics and video games barely have anything in common, except for a few simulators that put the players in charge of their own countries. But it seems that, at least in real life, politicians have seen gaming as a widespread phenomenon and, instead of trying to comprehend it and endorse both video game developers and the players, they have decided to regulate it and impose harsh rules and laws.
Germany is the most recent example, as we have now learned that the European country, after going through some big scandals regarding shootings at various schools throughout its territory by angry teenagers, has decided to strictly prohibit violent video games.
The latest victim of this “crusade” against violence is the ever-so-popular Counter Strike first-person shooter, a favorite of many gamers all around the world, especially in Germany. It now seems that the title cannot be offered to public view and is strictly prohibited from government-owned buildings.
This measure has led to the dismantlement of one of Germany's biggest gaming LAN parties, Convention-X-Treme, as Counter Strike was the major title that would have been played during the conference by almost all the gamers.
Of course, this measure doesn't affect the conventions, which are held on private property, but it has severely hampered any type of video game activity that wanted to be accessible and fun at the same time. Rumors are also flying around that World of Warcraft, the popular MMORPG with over 11,5 million subscribers around the world, has also been banned from public play by several German ruling bodies.
This is definitely a prime example of the government messing with things it doesn't want to understand. Despite being one of the biggest European markets for video games and home to a lot of high-quality developers, Germany is slowly, but steadily, denying any such sort of activity that would even try to show kids and teenagers violent behavior.
Do you think that the European country will realize just what it is doing, or that will it continue to ban any sort of video game that even reveals remote physical contact among its characters? Leave us a comment with your thoughts.