Mysterious "Word" Dooms European Mind Quiz
Ubisoft. Mind Quiz. It's got scandal written all over it, right? It's, like, the next Manhunt 2 and anyone can see that, right? Right?
Well, you'd see it if you were a British women who has two family members with cerebral palsy, who contacted the BBC after becoming offended whilst playing Mind Quiz. Apparently there is an offensive term in the DS version of the game (not the PSP version, thank the precious Lord), which was evidently so offensive that Ubisoft cancelled distribution and is trying to get the horrible game off European shelves.
Said Ubisoft:
"As soon as we were made aware of the issue we stopped distribution of the product and are now working with retailers to pull the game off the market."
Said everyone else: What's the freaking word, already?
But no, they haven't said. Although since one presumably doesn't go around describing people by how many members of their family are afflicted with various palsies, I'm assuming it's something over in that general direction. Personally, I was worried that the game's tag line, "Big Fun. Bigger Brain" might offend certain sensitive hydroencephalitics.
Man, where's Thompson when you need him? There are Brain Age clones out there making people sad, Jack!
Ubisoft pulls MindQuiz for offensive language [Joystiq]
[via Go Nintendo]
tiny dancer
Posted to Video Games on 29 June 2007
· Comments (8)
Other stuff like this: bbc, europe, mind quiz, scandal, ubisoft
I really don't see what it is about this bit of news that has you in a snit. Ubisoft has volunteered to pull the game because they want to be sensitive to the sensibilities of their customers.
From Wired News: Apparently, if you perform poorly in one section of the game, you get called..."a term abusive to people with disabilities."
This is hardly a matter of censorship. And it's not like someone was playing Mortal Combat and was offended by the gore. It's Mind Quiz.
If the word were "Faggot" I would sure as hell prefer that the game be pulled and tweaked.
slow...?
thick...?
mental...?
curiouser and curiouser..
From GameSpot: Ubisoft's Mind Quiz was pulled from shelves today after a mother of a child with cerebral palsy complained about the game calling her a "spastic" when she didn't score well, reports the BBC.
Yep Joystiq updated the story to include an image of the screen showing the offensive rating of "super spastic."
American Heritage Dictionary on "spastic"
1. Of, relating to, or characterized by spasms: a spastic colon; a spastic form of cerebral palsy.
2. Affected by spastic paralysis.
3. (Offensive Slang) Clumsy or inept.
I guess it goes to show language is not only good for communication but also miscommunication. A simple 30-second dictionary check on the term should have alerted someone at Ubisoft of this possible scenario.
SkorpyoBrat I am offended by your misspelling of Mortal KOMBAT with a "C"! I am deeply offended..
Bloody hell, "spastic" isn't the kind of word that one generally uses in everyday conversation, I'd have personally guessed the far more timid "retard"
Roll on the game that asks "where you dropped on your head as a baby?"
"Spastic" is considered an offenisve derogatory word after kids in the 80s started calling each other it after a Blue Peter (I think) special that had a boy with cerebal palsy in it.
It got so bad, in the end the Spastic's Society charity shops changed their name to "Scope" and the word's been considered highyly offensive ever since.
I think SkorpyoBrat has a point. Spastic is a highly offensive word to a subset of people. Everyone here would be up in arms if, say, a boxing game called you a "Faggot" if you scored the lowest amount of points. It's all a matter of context, really.
So, yeah, don't get shirty just because this has come off the back of Reisitance (which I can kinda see the CoE's point), Manhunt and Law and Order. Like Law and Order, this one is an example of people not understanding the sensibilities of another culture.
I dunno, I think I'm rambling now...
"Spastic" isn't like "faggot". Rowling used it in the Harry Potter books and as far as I know, no one raised an eyebrow. It's more like "poncy".... maybe.
At any rate, if they were to release that game in the US, it's "retard" that people would take more offense to, whereas "spastic" just means "clumsy and hyperactive". But here, they'd probably have riots in the streets if you so much as put the word "stupid" in there.
I personally would choose "Dumbass" myself, but then I bet it'd get rated T.