Top 3 Controversial Games That Were Banned

Historically, violent video games and their developers have always had a tough time. Even today, when video games have been an integral part of the mainstream media for almost four decades, they are still blamed when some violent event occurs. Certain games will always be targeted as controversial, but there are some releases which took things a step too far. Such games were outright banned in some countries. Here’s a list of Top 3 controversial games that were banned in one or more countries. Some you may now, others may be new to you.

Postal 2

Banned in New Zealand

Game developer Running With Scissors took black comedy to a new level with this release. It is the sequel of the already twisted series in which a sickening level of animal cruelty is portrayed. This level of animal cruelty was enough to force the New Zealand censorship board to ban Postal 2 in 2004. It is illegal to sell, purchase and possess the game in New Zealand. If you do any of these, you risk of being fined a whopping $50,000!

Manhunt 2

Banned in the UK and many others

Manhunt 2 was a victim of the violence in the first instalment of the game. In the UK, Manhunt had been linked to a murder, leading the public and media to create a storm a couple of days after its second instalment was announced. One footage of the game showed it to be even more violent than its predecessor which led to an effective ban in the UK. This decision was made across several countries as well.

Rockstar Games censored some of the violence and this edited version was eventually released. This was later used with Grand Theft Auto as well. However, this controversy was enough to place the game as one of the most graphically violent games of all times.

Carmageddon

Banned in the UK, Germany and others

As with all video games that show violence, Carmageddon had a tough time as well. It represents violence in every-day situations, in this case driving a car. The task in Carmageddon was to reach a destination with the added extra of running as much people over as possible. This was enough for such countries as the UK, Germany and Brazil to pull a complete ban over the game. To get around this ban, the developer swapped humans with robots and the red blood was replaced by green fluid. This version was certified in the UK, but the game never saw the light of day in Brazil.

It is an interesting fact to mention that after a bill was passed in 2010, ANY GAME depicting violence is banned in Venezuela. Breaking this law could get you up to 5 years in prison. Since the ban was put in place, around 13,000 games were destroyed due to their violent content.