« Review: Apex Digital AD-1100W | Main | Gay with Holiday Spirits »
BBQ XXX: The Curse of the Double Standard!
This is something I don't understand. I've been meaning to address this for a while now. Everyone's heard of this new video game, BMX XXX and how naughty it is. I have yet to play it, but it looks like a mediocre bicycle game with dirty humor and the ability to make your female bikers topless. The funny thing is that while you can play the full-on scandalous version on Xbox and Gamecube, the PS2 version is a "cleaned-up" version.
I probably won't ever own any version, but that's not the point. My point is, what's with Sony? This is the same company that bought the exclusive rights to the Grand Theft Auto series, which are perhaps the most politically incorrect titles out there. In GTA you can cut up an old lady with a chainsaw and splatter her blood all over the screen, you can shoot a cop with a sniper rifle and make his head explode, you can steal a truck and crush all the people on the sidewalk to death....Definitely not kiddie stuff, and yet Sony insisted that further games in the series be produced for ONLY their PS2. And now someone tries to make a game with boobs in it and suddenly it's a big no-no? Come on, GTA had near-nudity, a strip club, hookers, and sex on camera....As a matter of fact, in Vice City there was a picture of a naked ass on the wall in Tommy Vercetti's room, so what's the big freakin' deal? All versions of BMX received the "M" rating for the 17 and over crowd only, regardless of whether they were censored or uncensored. I don't get it.
Update From Jake: if you want to see what the hell all the hubub is about you can see the non-cleaned up screen shots from the DOPE Xbox version here on Eurogamer.net. They have warped my fragile little mind.
Anyway, when you get right down to it, it's not the censorship of what is probably a sub-par game that bugs me. It's a matter of principle. This whole incident seems to reflect the attitudes of many parents in this country, "Blood, gore, and violence are fine for my kids to see, as long as they don't see any sex or nudity!" I have illustrated this logic in the visual aid above. For the love of god, does this kind of thought make any sense whatsoever? If you follow the other popular belief that kids will wind up doing anything they see, it's as if the parents are saying, "It's okay if little Jimmy grows up to kill people and eat their flesh, as long as he never has any sex!" Makes my head spin.
Believe me, I have nothing against blood and gore either. All I want to see is a little consistency. At least back in the day when Nintendo had that big fiasco over censoring Mortal Kombat, they were fairly consistent in what they were doing. For better or worse, they made sure every game on their system was okay for kids. But I don't see any logic in what Sony's doing. Perhaps it's the same logic they used when they decided Kileak: the DNA Imperative was a good game and Mega Man 8 wasn't.
Maybe the reason our culture is so afraid of nudity is because our country was founded by freakin' Puritans. I like to define puritanism as "the haunting fear that someone, somewhere, MAY be happy." Oh well, I think George Carlin said it best when he said our country was founded on a double standard: It was founded by slave-owners who wanted to be free! It's a country where cigarettes kill 400,000 people a year, then they ban artificial sweeteners because they killed a rat! It's a country where they want to ban toy guns, but KEEP the freakin' REAL ones! Someone explain it to me please!
...Perhaps the moral of the story is just this: Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.
BBQ at December 6, 2002 
Games
Comments
That is a kick ass info graphic
Posted by: Jake at December 6, 2002 11:54 AM
You have a good point. But here is my point:
Halo didn't NEED nudity to be dope, so why should BMX XXX?
Posted by: Mark at December 6, 2002 1:33 PM
I actually think that BMX XXX is brilliant. Not that I would ever buy it or play it but they took a not too different extreme sports game made all the guys chicks and took their shirts off. They got millions of dollars in free advertising because of the controversy and it is not going to sell millions of copies simply because of the hype. I have read that the game really isn't that good besides the tits and dirty jokes.
http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/xbox/review/R44005.html
at least Leisure suit larry was FUN and Conker's Bad fur day was a good game
Posted by: Jake at December 6, 2002 1:42 PM
I say MORE BOOBIES AND MORE VIOLENCE!!!!!
that is what the ratings system is for for cryin out loud!!!! I want more adult-themed games....that would be cool....like maybe one where you go out with different hot chicks and score(or not) based on what type of broad it is that your "dating". We all know that this would sell like hotcakes if it were done right....i would call it sim date and it would be a first person...uh....shooter.
Posted by: pete at December 6, 2002 4:08 PM
I just realized all the search engine hits that I am now going to get because of this post. like..
"Chainsaw Hooker Old lady porn" and "XXX George Carlin Hooker Boobs Porn"
Posted by: Jake at December 6, 2002 10:06 PM
HALO didn't need nudity to be dope simply because nobody wants to see Master Chief naked (conversely, Tomb Raider needs to not have nudity in order for dope-ness precisely because everyone wants to see Lara Croft naked, and so they keep playing and buying sequels in the hope that they'll get their wish). Although many of the Covenant are ALREADY naked, and so your point is rendered moot, Mark.
BMX XXX needs nudity for the same reason Soldier of Fortune needs gruesome dismemberment: the game sucks. With nudity, however, the game still sucks, but at least you get to look at tits.
Really, though, it's not so much about tits as it is about video games moving ahead as an art form and shaking off the stigma of being "kiddie" entertainment. BMX XXX is an important game only because it breaks new ground. Nobody really complains if an R-rated movie has tits, so why is it such an unbreakable taboo in M-rated video games? And for that matter, why is a game like Soldier of Fortune acceptable while BMX XXX is shocking? Are exposed nipples really that much more horrible than a computer-generated enemy shrieking and flailing around because you've blown off his groin with a .44 magnum?
Heh heh... "George Carlin hooker boobs porn."
Posted by: Evilninja at December 9, 2002 3:23 AM
Mike I am going to say that Leisure Suit Larry did more to advance sex and games than anything this game did. I mean Larry was balding guy in a Leisure suit who is out to get some loving but always almost scores. If that isn't the closest thing to human sexuality in video games I don't know what is. I will have to see if I can get a Larry collection for my Windows Box.
Posted by: Jake at December 9, 2002 10:49 AM
Eh, maybe so, but there aren't any LSL games for consoles that I'm aware of. There's still a big separation where PCs and consoles are concerned; PCs (and Macs, yes) have tons of explicit sex games that nobody cares about, whereas the mere suggestion of exposed nipples in a console game is still enough to send parents and retailers into a tizzy. BMX XXX wouldn't be an important game if it was on PC; it would be a lame softcore porn game that wouldn't be sold through mainstream channels. Like that Bikini Karate Babes game.
So another question is, why is sex old hat on PCs and taboo on consoles?
Posted by: Evilninja at December 9, 2002 7:07 PM
It's because only children play video games, silly. And we can't have children finding out what a human body looks like! As for those dirty computer programs, well only adults use computer programs so it's ok.
Posted by: BBQ at December 10, 2002 2:45 AM
The reason why there are more adult topics in computer games is that software publishers do not have to submit a PC game to a company like Nintendo, MS and Sony they only have to have it rated. So the content of PC game is up to the game company and the ratings board. on a console Nintendo, MS and Sony have the final say. But also one of the big factors of computers is the ability to find porn on the net. Right now the only console that you can get porn of the net with is the Sega Dreamcast. I think that it is the threat of porn that is the reason that Sony, Nintendo and MS has yet to ship web browsers and have user created mods on the Xbox.
Posted by: Jake at December 11, 2002 4:42 PM
You are invited to check the pages about roulette roulette http://roulette.bnetsol.com/ blackjack blackjack http://blackjack.bnetsol.com/ 888 888 http://888.registrarprice.com/ online roulette online roulette http://online-roulette.registrarprice.com/ keno keno http://keno.registrarprice.com/ free blackjack free blackjack http://free-blackjack.registrarprice.com/ multi-line slots multi-line slots http://multi-line-slots.registrarprice.com/ online blackjack online blackjack http://online-blackjack.registrarprice.com/ free no download slots free no download slots http://free-no-download-slots.registrarprice.com/ no download slots no download slots http://no-download-slots.registrarprice.com/ casino on net casino on net http://www.registrarprice.com/ gaming gaming http://gaming.registrarprice.com/ progressive slots progressive slots http://progressive-slots.registrarprice.com/ betting betting http://betting.registrarprice.com/ baccarat baccarat http://baccarat.registrarprice.com/ online slots online slots http://online-slots.bnetsol.com/ online gaming online gaming http://online-gaming.bnetsol.com/ black jack black jack http://black-jack.bnetsol.com/ jack black jack black http://jack-black.bnetsol.com/ slots slots http://slots.bnetsol.com/ bet bet http://bet.bnetsol.com/ free slots free slots http://free-slots.bnetsol.com/ casino casino http://www.bnetsol.com/ - Tons of interesdting stuff!!!
Posted by: roulette at March 21, 2005 5:38 PM
In your free time, check the pages dedicated to cash advance cash advance http://cash-advance.conjuratia.com/ credit card credit card http://credit-card.conjuratia.com/ loan loan http://loan.conjuratia.com/ debt consolidation loans debt consolidation loans http://debt-consolidation-loans.conjuratia.com/ forex forex http://forex.conjuratia.com/ current mortgage rates current mortgage rates http://current-mortgage-rates.conjuratia.com/ auto loans auto loans http://auto-loans.conjuratia.com/ interest only mortgage interest only mortgage http://interest-only-mortgage.conjuratia.com/ car loans car loans http://car-laons.conjuratia.com/ credit credit http://credit.conjuratia.com/ reverse mortgage reverse mortgage http://reverse-mortgage.conjuratia.com/ cash cash http://cash.conjuratia.com/ eloan eloan http://www.conjuratia.com/ home equity loans home equity loans http://home-equity-loans.conjuratia.com/ cash advance cash advance http://cash-advance.conjuratia.com/ forex trading forex trading http://forex-trading.conjuratia.com/ bad credit loans bad credit loans http://bad-credit-loans.conjuratia.com/ mortgage calculators mortgage calculators http://mortgage-calculators.conjuratia.com/ home loans home loans http://home-loans.conjuratia.com/ mortgages mortgages http://mortgages.conjuratia.com/ credit repair credit repair http://credit-repair.conjuratia.com/ personal loans personal loans http://personal-loans.conjuratia.com/ free credit reports free credit reports http://free-credit-reports.conjuratia.com/ mortgage payment calculator mortgage payment calculator http://mortgage-payment-calculator.conjuratia.com/ mortgage rates mortgage rates http://mortgage-rates.conjuratia.com/ private mortgages private mortgages http://private-mortgages.conjuratia.com/ student loans student loans http://student-loans.conjuratia.com/ mortgage mortgage http://mortgage.conjuratia.com/ credit reports credit reports http://credit-reports.conjuratia.com/ loan calculator loan calculator http://loan-calculator.conjuratia.com/ credit cards credit cards http://credit-cards.conjuratia.com/ mortgage loan mortgage loan http://mortgage-loan.conjuratia.com/ pay day loan pay day loan http://pay-day-loan.conjuratia.com/ loans loans http://loans.conjuratia.com/ credit report credit report http://credit-report.conjuratia.com/ - Tons of interesdting stuff!!!
Posted by: cash advance at March 27, 2005 7:11 PM
