Battlefield 4 banned in China
If you look at some of the latest game titles you will notice that games often reflect what is currently happening in the world. COD: Modern Warfare was desert based likely to connect with the US conflicts in the Middle East. There was also a game called Homefront which, in my opinion, had the best backstory EVER but failed to deliver with lack luster gameplay, horrible maps and a storyline that ended too quickly. So, why is Battlefield 4 different? Well the primary antagonist is, China and China is one of the largest computer component markets in the world and also has a few smart people within its borders. That isn't to say North Korea or countries in the Middle East are any different but they aren't generally friendly with the US and thus less likely to buy such games. China on the other hand is rather offended and feels the game will threaten national security.
Summary: Chinese government outlaws the first-person shooter game, accusing Electronic Arts of developing content that threatens China's national security and is a form of cultural invasion.
It also accused the U.S. game developer for depicting a form of cultural invasion, according to a PCgames.com.cn report Friday. China's Ministry of Culture issued a notice prohibiting all materials related to the game in any form, including game downloads, demos, patch downloads, and news reports.
Set in the year 2020, Battlefield 4: China Rising features a fictional war in China triggered by Admiral Chang with plans to overthrow the current government. His success will be supported by Russia, but will bring China to war with the United States which relationship with the Russian is tensed. The game showcases the U.S. military's fight against the coup and Chinese Liberation Army.
As a gamer I know that there is typically very little in a game that reflects the real world but the actions portrayed can have negative repercussions. Case in point the COD MW3 "No Russian" mission. This short mission actually got the game banned in some places around the world and was so controversial that the gamer studio had to allow gamers to skip it. Likewise, the actions in Homefront "could" have started a war and the fact that Battlefield 4 is implying that China will go rouge on the world is a remote possibility.
Sadly things like this are what sells games and when someone has a problem with it the media goes wild and the game studio gets free advertising. I’m sure EA is saying "thank you world" all the way to the bank.
Related Web URL: http://www.zdnet.com/battlefield-4-banned-in-china...
