LA Noire and the Racist Language - "N Word" Sparks Rating Mention
Uses words that will make liberals literally faint
So, LA Noire is set in the USA in the late 1940s before the Civil Rights movement got going, right? Right? That's some context you might need before reading the ESRB's Mature rating summary of the game.
The US game ratings board (still run by humans... just) states that:
"Language such as 'f**k,' 'sh*t,' 'c*nt,' 'n**ger,' and 'sp*c' can be heard in the dialogue". That's right. Not only are the vile rude words that are never uttered in decent company used; words such as 'Feck' and 'Cant', but also words that are not used inside decent, politically correct (if historically wrong) sitting rooms such as 'nigger' and 'spic' which would (and probably are) being used by the criminal and police classes.
Prepare for uproar.
The rest of the summary reads:
"This is an 'open-world' action-adventure game in which players assume the role of Cole Phelps, a rookie detective on a mission to stop a deranged serial killer. Set in late 1940s Los Angeles, the game allows players to advance through various 'desks' at a police department (i.e., Patrol, Traffic Squad, Homicide, Vice, Arson) by interviewing witnesses and suspects, searching crime scenes for clues, and apprehending criminals. Players use pistols, rifles, machine guns, and flamethrowers to engage in firefights with various enemies—these shootouts are highlighted by realistic gunfire, cries of pain, and blood spurts that stain injured characters and the surrounding environment.
"Cutscenes also depict instances of violence, including a character being beaten with a crowbar (off screen)—large spurts of blood are depicted in the foreground. During the course of the game, players may come across crime scenes in which badly beaten or mutilated corpses are subject to investigation; players are able to examine victims' bodies close-up, surveying various bruises and bloody cuts for evidence—a few female corpses are depicted fully nude with fleeting images of pubic hair.
"Investigations sometimes pertain to sexual assault crimes, and details are often conveyed in clinical terms through dialogue or on-screen text (e.g., 'He's some kind of sex fiend,' 'Woman's briefs torn at seams, forcibly removed,' and 'Head trauma . . . external bruising to genitals.'). In one cutscene, there is an implication that a character is engaged in a sexual relationship with a teenager (e.g., 'You take love where you can find it as you get older, Jack'/That has nothing to do with love . . .').
"Some sequences allow players to collect/manipulate drug-related evidence such as marijuana packets, morphine syringes, or amphetamine pills; in one cutscene, a doctor can be seen injecting a character with morphine.
"Language such as 'f**k,' 'sh*t,' 'c*nt,' 'n**ger,' and 'sp*c' can be heard in the dialogue."
Source: ESRB
The US game ratings board (still run by humans... just) states that:
"Language such as 'f**k,' 'sh*t,' 'c*nt,' 'n**ger,' and 'sp*c' can be heard in the dialogue". That's right. Not only are the vile rude words that are never uttered in decent company used; words such as 'Feck' and 'Cant', but also words that are not used inside decent, politically correct (if historically wrong) sitting rooms such as 'nigger' and 'spic' which would (and probably are) being used by the criminal and police classes.
Prepare for uproar.
The rest of the summary reads:
"This is an 'open-world' action-adventure game in which players assume the role of Cole Phelps, a rookie detective on a mission to stop a deranged serial killer. Set in late 1940s Los Angeles, the game allows players to advance through various 'desks' at a police department (i.e., Patrol, Traffic Squad, Homicide, Vice, Arson) by interviewing witnesses and suspects, searching crime scenes for clues, and apprehending criminals. Players use pistols, rifles, machine guns, and flamethrowers to engage in firefights with various enemies—these shootouts are highlighted by realistic gunfire, cries of pain, and blood spurts that stain injured characters and the surrounding environment.
"Cutscenes also depict instances of violence, including a character being beaten with a crowbar (off screen)—large spurts of blood are depicted in the foreground. During the course of the game, players may come across crime scenes in which badly beaten or mutilated corpses are subject to investigation; players are able to examine victims' bodies close-up, surveying various bruises and bloody cuts for evidence—a few female corpses are depicted fully nude with fleeting images of pubic hair.
"Investigations sometimes pertain to sexual assault crimes, and details are often conveyed in clinical terms through dialogue or on-screen text (e.g., 'He's some kind of sex fiend,' 'Woman's briefs torn at seams, forcibly removed,' and 'Head trauma . . . external bruising to genitals.'). In one cutscene, there is an implication that a character is engaged in a sexual relationship with a teenager (e.g., 'You take love where you can find it as you get older, Jack'/That has nothing to do with love . . .').
"Some sequences allow players to collect/manipulate drug-related evidence such as marijuana packets, morphine syringes, or amphetamine pills; in one cutscene, a doctor can be seen injecting a character with morphine.
"Language such as 'f**k,' 'sh*t,' 'c*nt,' 'n**ger,' and 'sp*c' can be heard in the dialogue."
Source: ESRB
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Comments
Cfan 19 Apr 2011 15:50
1/6
The N word is unnecessary though typical Rockstar.
There's already enough racist dickheads in gaming without attracting more.
There's already enough racist dickheads in gaming without attracting more.
deleted 19 Apr 2011 16:16
2/6
@Cfan
No one knows controversy sells better than Rockstar, maybe they should do what Battlestar Galactia did and change those naughty words every so slightly!
No one knows controversy sells better than Rockstar, maybe they should do what Battlestar Galactia did and change those naughty words every so slightly!
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Ol101 20 Apr 2011 06:56
3/6
I guess it's periodic though? Cos they thought differently
Cfan 20 Apr 2011 08:18
4/6
Of course it's because of the period, but like I said unnecessary.
Pretty sure it would of been just the same game without it included.
I hope Rockstar loses sales because of this (riiight) getting pretty bored of their cut and paste GTA games and yes that includes Red Dead or if you'd prefer: GTA reskinned. Was I the only one to get bored of Red Dead within two hours of playing it?
Pretty sure it would of been just the same game without it included.
I hope Rockstar loses sales because of this (riiight) getting pretty bored of their cut and paste GTA games and yes that includes Red Dead or if you'd prefer: GTA reskinned. Was I the only one to get bored of Red Dead within two hours of playing it?
Anon 20 Apr 2011 12:43
5/6
@ Cfan. I'm not surprised you got bored if you only played it for 2 hours! Hardly past the tutorial i'd have thought. You must have a short attention span or are you so ungrateful as to ignore the artistry that has gone into such a huge and let's face it, brilliant title? It's the modern scourge of gaming. Impatient, ungrateful gamers who don't know they've got it so good. Red Dead had one of the best settings of any game ever and was even capable of teaching people about a very significant period in world history. The environments were remarkable, the characters well realised (even compared to GTA titles) and the gameplay was very solid.
And on topic: I think it is perfectly acceptable to include outdated phrases if you are try to acurately portray a certain time and place. How many films have you seen that aren't set in the 1940's that use language like that? So what's their justification? Perhaps to portray something that exists no matter what the date? Rascism is, of course, disgusting in all it's forms but it exists. If you were describing the human race to aliens would you purposely avoid to mention all the bad things we do and say in order to give a good impression? The truth can be painful but sometimes it's essential if you want to honestly represent something such as 1940's LA.
And on topic: I think it is perfectly acceptable to include outdated phrases if you are try to acurately portray a certain time and place. How many films have you seen that aren't set in the 1940's that use language like that? So what's their justification? Perhaps to portray something that exists no matter what the date? Rascism is, of course, disgusting in all it's forms but it exists. If you were describing the human race to aliens would you purposely avoid to mention all the bad things we do and say in order to give a good impression? The truth can be painful but sometimes it's essential if you want to honestly represent something such as 1940's LA.
metoo 17 May 2011 19:42
6/6
@Cfan oh my! are your feelings hurt? awww poor thing. people are too wimpy these days