The Canadian Teachers' Federation, a group representing four million teachers in several countries, is calling for the ban of Bully: Scholarship Edition, a game it says glorifies bullying. Here we go again...
"We're asking retailers to be responsible," said Emily Noble, president of the Canadian Teachers' Federation. "Yes, they can sell it and make a buck out of this, but is this the kind of marketing that they want to be [doing], selling games that glorify violence?"
PC World and Currys have already refused to stock the Xbox 360 and Wii updates, as they did with the PS2 original.
The game's sparked even morearguments in the UK by changing its name from Canis Canem Edit back to Bully, which is more than enough to upset middle aged mums who haven't played it.
Niall Cowley, of the charity BeatBullying, said earlier this year: "We're disappointed this game was created in the first place. Some mindless people thought this was a fun, interesting piece of software to create, but it undermines all the hard work that organisations like ours are seeking to do."
In a statement, a Rockstar spokesperson said: "It is a comedic romp. The last game sold fabulously in the UK and was critically acclaimed.
"It is not a game about playing a bully. It is about the trials and tribulations of a boy in his first year at school. He protects children against other characters. People have to be able to make their own decisions and to judge for themselves, with an open mind."
Scholarship Edition is out in the UK this Friday. Maybe after that, we can quit talking about it.
Mar 5, 2008
