A video game scene which implied sexual assault and allowed gamers to either shoot the abuser or walk away has been altered for Australian players – but only to change the female victim’s outfit from a skirt to pants.
Call of Duty: World War II is set to be released on November 3, and as the title suggests, centers around the Nazi takeover of Europe and violent nature of the German death camps.
In one particular scene the player controls Rosseau, a female spy, as she infiltrates a German building.
In one particular scene the player controls Rosseau, a female spy, as she infiltrates a German building (pictured)
While inside the building she sees a woman being dragged against her will by a Nazi soldier. She is forced into a closet and can be heard screaming, ‘You’re all pigs!’
While inside the building she sees a woman being dragged against her will by a Nazi soldier. She is forced into a closet and can be heard screaming, ‘You’re all pigs!’
Rosseau opens the closet door as the soldier says: ‘Leave. This is none of your business.’ The player is then given the option to kill the soldier or leave.
If the player does choose to leave they close the door just as the soldier is heard unzipping his fly and seen advancing towards the woman.
She screams, ‘Ah! Get away from me!’ as Rosseau leaves.
While at no point is sexual assault witnessed by the player, the implications are so obvious Activision altered the scene before resubmitting the game to the Classification Board for review.
That altering involved taking out the sound of the soldier unzipping his fly and changing the female victim’s clothing from a skirt and top to pants and a top.
Rosseau opens the closet door as the soldier says: ‘Leave. This is none of your business.’ The player is then given the option to kill the soldier or leave
That altering involved taking out the sound of the soldier unzipping his fly and changing the female victim’s clothing from a skirt and top to pants and a top
With these new changes the game was able to keep its classification rating of R18+ for ‘high impact violence and online interactivity.’
There were mixed reviews online about whether the changes were warranted.
‘These are games for adults. We’re capable of consuming literature of all sorts and kinds that have contentious and grotesque inclinations and so long as they’re not glorifying hate towards minorities then they should be available to be seen,’ one person wrote.
‘The short of it is that the persistent use of sexual violence to evoke an emotional response in video games is lazy, exploitative, and a disrespectful way to handle the subject,’ another said.
It’s not clear whether these changes were made solely for the Australian market or whether they will be reflected worldwide, gaming website Kotaku reported.