Banned Gay-Bashing Game Hits Eastern Europe
A Flash game that asks players to shoot naked men in order to avoid being sexually assaulted has caused a stir in Eastern Europe. Watch Out Behind You, Hunter! originally surfaced back in 2002 on a French site, but was banned after gay rights activists mounted a protest.
Now the gay-shooting Flash game has cropped up on a site hosted in Georgia and boy, has it angered Eastern Europeans who support gay rights.
From Gay Armenia:
This is totally disgusting...Children as young as six are familiar with the site and regularly play online games there.... I wonder, where are the voices of those religious-minded people in Tbilisi, Georgia, who swear in the name of Georgian patriarch and constantly cite Bible to 'justify' their homophobia and hatred. Is this their (un-)'orthodox' way of bringing up children by creating an image of enemy (=gays) and teaching how to deal with it (=kill them)?
Eastern Orthodoxy may not have much to do with this game, but friction between the church and Eastern European gays is nothing new. Meanwhile, Uzinagaz, the French site that originally hosted the game, has defended it by saying it was never intended to be homophobic - the game mocks homophobes, not homosexuals.
Uzinagaz operator Jean Christoph Cavalet, explained a sense of bewilderment:
I have to say that at the beginning, we really didn't understand why the [French gay rights] association was attacking us. The guy who came up with the game, Stéphane Aguie, wanted to mock hunters and red-necks, not gay men.Our games are not politically correct. They're aimed at teenagers (12-18) and it's true that they're of a juvenile humour. I realise now that this one in particularly could be found shocking, but I believe that you should be able to make this kind of joke in the name of freedom of speech.
Uzinagaz has found itself under fire before: swastika throwing stars and a controversial 9/11 Defender clone have all brought heat to the French site. What do we think, gay gamers? The kid in me doesn't fail to admire an iconoclastic spirit, but a game about shooting gay men seems insupportable under any circumstances. Whatcha think?
Gay Rights Activists in Eastern Europe Slam French Flash Game [GameCulture via GP]
tiny dancer
Posted to Hot Stuff, Video Games on 20 July 2009
· Comments (9)
Other stuff like this: flash game, gay bashing, homophobia, watch out behind you hunter
If he thinks this game isn't offensive, perhaps he should make another game where the object is to shoot the muslim (you know, before he makes you wear a burka or pray towards Mecca)...something tells me his desire for "free speech" would dry up pretty quick. What a douchebag.
Of course, if you actually play the game, you can simply put the "hunters" by some gay dudes and, shall we say, let the gay's "win".
I realise it may not be the most popular opinion around here, but I thought the game was fun. I mean to lose… intentionally.
"Eastern Orthodoxy may not have much to do with this game"
Right. Nothing to do with it.
Except for the fact that Abrahamic religion is the primary source of all homophobia, of course.
Eshto: Homophobia did not start with the hebrew bible. Go talk to some gay hindus if you don't believe me.
So, the game makes fun of homophobic rednecks by making the player sympathize with them?
That's not exactly offensive, it's just epic failure.
That game was pretty fun back in the day...
presumeably 6-10% of all the people we already shoot in games are lgbt :)
I say we gay people still need to work on self-irony... :P
I can see why the game would offend someone, but I'm personally not offended. It's a stupid joke game, there's one about everything, so why not about gay men trying to rape a hunter? ;)
It was a fun game back then, & I was 14 & it didnt effect me. It was one game I didnt mind losing!!