Rumor: The Darkness is the banned in Singapore
by Alexander Sliwinski 
{ Jul 2nd 2007 at 11:45PM }
A Singapore based game website says The Darkness is banned in that country. They report that the "distributor responsible for bringing in games from 2K" says the title has been officially banned for "excessive violence." The same website reports that another 2K game, BioShock, is also on the chopping block.We can semi-understand the whole Manhunt 2 saga, we're even on board with some of Germany's issues causing The Darkness to be delayed there for a month, but why did Singapore pick The Darkness when there are plenty of violent games out there to ban? We'll admit that we aren't on top of our Singapore game banning rules, so we don't know what major issues they found offense to. Maybe it was the ever-present heart eating mechanic? Although, The Darkness' heart eating mechanic isn't offensive because of the gore, it's more offensive that it's such a tedious task that needs to be performed on every ... single ... body. There wasn't a more efficient way to make that concept work? The whole process seems tacked on for shock value ... ohhhhh, now we get it.
[Via GamePolitics]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ken Seang @ Jul 2nd 2007 11:50PM
And so it begins...
Myke @ Jul 2nd 2007 11:57PM
I was really hoping this wouldnt happen. this title better fly ok in the states and europe, i'm just worried the manhunt 2 thing has made it suddenly ok to ban anything even slightly taboo. i'm crossing my fingers
reppy @ Jul 3rd 2007 12:03AM
"Slightly taboo"? I'd hate see what you guys consider extremely taboo.
abstract_visions @ Jul 3rd 2007 12:12AM
Keep in mind that this is a country smaller than the city of New York... I don't think there going to be trend setters.
Pyronite @ Jul 3rd 2007 12:12AM
Err, it only "has to be performed on every... single... body" if you decide to perform it on every... single... body.
You know what I hate? Shooting. It has to be performed on every... single... bad guy. Why won't they just fall down on their own!?
Uzi @ Jul 3rd 2007 12:54AM
they had Half Life banned because of counterstrike
last time but had it lifted after there was an outrage in the local community
Saints Row is still banned though
time to add Darkness to the list then
kingofwale @ Jul 3rd 2007 1:04AM
you think the 96% of people who buy pirated game there care if the official game got banned? ;)
ZapDash @ Jul 3rd 2007 1:23AM
Much like illegal drugs, banning things only increases their desirability. This is the lesson they should have learned during the Manhunt 2 fiasco.
Unfortunately, just putting an M rating on things makes them a little bit harder to buy (and a lot cooler looking in the eyes of impressionable youth). Just look at the R rated movie trend and the number of kids who WILL find a way in to see them.
ThornedVenom @ Jul 3rd 2007 1:55AM
Dude, Singapore is known for banning a shitload of things... as you can say, it's a "fined" city.
Chewing-Gum for instance is illegal. Spitting and urinating on the floor is a crime. I don't think you're allowed to have pets neither. Oh, and beyond bans, they also have compulsory military service for all men once they graduate high school (I think it's 2 or 3 years... if you refuse, you go to prison for that long, and if you desert, you're exiled).
They're one of the greater powers in the South Eastern region, and one of the biggest ports in the world, yet they refuse to be Malaysian by being an independent country which is basically a city.
So I guess it's pretty much the price they have to pay to maintain order, independence and prosperity when you're such a little nation owning all of your neighbours. Relating to the article, banning The Darkness in Singapore isn't shocking nor newsworthy if you know the country.
k0sm0s @ Jul 3rd 2007 3:15AM
hmm.. as a singaporean myself.. yea i can say there a few stupid bans..
yet there a few ironies.. you couldn't find the PC version of GTA in stores.. yet all console versions of the games could be found.. same goes with other violent games..
and i can say that, even if they are banned, it is possible to find the game in singapore, as some stores will import them..
Dannybuoy @ Jul 3rd 2007 3:42AM
HELL! they eat dogs over there... so why can't they handle heart eating
k0sm0s @ Jul 3rd 2007 4:05AM
at #11: that's china.. dog meat is banned in singapore
Mikeo @ Jul 3rd 2007 5:23AM
Everyone knows Thailand and Malaysia pwns Singapore.
FACT.
DarkMirage @ Jul 3rd 2007 7:14AM
I think some people need to step out of their own countries once in a while. Some of the above comments are just dripping with ignorance and baseless elitism.
Dustin @ Jul 3rd 2007 9:19AM
Well, we can't all be a culturally refined as you DarkMirage...
Anyway actually I found the Darkness to be a very bleak gruesome game, what was awesome was that it wasn't just the violence but the tone of the game really made it great. Descent story, INCREDIBLE voice acting, just a great game! I guess I can see it being banned in these ultra liberal (I'm sorry "progressive") places.
What gets me is when I was playing it I kept thinking about how Manhunt 2 must have been just ridiculous, make me want to play it that much more.
ssuk @ Jul 3rd 2007 9:56AM
@12: It's Korea, actually.
sheppy @ Jul 3rd 2007 10:28AM
I do have to say, the first time I shot someone's kneecaps just to blow out their throats, I took a look at the Manhunt 2 footage again to make sure I wasn't missing something. The whole ordeal is bullshit.
And yeah yeah, foreign countries ban games so they are suddenly less than us. Whatever. Meanwhile my nephew got in trouble for reading a Mark Twain book in school.
jimy @ Jul 3rd 2007 10:40AM
kingofwale is right.
Singapore is very strict on family values and what not, but that doesn't matter since sooo many people there use pirated games.
Kinsella @ Jul 3rd 2007 10:47AM
I never get tired of eating those hearts. Yummy, bloody hearts.
Jon-Angelo @ Jul 3rd 2007 11:30AM
I never tire of eating hearts. You were going to run around and pick up everyones ammo anyway, might as well eat their hearts too right?
RPGS @ Jul 3rd 2007 10:46PM
ummmm Don't worry about this one guys. Remember this is the SAME country that banned the movie piroits of the carribean because of it's demonic content being to much for the Chinese people. Isn't that ironic? We are suppose to be the bible coutry that dont like demons! What is going on here!
paradoxt @ Jul 6th 2007 9:45AM
I somehow find it slightly over-the-top that games, not just The Darkness, are being banned due to the reason of "excessive violence". Why can't they just slap an "M" rating on it and restrict sales to minors?
@21: We didn't ban pirates of the carribean. It's been around since the first movie.
@9: Since when did we ban pets? :P