Jack Thompson: Mass Effect controversy 'ridiculous'

by Ross Miller on Jan 28th 2008 4:30PM

Perhaps the most well-versed individual on gaming controversy (by merit of instigating many of them), Jack Thompson has found a way to make the Mass Effect Fox News report more ridiculous by defending the game. Unfortunately, weather.com has not updated the current temperature in Hell, but we'll let you know when we find out.

Responding to the latest press release, Kotaku's Brian Crecente asked Thompson what he thought about the Mass Effect story. Thompson responded, "The guy who shot his mouth off about it had no idea what the Hell he was talking about." (We assume he meant conservative columnist Kevin McCullough and isn't confusing Fox News guest Cooper Lawrence's gender.) Thompson later added, "This contrived controversy is absolutely ridiculous."

To catch you up to speed: just after McCullough apologized for writing about Mass Effect's "virtual orgasmic rape," Fox News' Live Desk with Martha MacCollum ran a similar, ignorant segment on the "Sexbox" (so clever) title that pitted Geoff Keighley against a child care author who openly admitted she never played the game. Publisher Electronic Arts demanded a correction, Fox countered, and Lawrence apologized after gamers review-bombed her book on Amazon.

Source

Tags: bioware, ea, electronic-arts, fox, fox-news, jack-thompson, kotaku, mass-effect, Xbox-360

Reader Comments (90)

Wow.

I... I don't know how to respond...

You apparently did. (grumbles you got first post)

I don't know how to respond to your comment...

i think i summed it up quite well.

Jacks not that bad. He just doesn't want violent games for kids, which is ok. The way he goes about it is irritating and annoying, but his idea is right.
Him saying this shows that he is not on a crusade against games, which changes my opinion of him a lot.

Jack is being inconsistent. He went after "Hot Coffee" because it was a sex minigame (no nudity, wasn't normally accessible).

But Mass Effect has a sex subplot with nudity that rewards the player (Achievement Unlocked!), and he calls it "contrived?"

Don't be fooled. His credibility is falling. He's making small, inconsistent concessions now so that people won't totally ignore him when the big guns come out (pun intended).

Was I being fanboistic against Jack Thompson?

Jack Thompson ftw? ftl? Jack Thomson, FUCK YEAH!

got it.

He's being rather consisteny imo. He just doesn't like competition.

How about

o_0

Lone Starr, the difference is that this content is not hidden and is an acknowledged part of the game, and the game is rated accordingly. While I don't think there's a huge difference personally, these are cutscenes and content the ESRB was aware of when they issued the game's rating.

I really don't understand why Jack is defending Mass Effect though. Perhaps they ruined his chance to start stirring up controversy and draw attention to himself and he's jealous? Hell if I know.

@ DWell55,

I think that's a great point. I still wouldn't discout his obvious (and long-fought) moral crusade. By calling the controversy "contrived" and ridiculous," he sidesteps the fact that it carries the content he supposedly hates.

And I think the main reason he's saying this stuff now is because his credibility has been fried, especially after he's linked violence irl to video games unjustly.

"Jacks not that bad."

You apparently haven't read the forum comments he posted (confirmed real) on Joystiq, Kotaku and other sites. He really is "that bad". He's a troll disguised as a lawyer. And one lousy disguise it is.

Well this certainly is different... Weather.com needs to get those updates up quick.

Nothing different here:

1. Brian Crecente of Kotaku actively solicits Jack Thompson for public comment on a story about videogames and society.

2. Chris Grant's crew over at Joystiq breathlessly reprints his comments, conferring additional artificial legitimacy on Thompson.

3. Mainstream media sees that Jack Thompson's opinions have great significance in the enthusiast press, and invites him to participate in panel discussions when they need a 'videogames-are-bad' viewpoint.

4. Joystiq, Kotaku, and other blogs wring their hands and ask, "Why does CNN let this craaaaaaaazy mother-fucker say all this stuff on the air? CNN is making us gamers look bad!"

5. Go to Step 1.

Hell Michigan does exist, but it is surprisingly not on Weather.com

Hooba jooba wha?!

Someone had their prescription refilled at long last? It's amazing what thorazine can do for YOU!

http://www.2spare.com/_media/imgs/articles/a147_a5.jpg

*head explodes Scanners style*

Brilliant on Mr. Thompson's part. He's got to build a little momentum going into the GTA 4 release.

exactly

Yep. Just staking his position on the totem pole of game bashers. Hey, Cooper, that's Jack Thompson's butt on your head. [Picture Cooper Lawrence with crookedly open mouth.]

OH SHI-

Pigs fly.
Hell hath frozen over.
Kirk gets a wife who doesn't die.
Pot kettle black etc.
Cats and dogs living together.

That dead satellite in space that was just reported will now fall into the ocean and awake a giant beast that will destroy New York, thanks Jack you jerk.

That dead satalite was controlling JT once it died JT masters lost control over him.

Though clearly misguided, it appears Mr. Thompson has a streak of honesty and consistency as he is apparently unwilling to believe in the "enemy of my enemy is my friend" adage.

While I still recognize him as the raving lunatic he is, I do have to concede that he has ethics - at least some.

I knew jack thompson was going to do this as soon as the whole "mass hysteria" thing started!! he clearly isn't as stupid as these other pundits and as soon as he saw the uproar that was happening, he decides to side with gamers on this particular issue.

Now he can say whatever he wants about games like GTA and when we gamers role our eyes and say, "oh jack..." he can say "BUT I DEFENDED THAT OTHER GAME!! WHAT'S IT CALLED? 'MARS EFFECT'???"

Nintendo's stock slips... Jack Thompson is okay with an M rated game... EA did something right...

The apocalypse is nigh.

i'm scared!!!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And no one is doing jokes about how much kotaku sucks,man this is bad but Wait! There is still hope remember the world can't end until Nuke Dukem Forever hits the shelves.

"Next in Joystiq:Nuke Dukem Forever gets a release date".

Oh shi-

Hahahaha, he called Cooper Lawrence a man!

Mind = Blown

Just for that he goes up a notch in my book

That puts him at notch #165
right behind Hanna Montana

Are you kidding? Hannah Montana is #1 in my book (Miley Cyrus takes a close second, and Miley Stewart comes in at number 3).

just for that GoldenS1104
you go down 2 notches

that puts you at notch #124
behind Fernando

A genuine LOL for that, Tafka Jesus. Not loi, a real LOL.

Bravo!

Some find that scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark where the open the Ark, please.

Is it really 2012 already?

Yes, kids, it's the cleft-double chin again!

His vendetta is with GTA, not Mass Effect. But I suppose that his barring and some of the responses he's received over the years have finally gotten through to him; which is very important.

He's still a little crazy but I think the crazy has subsided a little.

holy crap, hell has definitely frozen over! @_@

WHAT THE FETH!!????

wha...ho..

o_O

Oh hay guys! I divided by zer... oh shit!

It's like Jack Thompson has become the new Candlejack, just say his na-

He just doesn't care because the story has nothing to do with him. If he heard about the nude scene first, he would've been all over it.

My perspective on everything has just changed.

Seems like a political move to me. Like he's trying to get on gamers good sides, at least somewhat (and it looks like it's working).

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Jack Thompson: Mass Effect controversy 'ridiculous'

Reader Comments (90)

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