Switzerland set to ban violent videogames
Here’s some bad news for gamers living in Switzerland; a new law has just been passed in the country which will see any game given a PEGI 16+ or 18+ rating banned from sale.
The new ruling states that any game that “requires cruel acts of violence against humans and humanlike creatures for in-game success” will be banned. As far as I’m aware, that pretty much rules out 90% of all games; even Super Mario stomps on the head of his evil doppelgänger Wario every once in a while.
While the finer details of what aspects of games will or will not be made available to Swiss consumers have yet to be finalised, definitely expect the likes of God of War III, Alien vs. Predator and any future incarnations of the Mortal Kombat franchise to unsurprisingly come under fire.
A similar system is already in place in Australia, with many games either heavily edited or banned outright before an Aussie release is allowed.
If any readers can think of any nifty ways around this new law (such as cheap and legit import methods), do list them in the comments below. I’m sure our Swiss brethren will appreciate it.
