Postal Developer Weighs In On Supreme Court Controversy

Everyone has something to say about the upcoming Schwarzenegger vs. EMA case, including Postal developer Running with Scissors. Where does the developer stand? It appears that Running with Scissors is tired of being picked on by the media and industry alike. We could elaborate, but the press release below does a significantly better job of shedding light on the situation than we ever could.

Supreme Court To Define Law Regarding Video Games

Tucson, AZ: Video games stand at a crossroads, and Running With Scissor’s franchise Postal is poised directly in the crosshairs. The Supreme Court is hours away from hearing the ironically entitled case of Schwarzenegger Vs. EMA (Entertainment Merchants Association), a piece of mind police legislation that originated with a California law making it illegal for retailers to sell "violent" games to minors.

A frustrated Vince Desi, CEO of Running With Scissors, couldn't believe his company's classic brand was once again being dragged out as the poster boy for violence in video games. "Hypocrisy reigns again, the media and the game industry have chosen to put the spotlight on us and put us in the hot seat, and make POSTAL their whipping boy. It's important that we at RWS speak and be heard from, given the totally misleading and inaccurate article that appeared in the Wall St Journal back in 1997 and has been relentlessly repeated in the years since, becoming urban legend despite the fact that the story is almost entirely fantasy. The press, parents, politicians, and political puppets are missing the real issue here - it isn't virtual game characters, but the Constitution that is being shredded."

The constitutionality of this law, which has been denied by every court to which it has pled its case, goes to the big stage November 2, when the Supreme Court will decide whether electronic games - like films, books and every other form of art and entertainment - are protected by the Constitution's insistence on freedom of speech. Or will Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose entire film career was built around the exploitation of cinematic violence, forever have his name attached to a law that could theoretically have an impact on all forms of creative expression. If the California law is upheld, after all, it could easily be transferred to create censorship in all alternate media.

Eleven states have supported California's bid to demonize video games while eight states have declared their strong objection to the California mandate. Vince Desi added that "one of this controversy's most hypocritical elements is the historical willingness of the game industry to hide behind the 12-year-old POSTAL franchise only to find they now have to defend it". In a market that has produced literally dozens of games featuring extreme cinematic violence and outright torture, the first exhibit in this case will be the eight-year-old game POSTAL 2 that was never intended as anything but a satiric look at the degree to which Political Correctness has come to dominate our society.

Most legal experts doubt that the California law will be upheld in the face of Constitutional precedent, but we'll all know soon enough.

For more information on Postal software and gear, as well as updates on the development of POSTAL III and other POSTAL products, visit our newly expanded site www.runningwithscissors.com which includes links to both our GoPostal and POSTAL Babes sites. Also watch for the latest emailing of Choice Cuts for in-depth coveage of the highest lights on the RWS scene.

Desi makes similar arguments as the Entertainment Merchant Association and other groups who oppose the proposed legislation. It’s still a bit funny, however, to see Running with Scissors get up in arms about their franchise’s legacy in the same press release that promotes their very NSFW Postal Babes website. It seems that Running with Scissors can’t decide if they want to be in the press, or out of it.