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The following is entirely my opinion and in no way reflects the entirety of Game Informer. Also, my opinion is subject to change based on the temperature and how much cheese I've eaten.
The video game industry is no stranger to controversy. What's more, Infinity Ward is up to its knees in its own private kiddie pool of the stuff. First terrorist-themed footage was leaked, which caused an uproar about whether or not Infinity Ward handled the issue appropriately. Then, just as that fervor diminished, the Modern Warfare 2 team released a video with a questionable acronym. It's a satirical video about the liberal use of grenade abuse, with a fake organization accredited at the end of the video called Fight Against Grenade Spam. You're smart; you can figure out the anti-homosexual slander. The internet picked up the scent immediately and cried foul, but was the aggressive responsive called for?I'll be the first to admit that Infinity Ward's 'joke' was in poor taste. You can ask almost anyone I know -- there isn't a ton of stuff out there that offends me. This term, however, has always been up there on the top of my list of ignorant, belligerent words that I hate. However, I also believe that context goes a long way toward determining how traditionally offensive words are be received. I don't believe that the intention of the video was to offend anyone's sexual orientation, but given Infinity Ward's stature, it should have known better. When you're developing a game as high-profile as Modern Warfare 2, every action you perform is magnified.That being said, I don't believe the word used in the context of the video is glaringly homophobic or anti-gay. Robert Bowling asserts that the use of the term was a "social commentary joke," picking out the ridiculousness tied to the online gamer "stereotype." I'm willing to believe Bowling here, and don't believe that Infinity Ward was out to gay bash, but more out to mock "Xbox Live Kids."I do believe that Infinity Ward should have tread more carefully. They slipped up. I believe that everyone should be treated equally and fairly regarding sexuality, but raising a s---storm every time a bad word is used, regardless of who uses it, doesn't solve anything. Infinity Ward may have pulled the video, but that will never change that fact that it was made, or help anyone dissect why they think this language was offensive in that particular context. It's just a perpetuation of censorship.In an industry forced to fight censorship tooth and nail every step of the way, what good are we doing by complaining so earnestly about a stupid joke at the end of a viral video for new video game? Is this really where everyone's energy should be directed? Truly malicious things are said on Xbox Live on a regular basis which are written off as "just being the internet." Perhaps the persecutors of Infinity Ward could save their stones for the source of the problem.
Email the author Tim Turi, or follow on Twitter, and Game Informer.
I agree about them just mocking kids on XBL. That was my first thought when I watched it.
I think IW know that they are about to release one of the biggest games of all time and are feeling a little drunk with power. Tone it down guys!
I think calling a handful of people who complained about it on Twitter "persecutors of Infinity Ward" is more than a bit much.
@Phil
I'm not sure that I referenced Twitter when mentioning Infinity Ward's critics.
i think the joke was at imature players and the foul language not at the....not sure how to politically corretly put it u know not to offend the homosexuals
Tim, the use of that term doesn't have to be glaringly homophobic to still be homophobic. I've seen a lot of people talking about context, and honestly, I understand where they're coming from. I'm a bit of an a**hole here in the real world. I have a tendency to say what I think without first thinking about what I'm saying, if that makes sense. I have been accused of being rude, snotty and insensitive. I have had to learn the hard way that what you say isn't half as important as what people -think- you say. In the case of this video, the fact remains that this particular F-bomb carries a lot of negative social connotation: even if they didn't mean it to be offensive to the 'mo population, it really could have been taken that way, and any 'mo in question would have been fully justified in feeling offended.
Further, there is a potential argument for this joke being more than just a joke. In a society where what is implied is often more important than what is glaringly obvious, I could see an argument for there being an implied insult. It could be argued that anyone who would support an anti-random-grenade group is a f*g. I mean, look at the group's name! It spells out a derogatory word. It could be construed that people who complain about random grenades are, in fact, f*gs. You see where I'm coming from?
The "joke," as it were, just wasn't that well thought out, and clearly a lot of people, both homosexuals and straight allies, are letting IW know what they think about what turned out to be a tasteless viral marketing campaign which might have an effect on their sales. You say that we shouldn't be fighting ourselves and censoring each other when the larger societal group is trying to shut us down every day. I say that we shouldn't be poking fun and making tasteless jokes which alienate members of our community. As a gay gamer, I was offended by the video. If I had been female, I'd have been offended by the video. If I weren't gay, but simply a straight ally, I would have been offended by the video.
@Joseph Breen
You raise very good points, friend.
I agree, I think using derogatory terms in a way aimed to directly alienate members of our society is a bad thing.
I also think that the original intent of Infinity Ward's (very unfunny) PSA has been completely thrown to the wayside in favor of attacking the use of a nasty word.
There's a laundry list of foul words that could cause any number of people to be offended, but shaking disapproving fingers at their use will solve nothing. It's important to hone in on the intended message, especially when things blow up to the scale this controversy has.
I appreciate you sharing your opinion, and thank you for reading!
The fact that a derogatory term serves nothing more than to disparage a particular person should be proof enough that actions such as this shouldn't be tolerated. You might call it censorship, but I'd like to think it's responsible and respectful behavior. Free speech shouldn't come at the cost of other people's feelings and reputations.
Here's the thing Tim,
Video games can't keep having it both ways. One the one hand, when Infinity Ward gets criticized for the terrorism footage, people (including me) come forward and are all "Hey these guys are SERIOUS ARTISTS trying to make a REAL POINT ABOUT WAR. Video games are ART!"....
but then they pull meathead stuff like this, and they try to play it off as "Hey c'mon man, it's just a bit of fun...don't take everything so seriously. It's just video games."
So which is it? Are we a real, grown up art form, or just fun B.S.? At least let's all pick one story and stick with it.
@Jeff
Very good points. I agree with you, Infinity Ward made an irresponsible move.
I'm simply saying that there needs to be more attention paid to what their original message was. Those that choose to only see slander and bigotry in the message are guilty to having blinders on, as well. It's my belief that it's always important to look past distracting vocabulary (in this case, very offensive vocabulary), to get to the root of the matter.
And frankly, I think they were pandering to their multiplayer meatheads, not parodying them. For Bowling to try to dress it up as "social commentary" is nearly insulting.
"but raising a s---storm every time a bad word is used, regardless of who uses it, doesn't solve anything. Infinity Ward may have pulled the video, but that will never change that fact that it was made, or help anyone dissect why they think this language was offensive in that particular context. It's just a perpetuation of censorship."
^^How do I have to "dissect" why that word is offensive? It's a slur. It's offensive. It's like saying that we have to dissect why the color blue is blue....
Also, despite what people think, actual "censorship" is when people take issue with what you say, it's the very opposite...you CAN say anything you want, but you are held accountable for what you say and other people have every right to take issue with it.
@Matt
I agree with you on every point you just made. I'm looking at this grenade spamming video as an isolated incident and dissecting its context.
Scaling it back, I definitely believe that Infinity Ward is sending mixed signals by endorsing this dumb video and simultaneously wanting to be taken seriously.
Very true, it's hard to tell which way IW is planning to go with the game.
It's very easy to overreact to this kind of message though. I'm not saying it shouldn't be argued against, since IW could have realized it would insult more than a few people, but there are some out there that can take this issue to too many extremes, trying to get back at IW. That seems to be the core of the article, is whether or not the homosexual community should be asking for an honest apology or demanding retribution.
Joke or no joke. I'm sure Infinity Ward didn't mean it to offend. But as a corporation, they should of left this joke in-house. I find that word F_G totally offensive. It's like.. Just because I greet my friends with "What's up my N-GG-R?" doesn't mean that's ok. Seriously, try pulling that one off. It's rude. And IW, while your intentions were to entertain, you should of known better. FAIL.
i couldnt agree more
Honestly, I never even noticed the acronym at the end of the message until I saw the editorials. Although its wrong they did that, I think people need to realize what they are saying. I feel that some of the people who were offended by this "joke" are being a little oversensitive. If I was a homosexual, I wouldn't want to associate with the particular f-bomb that was used in the video. People are complaining that the word is being turned into slang, well, that is whats happening. In my area, this word really does mean "moron" or "stupid." Only rarely does someone use it as a derogatory term for homosexuals, and when they do, the rest of the people they are with rebuke them. And lets remember, this isn't the first time the word has evolved, it used to mean a bundle of sticks, not gay. I believe that if the LGBT community will be willing to let go of this word, as it is inevitably leaving the definition of being gay, there won't be this issue in the future.
I am not condoning the use of this word by Infinity Ward, but I do believe people need to calm down a little bit. The company wasn't aiming the video at the LGBT community, but at those players that everyone wants to yell at for being loud, obnoxious, and just plain dumb. As for IW posting the movie, besides myself, I have seen several posts where people have stated they didn't even see the acronym, so its totally possible that Robert Bowling didn't notice it either. I'm just assuming he controls what videos go up, as I don't really know the inner workings of Infinity Ward.
As I stated before, I am not approving IW's actions, just stating my opinion on the matter. The joke, as I see now, was in poor taste, but if we are going to roast everybody for everything they mess up on, we need to take a serious look at ourselves. When the local prostitute was to be stoned at the city center, Jesus said "those who have not sinned shall throw the first stone." I'm not forcing down anyone's throat the Bible's version of sinning, but the message is still the same: if you haven't done anything "wrong," which going off of societies morals, which I'm willing to bet we all have, then you are at leisure to throw "stones" at Infinity Ward. If you have made mistakes, such as myself, we should review and correct those mistakes before going after others.
This is just how I feel on the whole matter, thank you for your time.
I just can't wait to see clan F**S.
I do think it's art, and as art, it can express anything it wants. Including satire of ignorance in the form of an ignorant slur. If you are offended by it, that's fine by me. I really don't care.
I do care that people won't own up to what they're saying when they use words like that in the manner most commonly assosiated with it. When you're trying to put someone down or hurt them, you arn't just being the internet. Just the internet...Well it's jsut a phone, hold on, I've got a few things to say to you...-dials- Dont' worry, it's just my mouth being told to do something by my brain. Seriously? Cowards. Just a word that means 'idiot'...Am I supposed to buy that garbage? It's just a word you use to put someone down. Own up to it.
I submit for evidence last night's South Park episode. Gay people are not f**s. People who complain about grenades kills are f**s.
As clever as some people would like to think they are...It's really like saying Black people arn't N*****s, racists(or anyone else) are N*****s. It's a nice theory and all, but it ain't gonna happen.
So either be smart enough to understand what you're saying, or strong enough to admit you knew what you were saying all along. None of this, I wanted to insult someone with it yet not be a biggot BS.
I'm in favor of infinity's right to shoot their sales in the foot all they want, but c'mon man. I ain't buy'n it.
But god I love South Park...