Is Minecraft too violent? Somehow Turkey thinks so
In a list of games that people might expect to be banned for being too violent, Minecraft falls somewhere between Angry Birds and Tetris. Blocky zombies and obnoxious spiders might not seem like enough cause to ban the ultra-popular manual labor simulator, but that is exactly what may happen soon in the country of Turkey.
According to Turkey’s Family and Social Policies Ministry, Minecraft is too violent for the nation’s children, and it has recommended that the game be banned from Turkey. “Although the game can be seen as encouraging creativity in children by letting them build houses, farmlands and bridges, mobs [hostile creatures] must be killed in order to protect these structures,” the ministry’s report says. “In short, the game is based on violence.”
The report also notes that the game could lead to “social isolation” in children, which may seem counter-intuitive when you see masses of adolescents huddled around library computers after school. It even claims that children may become unable to differentiate between the game and the real world (the battle cry of every anti-game group) and might harm real animals or people. Or mine diamonds and build giant phallic symbols out of obsidian, whichever comes first.
“Minecraft is enjoyed by many players in a wide variety of ways”
While the “Survival” mode, which populates the world with zombies and other enemies, is the most common game type played by Minecraft fans, there are other options if players want a more peaceful experience.
“Minecraft is enjoyed by many players in a wide variety of ways,” a Mojang spokesperson told GamesBeat. “If people find [killing mobs] upsetting, we would encourage them to play in Creative Mode, or to enable the Peaceful setting. Both of these options will prevent monsters from appearing in the world.”
So far the ministry’s report is only a recommendation, and an actual ban of the game would require an action by Turkey’s government. Minecraft would not be the first western product banned from the country, as Twitter, Facebook, and other services have been banned in the past.
Screenshot taken from within Geodatastyrelsen Minecraft server near the Bellahoej warp point by Kyt Dotson
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