I really don't see the point of this game. I'm not into learning games, and this doesn't seem fun. Why can't you learn about the Holocaust on the internet or something?

@H

Hehe am I the only one thinking SimHolocaust or Holocaust Tycoon?

Why are Americans so scared of reality? We have great holocaust films like Schindler's List and The Pianist, so why not games?

Oh, yeah, because all games are intended for children regardless of the rating.

It should be banned for horrific grammar.

This game have every right to be released...

Or else what will this send to Nintendo and their adult gamers who want to play games that explore all these tough issues...

If I was at Nintendo of America right now, I will be pushing HARD for this game's release on the American market and show that Videogames have the BALLS to tackle serious historical issues in a mature way.

I'm all for anything that teaches people about the holocaust. It seems a shame that such a thought provoking game won't be published (anywhere let alone the US it seems looking at Luc's blog).

Anyway, here's hoping good sense will prevail and the game will be released.

Gift.

Awwww... but so many people will be disappointed!!

People act like they just love to line up and bash Christians and Jews - they are depriving them of their self-important ego boosting glory!

I bet with the intolerant self-righteous masses out there anymore, a game where you shoot, gas, and bomb Christians and Jews would be ever so popular! They would simply love it!

Okay my comments keep getting eaten. But there is an update at gamesindustry.biz on this. This whole deal is just people jumping to conclusions.

@ John

That is just a minority of the US population.

yeah, a regional non-release of DS games is stupid because they're region free.

Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it, and if stuff like this keeps up, some will forget their history

This remids me from Holocauster Tycoon.

I agree it doesn't sound like active censorship just hypersensitivity to causing offence and plain old commercial concerns.

Gift.

I hope this sees a US release, as I want to play it. The visual style and the concept has me intrigued

I'm very glad that Myrna Shinbaum chose a moderate approach, and refused to comment the game itself, as she had not seen it yet.

About the opportunity of making such a game, it reminds me a previous GP story, about whether you could make a "Schindler's list" game or not. And my answer is the same : you have the right to deal with such a topic in a game or a movie (like "Life is Beautiful"). What you don't have the right to do is to fail.

I find it odd that it's not being released in North America, but it would in Europe. Shouldn't this game be the most offensive to Europeans since the holocaust happened in Europe. It's like saying that North Americans could play a 9/11 game, but Europeans can't.

It shouldn't surprise me that a mainstream news publication garbles a game story. It does make me wonder what else they get wrong...

@KayleL "Shouldn’t this game be the most offensive to Europeans..."

Done poorly it would likely offend survivors, their relative or Jewish people generally. Europeans on the other hand, well I don't think it would cause offence to most people; even in the countries directly involved it's widely accepted that terrible atrocities were committed.

Gift.

Oh god Nintendo. Not this again Nintendo. They're returning to the NES/SNES era when they censored anything that has anything to do with religion.

It's good it won't be released in the US, I'm sick of the holocaust being stuffed down my throat.

So this was a rumor most likely. Well, I d hope this comes out as video games can indeed be a good teaching tool.

So does this mean they haven't submitted it to Nintendo for certification or just haven't approached them yet?

So this is a fictional game based on fictional historical fact? So its just zionist propaganda game. Coo...

@ notebook

If people aren't going to read the update, they won't read your comments either.

Well... I'm quite fond of both propaganda and history, so I'd definitely play a game like this. Hell, I'd even play a revisionist game if given the opportunity -- I find it fascinating to see the different ways that the holocaust is portrayed.

@H

That could be interesting. How about a game (probably a Mass Effect style RPG) where someone has messed around with time and actually prevented the holocaust? You'd have to actually go back to several key points and CAUSE the holocaust to happen to rectify history. Without the outrage over the holocaust, the nazis were not demonised and the resistance was a lot less, they managed to beat the allies in europe and secure the continent. After they did, they then started the non-aryan purge and caused millions more casualties.

It could be a really interesting and creepy morality play, do you sacrifice the 10+ million that died in the 1940s as well as your own self respect or save them only to have 30+ million killed in the 1950s and have the nazis in control of europe?

I'm thinking you could manipulate the wannsee conference, develop anti-jew propaganda (hehe maybe jews play compuer games & are therefore a danger to society) and perhaps even manipulate hitler into jewish hate before the war. After each mission you would have some sort of period of self reflection set in your character's native time & see how your actions are affecting your character, if your character seems to enjoy it too much, his wife/husband/dog may not speak to him anymore.

I like stories without a happy ending and the thought of the needs of the many outweighing the needs of the few has always resonated with me (and not just because I watched Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan the other day).

From the article:
Myrna Shinbaum, spokeswoman for the Anti-Defamation League, said that she had not seen Mr. Bernard’s game and could not assess whether it was tasteful. “We certainly believe that we have to find new ways of teaching lessons of the Holocaust as new technologies are being developed,” she said.

Oh my, 'I haven't seen it so I can't comment'? Am I reading this wrong or is someone doing the sensible thing here?

Nobody would probably buy it anyway.

@Harry Miste

I beg to differ. I learned quite a lot playing Professor Layton (puzzles and common sense), and Chains of Olympus (Greek mythology)

@ Aliasalpha "They could also do a game about the extermination of the Tasmanian aborigines"

Except that doesn't make it into British School history books... I wonder why. Come to think of it, I don't recall being taught much about the concentration camps used on a massive scale during the Second Boer War either.

Gift.

@Cryptic, re: Storm88:

See? Now THAT'S a proper troll.

@Aliasalpha:

Ahh, but why kill the troll when you can charm him and make him dance?

@Storm88:
What about Bono? He's a huge pompous jerk who just wants attention and money, but he's not a Jew, now is he?

As I thought you jumped the gun GP,sensationalism FTW!!
:P

I don't like the idea of banning or rejecting material before it's completely presented as it is and I can't stand the idea of prejudice behavior by the big corporation. However, it is their right to make decisions on what can be produced for their products.

With that being said, a game that can teach history is something we'll never see happen and I'll explain why. In a game, your goal is to get from start to finish and accomplish the goal that is presenting a conflict for you. In Mario games, you're to navigate through the world and save the princess from King Koopa (or Bowser). Your mind as a player is to have fun and have action going through it. A game that attempts to teach history can only state facts. It will never force the player to know how the events really happened or draw any emotions about what people felt. That is best left for books and movies/television. So, in my honest opinion, I understand why Nintendo would consider not marketing a US Release for that. Since NoA doesn't make European release decisions, it's not their field of authority to say what can be marketed in Europe and what cannot.

I would like to see more developers attempting a new style of games that help develop skills and provoke emotions from people but if you're asking to educate someone through an entertaining game, I'd say that's an almost impossible task. It can be done (maybe Jerry Bruckheimer can direct the game) but the odds are against the developers.

Guys, what is CSPAN?