In response to a violent in-school incident that took place in Germany last week, a school principal has created the term “killergame,” and is attempting to implement a plan that would try and keep students from playing such games altogether.

A school in Ansbach, Germany was the location of the attack, in which an 18-year old male student reportedly injured nine classmates with a variety of weapons, including an axe, knives and Molotov cocktails. While games were not mentioned in the original news coverage of the rampage, Negative Gamer found and translated an article in which Brad Denning, Principal of the Schramberg Second School, touched on plans for making the educational facility “killergame free.”

Denning, courtesy of Negative Gamer's translation, stated:

Even if there isn’t a monocausally relation between excessive playing of games, leading to acts of violence, it still provides a twisted frame of reference of solutions for their problems and hardships, that they learn – and may transfer to the real world under certain circumstances.

The popular, World War II-themed RTS Company of Heroes is shortly to enter the Chinese game market as Company of Heroes Online, reports Kotaku.

When it does, all references to Nazi Germany will have been purged. The German side will be renamed "The Federation," while iron cross symbols on German vehicles and buildings will also be changed.

In recent times, Germany has become Ground Zero in the debate over video game violence.

Consider that the German Parliament is expected to consider a total ban on the production and distribution of violent games next month. Meanwhile, top-tier developer Crytek (Far Cry, Crysis) has threatened to relocate out of the country if the ban becomes law.

In the latest development, EA exec Gerhard Florin (left) has called for Germany to drop its USK content rating system in favor of the PEGI system, which is widely in use in other European nations. Said Florin:

What we're doing here [with USK rating] is censorship. And no one complains. When we talk about games here it's about violence or their alleged addictiveness, and not about their cultural status. The few good studios are asking themselves why they should stay here anyway.

USK boss Marek Brunner took issue with Florin's criticism:

It's hard when half-truths are being used. They say the USK does this wrong, the USK does that bad and why doesn't this get a rating?

Brunner noted that other government bodies influence the type of game content which can be sold, including the Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young Persons and the criminal courts.

Via: gamesindustry.biz

Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli seems determined to find a new base of operations if the German Bundestat passes a ban on the production and distribution of violent games next month. Crytek's games, of course, include the first-person shooter franchises Far Cry and Crysis.

Joystiq reports that Yerli made his comments while delivering the keynote address at GDC Europe in Cologne:

[This proposed ban] means that Crytek will be literally forced out of the country... If you move a company, you think of it as: let's move the company strategically, so we get more benefit out of this country. But moving it because a law comes in is too reactive for us. We're not thinking of moving unless the law happens.

As GamePolitics reported, Yerli made similar remarks earlier this month.

It seems like just hours ago that we linked to a report claiming that Germany had surpassed the UK as Europe's number-one video game market.

Oh, wait. It was just hours ago. Well, put a big oops! on that one.

gamesindustry.biz, which was among several sites that also carried the original story, is now reporting that the source of the data, Gfk Chart-Track, has admitted to a screwup. Germany is not ahead of the UK in game sales:

Gfk Chart-Track in the UK has contacted GamesIndustry.biz to admit that the press release it issued earlier today had been written using incorrect data. The company is expected to release a correction shortly. It is understood that Germany is not a bigger games market than the UK.

This is the second time in as many weeks that GfK Chart-Track data has been publicly questioned. Last week, Nintendo contacted GamesIndustry.biz following confusion over UK sales figures for the first half of the year.

GP: Somebody at Gfk needs to get their act together...

While violent video games are a major target of late for German politicians, that hasn't stopped Germany from climbing into the number one spot among European game markets.

gamezine.co.uk reports that Germany edged out the UK, largely because the current recession hit the UK software market harder, triggering a 20% drop in software sales.

The top selling game in Germany? Wii Fit.

Among other European countries, Portugal posted a 16% increase in game sales, while Sweden (The Pirate Bay notwithstanding) climbed 4%. The Netherlands saw a 2.4% rise.

Check out GamePolitics' recent coverage of game-related news from Germany.

Far Cry and Crysis developer Crytek has renewed threats to leave Germany if a proposed ban on violent video games is passed. As GamePolitics noted in June, the recommendation by German interior ministers would impose a total ban on the production and distribution of violent games.

Edge Online has comment from Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli (left) on what the unprecedented government action would mean for his company:

A ban on action games in Germany is concerning us because it is essentially like banning the German artists that create them. If the German creative community can't effectively participate in one of the most important cultural mediums of our future, we will be forced to relocate to other countries.

The current political discussion will deprive German talent of its place on the global game development stage, and deprive German consumers of entertainment that is considered safe and fun around the world.

How extreme is the anti-game sentiment in certain quarters of the German government? So extreme that in 2004, a SWAT team raided Crytek's offices. Crytek developer Tim Partlett described the scene:

In 2004 the Bavarian authorities sent in the state troopers... When the small tech team appeared to inspect our computers, they were accompanied by over one hundred flak-jacketed riot police, all armed with Heckler and Koch sub-machine guns.

It was a total overreaction... They arrived first thing in the morning, and kicked down our doors. They even raided the nearby private residences...

I was caught just outside the office...  We were all shepherded into our Mo-Cap room, and there we were forced to remain until questioned, prevented from leaving by dozens of armed guards...

More than 60,000 Germans have signed a petition against the ban, triggering a mandatory government review of the proposal.

Who says online petitions are a waste of bandwidth?

Earlier this month, GamePolitics reported on a petition posted to the official internet forum of the Bundestag (the German Parliament) opposing a plan by Interior Ministers to ban video games "where the main part is to realistically play the killing of people or other cruel or un-human acts of violence against humans or manlike characters."

The petition passed 50,000 signatures about two weeks ago meaning the German government will be required to review and discuss its requests.  Granted, this does not mean that the ban will  ultimately be reversed, but it is a step in the right direction. The petition itself reads:

The German Bundestag should decide against the decision of the interior minister conference from the 5th of June, that aims for a ban of action computer games. As an adult citizen and a person eligible to vote, I beg you firmly;

To erase the irritating and discriminating term of 'killerspiele' [killer game] from political discussion.

To strengthen the trust of the public in existing national youth protection mechanics.

To improve and warrant the execution of existing laws, that ensure kids and the youth only get access to video games and computer games rating according the USK.

To support parents and educationally responsible persons in the advancement of media competence.

To promote the computer games and video games industry in Germany and especially the training of these promising professions.

Via: GameZine

Reporting from San Diego, GamePolitics Correspondent Andrew Eisen...

With an apparent official crackdown against violent games underway in Germany, gamers have petitioned their government to back off.

German GamePolitics reader "Christian" explains:

In Germany citizens are able to post petitions in an official internet forum of the Bundestag. These petitions are "accepted" when 50000 German citizens electronically sign the petition. When petitions are accepted, the German government has to review, respect and discuss the petition's postulation.

At long last a petition against videogame bans in Germany is online. One can sign the petition here. To watch the development of the petition one can look here.

German gamer Matthias Dittmayer adds:

Yesterday 300 [German gamers] had signed [the petition]. Today it’s over 9000... With more than 50000 at August the 28th our parliament have to deal with the topic. We have no public decision concerning the national level. Just a right that they have to listen to the demand.

As I post this, more than 25,000 German gamers have signed the petition.

We have read some reports of late that German officials have banned the public display of Counter-Strike, forcing the cancellation of gaming competitions.

While information to that effect is sketchy so far, such a ban would be consistent with our May report on the forced cancellation of a LAN event in Stuttgart which featured Counter-Strike and Warcraft III competitions.

German gamers aren't taking these repressive measures lying down, however. An estimated 400 gamers assembled for a June protest march in Karlsruhe. German gamer Matthias Dittmayer e-mailed GamePolitics to let us know that more gamer demonstrations are planned for later this month:

Because of this [censorship] there was the (as far as I know) first demonstration of gamers in Germany with up to 400 gamers. The next 3 demonstration in Cologne, Karlsruhe and Berlin are announced for  the 25th of July.

Earlier this month GamePolitics reported that German Interior Ministers were seeking a complete ban on the production and sale of violent video games within Germany. Given more recent events, it appears that officials may seek to reach beyond German borders as well.

Although the Bundestag has not yet acted on the ministers' ban request, an online video game retailer based in Austria claims that the German state of Bavaria has moved to blocked access by German customers. VideoGamesZone.de reports that the Bavarian Commission for the Protection of Children Against Media Abuse filed a lawsuit to shut down Austrian online retailer Gameware.at. Company spokesman Chris Veber told VGZ:

We've called our lawyer and are appealing, of course... this is violating the freedom of expression and wrong specifications from the [German ratings body], since we are not sending our products out to minors and do not have videos showing violence at [our site]. We are not breaking any Austrian laws...

The economic consequence would be the [silencing of] Gameware.at. No one would be able to find us on Google, the advertisements would be gone, no magazine would be allowed to mention our name...

Veber conceded that violent games are big sellers for his company and that 80% of his customers live in Germany.

Meanwhile, longtime GP reader Soldat Louis reports that last week the Bundestag passed a law to block access to some websites. This would appear to be the legal vehicle being employed against Gameware.at:

Officially, the goal is to struggle against child pornography. But in reality, many people fear that it could be a giant Internet censorship system...  Indeed, now that the law has been passed, Thomas Strobl, head of the CDU for Baden-Wurtemberg state, called to extend it to "killergames"-related websites...

Global Voices Advocacy has more, including information on German citizens who are protesting the government's new policy.

GP: We'll be monitoring the German situation closely.

It appears that Germany's 16 Interior Ministers have banded together to ask the Bundestag (Germany's equivalent of Parliament) to ban the production and distribution of violent video games. Moreover, the ministers hope to see this accomplished before Germany's new elections take place on September 27th.

Although we're hampered a bit the language barrier, GamePolitics has received this information today from three German readers. Their accounts appear to coincide with this Google translation of a Spiegel Online report.

The move comes during a scheduled conference of interior ministers. School shootings, in particular the March 11th rampage committed by a 17-year-old in Winnenden, were prominently mentioned in relation to the group's demand for a ban on violent games.

If passed, such a move would affect not only German game consumers, but German game developers such as Crytek (Far Cry, Crysis). Under the proposed law, Crytek would apparently need to outsource development of violent games or even relocate its operations to another country.

Bomberman and Nazis - how often do you see those two in the same headline?

Negative Gamer reports that a former German politician, Martin Budich, has been arrested for allegedly invoking violence against Nazis via the well-known video game character.

Budich, who opposes the Nazi agenda (good for him), apparently took his fervor a bit too far by exhibiting the protest poster at left on a website. The image shows Bomberman holding a cake with a burning fuse serving as the candle. The text translates to “No cake walk for Nazis.”

According to Negative Gamer's interpretation of a Heise report, Budich's posting of the Bomberman graphic has been blamed by prosecutors for contributing to an "aggressive atmosphere" at an anti-Nazi demonstration in Bochum last October.

This wasn't Budich's first bust on such charges. He apparently has an earlier conviction in a similar case (sans video game characters).

Via: Destructoid

Last week's news that Germany would ban paintball and laser tag seems to have been premature.

The move came as part of the government's response to the horrific school shooting in Winnenden on March 11th. Violent video games also came under criticism from some German officials after the massacre.

The Local is now reporting that German officials have abandoned the plan to ban paintball:

Initial reports on the new gun law said that the ruling coalition had agreed to ban simulated killing games such as paintball... and laser tag... But Dieter Wiefelspütz, an expert on domestic affairs for the Social Democrats, on Wednesday said lawmakers had abandoned the idea of making paintball illegal...

 

The government, however, plans to conduct an enquiry to assess whether paintball regulations should be tightened by increasing age limits and other measures, Wiefelspütz said...

The sport is banned for those younger than 18, and is generally not played in military fatigues like in other countries. A report commissioned by the government in 2000 concluded it did not make people more likely to engage in violence.

Instead, German officials plan to pursue enhancements to existing gun control laws.

A pair of German researchers claim that violent video games are a creation of the U.S. military.

Writing in the latest issue of Current Concerns, Renate and Rudi Hänsel call for a ban on violent game and echo the military conspiracy theme espoused in the U.S. by followers of fringe political figure Lyndon Larouche:

During the nineties the killing simulators, employed for hand to hand combat in the US army and police, were released by the Pentagon to be sold for private use on the public markets. As a consequence the computer and video game industry that had co-operated with the Pentagon from the very beginning, boomed. Since then the so-called killer games have wreaked havoc among children and youths.

The US army’s electronic training programs for killing people must be taken back to the US barracks, where they came from. They have to disappear from civil society altogether. They may be appropriate for the purpose of national defense or fight against crime; they have no place, however, in children’s rooms or in living rooms.

In addition, the Hänsels relate violent games to school shootings and quote German and Swiss political figures who have called for a ban on such products.

Oddly enough, they also harken back to a post-World War II German ban on war-themed toys.

GP: Thanks to longtime European reader Soldat Louis for the tip!

We don't have many details on this one, but The Station Network reports that new legislation before the Parliament of tiny Luxembourg seeks to block sales of violent video games to minors:

New legislation was introduced through parliament yesterday meant to protect minors by punishing online sexual predators and violent video game makers...

“It's very bad that people make money by selling games where you can decapitate people to minors,” [Minister for Justice Luc] Frieden said. Those who provide games and movies that are too violent to young people will be condemned. Judges will determine the degree of violence.

While it is unclear what is driving the current legislative push, we note that Luxembourg is only a few hundred miles from Winnenden, Germany, the site of the horrific March 11th school shooting rampage.

Violent video games, a frequent political target in Germany, once again came under fire following the horrific school shooting in Winnenden on March 11th.

While there were renewed calls for a complete ban on violent games, it was, surprisingly, paintball and laser tag which, ultimately, will find themselves outlawed.

The Local reports that violators of the upcoming bans could find themselves on the wrong end of a €5,000 (about US$6,800) fine. Wolfgang Bosbach, deputy head of the conservative Christian Union parliamentary group, commented:

We have agreed on reasonable changes that will mean more security without over-regulating hobby marksmen and hunters... [Paintball and laser tag] simulate killing.

The Winnenden case also sparked a debate on gun control in Germany. The BBC has more.

Dr. Cheryl Olson (left), co-author of Grand Theft Childhood, was interviewed about the video game violence issue recently on German television.

The game violence debate, as GamePolitics readers know, has been raging anew in Germany since last month's horrific school shooting rampage in Winnenden.

Andreas Garbe, who conducted the interview, provides an English translation on his blog. Among other topics, Dr.Olson spoke about the oft-made claim that violent games motivate school shooters:

There is so much publicity about school shootings in the US, Germany and other countries. But a review of the data shows that this type of violence is not increasing – it’s the media coverage of the violence that has gone way up. So, people believe that school violence is much more common than it is. (Your child is actually more likely to be struck and killed by lightning than to be shot at school.)

The Secret Service and the FBI in the US have studied school shootings in an effort to identify a “profile” of potential shooters and prevent these tragedies. They were not able to find a profile. The only thing these shooters had in common was male gender and (often) a history of treated or untreated depression...

Dr. Olson also disputed the claim that school shooters learn to fire a weapon by playing violent video games:

Also, we researched the issue of whether it’s possible to learn to shoot from a video game. Experts told us that it’s actually not difficult to shoot a gun at someone who is not moving, is not shooting back at you, and is not far away from you – even if you have little experience with guns. Media reports on a few school shootings in the U.S. said that these boys had never fired a real gun, but learned only from video games; this turned out not to be true. They had practiced with real guns...

But Dr. Olson believes that video game ratings could be more useful:

In the aftermath of last month's horrific school shooting rampage in Winnenden, criticism of violent video games by German government officials has been on the rise.

In the latest political attack, Bavarian Minister of the Interior Joachim Herrmann (left), a frequent critic of violent games, upped the ante by likening such games to illegal drugs and child pornography.

Herrmann made the charge in a Tuesday press release (Google translation) which was issued to coincide with the government-sponsored German Games Award as well as a video game conference in Munich.

German GamePolitics reader David Ziegler provides this translation:

The statement contains the usual accusations that "such games are one of the causes for youth violence and also for school shootings, where images from killer games become reality",and that "more and more children are getting mired in this virtual world of violence", so that "they have no time left for school or job training,  and are lost to our society".

 

However, this time, he's taking it a bit further. The last sentence states: "In regards to their harmful effects, [violent video games] are on the same level as child pornography and illegal drugs, the ban on which rightly is unquestioned"

However, a second German official, Commissioner for the New Media Thomas Jarzombek, criticized Herrmann's remarks:

The comparison is completely inappropriate... anyone making such statements is unqualified to participate in any further debate [regarding the] protection of minors from harmful media.

GamePolitics reader tibuka, also German, adds:

[Herrmann's] statement was released on the same day as the first German Videogame Awards ceremony took place in Munich. In return, all important German game-associations (G.A.M.E., BIU, ESB) released statments of their own, demanding an apology.

In the aftermath of this month's horrific Winnenden school shooting, criticism of violent video games in Germany has hit a fever pitch.

Although there are no details on the origin of this photo, it appears to show an extra age warning label slapped onto Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. Germany's official USK label can be seen at lower left.

Are German retailers doubling up on age warnings?

Via: GoNintendo

Thanks to: Sharp-eyed GamePolitics correspondent Andrew Eisen...

As Germany continues to come to grips with the horrific March 11th shooting rampage that left 16 people dead, violent video games have come under renewed scrutiny by elected officials and others.

In the latest news, a gaming competition scheduled for March 27th in Stuttgart has been canceled. Winnenden, where 17-year old killer Tim Kretschmer began his rampage, is not far from Stuttgart.

As reported by Heise Online, the Electronic Sports League (ESL) match would have featured competitive play of first-person shooters Counter-Strike 1.6 and Counter-Strike Source as well as real-time strategy classic Warcraft 3.

An Associated Press report which appeared on the day of the rampage indicated that Kretschmer was a Counter-Strike player.

Stuttgart Mayor Wolfgang Schuster (left) cited the school shooting as the reason behind the cancellation. Although GamePolitics is working from a Google translation, it appears that, in canceling the ESL match, Schuster was concerned for the feelings of the families and friends of the shooting victims.

GP: Thanks to GamePolitics reader tibuka for the tip...

The fallout from this month's horrific school shooting in Germany continues with President Horst Koehler (left) backing a call to ban violent video games and movies, according to AFP.

The news service reports that Koehler made his comments on Saturday at a memorial service in Winnenden, where the rampage began. More than 7,500 people were in attendance, including families of some victims of the shooter, 17-year old Tim Kretschmer.

From Koehler's remarks:

All Germany mourns with you... Each child is born innocent, and when a child dies, it is hope and the future which dies too... [there should be restrictions on] the innumerable films and videogames of extreme violence, with their display of dead bodies...

Earlier, families of five victims had written to Koehler and Chancellor Angela Merkel, demanding that violent video games be banned and teens restricted from access to guns:

We want something to change in this community, and we want to help so that there can be no second Winnenden... We want killergames to be banned. Games, whether on the Internet or on the PC, in which the goal is to kill as many people as possible deserve to be forbidden. The same goes for all violent games which are, in their structure and presentation, very realistic and very bloody.

GP: Thanks to GamePolitics Forum mod Hannah for the translation of the remarks by the victims' families.

UPDATE: A German-speaking GP reader believes that Kohler's remarks do not go as far as to call for a ban on violent games, although the AFP report indicates otherwise. There is a lively discussion on this in the comments section - worth a read.

Violent video games have been under fire in Germany following the horrific school shooting carried out by a 17-year old earlier this month.

But while some German political and law enforcement officials have called for bans on violent games, the Harvard Crimson urges the government not to rush a judgment against the medium.

Instead, suggests an editorial, political officials' efforts would be better channeled toward keeping real guns, not virtual ones, away from toubled youth:

Few crimes are more disturbing than violent murders at schools... In the aftermath [of the recent German rampage], a call has gone out to remove violent video games from store shelves. Banning video games or enforcing a blanket social restriction, however, is not the answer.

After a tragedy such as this, video games often receive immediate scrutiny... Studies may have found corollary evidence linking violent games to violent behavior, but... correlation does not equal causation, and there is no convincing evidence of a causal effect here. There are simply too many lurking variables—socially awkward teenagers may play violent video games, but so do many perfectly happy teens. We cannot prove that playing the games somehow morphs teens into serial killers.

Many people are concerned and look to lawmakers to respond. We must be reasonable, however, in our expectations. There will always be sociopaths and oddballs... We cannot hope to make every single person happy or non-violent. Exaggerating the link between video games and teen violence in this case smacks more of political ploy than effective measure...

More of the weight of such crimes must fall on the parents and others who leave such weapons in reach... Stricter penalties and regulations on gun sales could help keep such weapons out of troubled hands, but, as long as licensed guns are available, we must work harder to keep them secure.

The head of Germany's police union in the state of Hesse has called for a ban on violent video games in the wake of a horrific school shooting earlier this month.

Echo Online cites comments made by Heini Schmitt, head of the Hessen German Police Union (DPolG):

It is known that in every situation in which a violent rampage (Amoklauf) has occurred, the perpetrator has had a remarked addiction to so-called killergames. The manner of the deed is astonishingly similar to virtual examples.

 

For him, the fact that roughly a third of children and youths "regularly and addictively escape into a virtual world" sets off alarm bells. Age restrictions for such games are often ignored.  There is admittedly no proof "that these frequent escapes into virtual killerworlds can contribute to such insane deeds", said Schmitt, "But neither can the role killergames be completely dismissed." 

 

When a chance to remove a probable cause exists, it must be used, insisted the chief of the national police union. "The world would be no poorer if there were no more killergames."

GP: Thanks to GamePolitics Forum mod Hannah for the translation!

As GamePolitics reported yesterday, German retailer Galeria Kaufhof is dropping 18+ video games and movies from its inventory in the wake of last week's horrific school shooting.

Reuters has reaction to the move from Stephan Reichart, who heads G.A.M.E., a trade association which represents German game developers:

I think (Kaufhof's decision) is a complete overreaction... it borders on impulsive hysteria. It would be sufficient if retailers made sure their cashiers don't sell this material to young people.

Since 17-year-old Tim Kretschmer's rampage, reports have emerged indicating that he played the first-person shooters Counter-strike and Far Cry 2.

UPDATED

Some GamePolitics readers have alerted me that our original translation of the German shirt was flawed. It actually reads, I choose no game killers, indicating that gamers won't vote for German politicians who seek to ban violent video games.

That's an important distinction over our original translation.

Thanks to longtime GP reader David Ziegler and our own ace forum mod Hannah for the correction!

-----------------

The blurb beneath the shirt reads (as translated by Google):

With this shirt you can clear position against the one-sided condemnation of gamers as a potential running amok through the established parties.

Amoklauf (running amok) is used in German to describe school shootings.

In related news, a pair of German retailers have stopped selling 18-rated video games and movies. German website PC Games reports that Galeria Kaufhof will no longer carry titles such as Resident Evil 5, GTA IV, Killzone 2 and Far Cry 2. It has been reported that Kretschmer played Far Cry 2 on the eve of his murderous rampage.

GamePolitics regular Soldat Louis (who alerted us to these new developments) also reports that German retailer Saturn is dropping 18+ games as well.

First-person shooters Counter-strike and Far Cry 2 have already come in for mention in relation to last week's horrific rampage shooting in Germany.

But World of Warcraft, not one of the usual suspects in the video game violence debate, has now been thrown into the mix by a German politician.

Welt Online reports that Germany's Minister for Social Affairs Mechthild Ross-Luttmann (left) has turned her attention to WoW:

Ross-Luttmann... aims to achieve a general age restriction for addictive computer games. World of Warcraft, for example – available to minors at the age of 12 – might in the near future only be sold to adults. In addition to this, parents need to be further sensibilized [sic]. “Parents must know what danger potential exists in their children’s bedrooms,” Ross-Luttmann said.

Computer game expert and author of "Digital Paradise" Andreas Rosenfelder is rather skeptical about demands like this. “I don’t see a connection between digital role playing games like World of Warcraft and shooting sprees,” he said. World of Warcraft is a game set in medieval times in which the protagonists can take on the roles of dwarfs, elves and wizards. There is no shooting in this game.

"In heated debates there can easily be some confusion,“ Rosenfelder said.

Ross-Luttmann also hopes to begin a secret shopper program in order to evaluate video game rating enforcement by German retailers.

Via: GameCulture

Earlier this week it was reported that 17-year-old German rampage shooter Tim Kretschmer was a fan of the first-person shooter Counter-Strike. In the past, video game violence critics have sought to link Counter-Strike to school shootings in both Europe and the United States.

New reports suggest that Kretschmer played another popular FPS, Far Cry 2, on the night before he killed 15 people and himself. In the U.K., the Times reports:

The teenage gunman spent the night before his spree playing a violent video game in which a heavily armed mercenary tracks down and kills an arms dealer, police revealed yesterday... Tim Kretschmer spent from 7.30pm to 9.40pm playing Far Cry 2, in which the player takes on the role of the killer.

Remarkable parallels emerged between the video game and the 17-year-old’s rampage. In the game it is essential to hijack cars to move around. Kretschmer hijacked a car... Characters in the game, which is made by the French company Ubisoft... wear black camouflage uniforms – the clothing Kretschmer wore on Wednesday.

Most sinister of all, Far Cry 2’s killer uses a Beretta 92 handgun, the weapon fired 112 times by Kretschmer [GP: Actually, the player controls a number of different weapons in the game]. The game... includes sequences in which the aiming, firing and reloading of a Beretta are portrayed in vivid detail. It also rewards players who shoot their victims in the head, the style of killing chosen by Kretschmer.

The Times quotes video game critic Lieutenant-Colonel Dave Grossman on the supposed influence of violent shooting games:

You can see their influence in the way these school shooters aim and shoot accurately and move from one target to the next, moving through people dispassionately.

But Walter Hollstein, a sociologist with the Council of Europe, disagreed:

It’s nonsense to assume they turn adolescents into school shooters. A variety of factors, such as helplessness, anger and loss of control, must come together for them to become the trigger, but the games themselves don’t make anyone a killer.

In additional news related to Kretschmer's rampage, Chancellor Angela Merkel has called for a tightening of Germany's gun laws.

Following the shooting rampage carried out yesterday by 17-year-old Tim Kretschmer in Southern Germany, calls have been renewed for government restrictions on violent video games.

GamePolitics is thankful to longtime European GP reader Soldat Louis for steering us to German language sources, including this Google-translated segment from Heise:

The President of the German Foundation for Crime, Hans-Dieter Schwind, calls... for a total ban on violent computer games, and a further tightening of the arms law. The criminologist said that the 17-year-old on the run even further to have done is a behavior the young people in games like Counter-Strike or Crysis could learn...

The Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann has... expressed demand for a ban on so-called killer games renewed... he said, it generally must be clearly said that the games were available, the obvious just in young people cutting inhibitions...

Soldat Louis also reports:

"I've just learnt that in Strasbourg, European representatives voted a resolution in order to prevent retailers to sell adult-rated games to minors."

Romandie News has the story in French. GP's Google translation follows:

In a report prepared for a long time and voted Thursday by an overwhelming majority, the European Parliament calls for common strategy is developed at EU level providing for "severe sanctions" for retailers who sell adult games to minors, or owners of Internet cafes that allow children to play games unsuitable for their age group...
 

"Of course there are also many games of great pedagogical value. The important thing is to avoid the frigid bad games in the hands of children", commented at the end of voting the Social German Democrat Evelyne Gebhardt.

Tim Kretschmer, the German teenager whose shooting rampage left 16 people dead earlier today, was a fan of the first-person shooter Counter-Strike, according to an early report from the Associated Press:

A 17-year-old who would give only his first name, Aki, said he had been studying this year with the shooter at a private business school, and described him as a quiet, reserved person.

 

Aki said the two played poker together, both in person and online, as well as a multiplayer video game called "Counter-Strike" that involves killing people to complete missions.

 

"He was good," Aki said.

Meanwhile, UK newspaper Telegraph reports that Kretschmer was experienced with weapons:

A former classmate said... "The only thing which stands out is that Tim was always very good with weapons. He mainly shot air weapons firing plastic balls, but the house had several gun cabinets occupying square metres of walls, mainly air guns."

 

"He was a pretty good shooter. He used to shoot in a forest behind his house. Sometimes we'd have air gun battles in the summer."

Another student told the AP that Kretschmer seemed troubled:

Sabienne Boehm, 12, said she recently met the shooter through a friend, and that he had shown her a note three weeks ago that he then sent to his parents.

 

"He wrote to his parents that he's suffering and he can't go on," she said.

GP: Video game violence is an ongoing topic of discussion among German political officials. Today's events will almost certainly spur additional debate on the topic.