The Universal Society of Hinduism has called for Sony to withdraw PS2 game, Hanuman: Boy Warrior, recently released in India.
In the game you take control of Hanuman as a powerless boy, and regain his powers as the game progresses. But Rajan Zed, president of the society, says "controlling and manipulating Lord Hanuman with a joystick/ button/keyboard/mouse was denigration", and that "reimagining Hindu scriptures and deities for commercial or other agenda" hurt its followers.
He added: "Lord Hanuman was not meant to be reduced to just a 'character' in a video game to solidify company/products base in the growing economy of India."
Zed goes on to state: "Video game makers should be more sensitive while handling faith related subjects, as these games left lasting impact on the minds of highly impressionable children, teens and other young people."
Hindus, he says, welcome the entertainment industry's embracing of the religion, but only if taken "seriously and respectfully".
How about the lasting impact religion itself has on the minds of highly impressionable children, teens and other young people? Nobody seems concerned about that...
To be fair to the Hindu guy, it is just a bloody stupid idea for a videogame.
You wouldnt see a game in the west were you controlled Jesus would you?
Absolutely.
Anyone that claims that they're just 'attention seeking' or have some kind of agenda against games is completely missing the point.
This is basically sacriligious and they're perfectly within their rights to make this claim.
If you're going to write a book, film or game using religion as the subject matter, you'd better make sure that you're 100% correct in your intentions and stick to the confines of the source material - otherwise, you will recieve a backlash from it.
I'm definitely not a religious man, but I do think that things like this are very misguided.
How about the lasting impact religion itself has on the minds of highly impressionable children, teens and other young people? Nobody seems concerned about that...
When was the last time you heard of a Hindu terrorist?
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This is pretty low for a gaming concept anyway, but to use and make light of something people find so important as a gimmick to sell your game is bound to cause trouble.
well being a believeer in the tradtional greek gods i think sony dhould stop the God of War series and remove it from shelves as an act of blasphemy.
Come on guys lighten up, hannuman i'm guessing is the hero of the piece and rightfully so.
This sounds more like the guy has a dim view of videogames,If it was a film then it would be a different matter, bet he hasn't even played it.
Except the Greeks no longer worship the Gods of Ancient Greece, which was more hero worship anyway. The religious make-up of Modern Greece is largely Orthodox so you can't compare the two these days.
How about the lasting impact religion itself has on the minds of highly impressionable children, teens and other young people? Nobody seems concerned about that...
Religion is often branded (incorrectly) as being the root of all evil in the modern world, and the cause of terrorists etc. I believe it's a few people who have misgivings about another group of people and use religion as an "in" to these children's minds, but their manipulation is very much the concept of these radicalists, not the religion. I don't believe any religious text deems it "right" to ride a donkey into a crowd of people, wielding your sword to get people to meet your demands...
A fear of a greater power, and what might happen to you in the afterlife as a result of your behaviour on Earth in the majority of those who believe can manifest itself in a better, fairer and more sympathetic person than someone with no fear of eternal repercussions.
everyone has "the right to complain".. only these losers have nothing better to do with their time than to take to the streets, burning effigy in hand and talk down anything where the west has infected their part of the world. (jealousy).
look at the state of the LBP affair. it had some vocals from the holy book. was a pop tune on ther shelves for years, but stick it in a western game and all hell breaks loose.
just another classic example of attention seeking.
Not that I usually like to weigh in on these dead-end religious internet arguments, but this...
A fear of a greater power, and what might happen to you in the afterlife as a result of your behaviour on Earth in the majority of those who believe can manifest itself in a better, fairer and more sympathetic person than someone with no fear of eternal repercussions.
are you sure about that. i played a game where you controlled noah and moses. Bible stories i think it was called. you had to collect animals and commandments and every time you finished a level it gave you some bit of scripture to read.
Personally i don't see a problem making a game about hanuman. Its one of mey favourite hindu texts and its not like they've turned him into kratos for kids. Then again the name and title suggest otherwise.
This got me thinking has there ever been a game based on the MONKEY (80's tv show ). That would make a class co-op game you could play as monkey piggsy or sandy it could be like ICO having to help Tripitarka on his journey to tibet.
everyone has "the right to complain".. only these losers have nothing better to do with their time than to take to the streets, burning effigy in hand and talk down anything where the west has infected their part of the world. (jealousy).
look at the state of the LBP affair. it had some vocals from the holy book. was a pop tune on ther shelves for years, but stick it in a western game and all hell breaks loose.
just another classic example of attention seeking.
When have you ever seen a Hindu do that?
Wheresmymonkey - I think bible games was actually a limited release that wasnt an official Nintendo endorsed game. It was released by some Christian 'enthusiasts' and the idea of the game was to learn about religion.
Im very suprised you had that game to be honest, and I think its more likely you just watched that episode of AVGN cos that game is ultra rare and if you still have it you could sell it for a bucket load of cash these days.
Not that I usually like to weigh in on these dead-end religious internet arguments, but this...
A fear of a greater power, and what might happen to you in the afterlife as a result of your behaviour on Earth in the majority of those who believe can manifest itself in a better, fairer and more sympathetic person than someone with no fear of eternal repercussions.
... is a load of bollocks.
Yeah, i think they are the words of someone desperatley trying to sound intelligent.
Doesn't it all depend on the context? If it had Hanuman tearing up the place with a flamethrower/mace combo, then sure, it's could be interpreted as sacrilegious as the depiction could be deemed offensive. But I think it is also true that any story, whether it be religeous or otherwise, can be open to interpretation in this or any other form of media.
Though I cannot say for sure that this particular game is an affront to Hindu beliefs or not, being that I am both uninformed of said beliefs (I am presuming there is no flamethrower/mace combo mentioned) and that I haven't played it, I think it fair to say that there could be an arguement also that a video game based on religeous text could also be positive, presenting such media in a way that is appealing to kids etc.
To be fair to the Hindu guy, it is just a bloody stupid idea for a videogame.
You wouldnt see a game in the west were you controlled Jesus would you?
Absolutely.
Anyone that claims that they're just 'attention seeking' or have some kind of agenda against games is completely missing the point.
I agree too, to a point. While I think some people need to a lighten up a touch in such matters, there is a line. As fanboy said, you wouldn't see a game where Jesus took up arms and took on thousands of Romans...
That said, a puzzle game here you have to split 5 loaves and 2 fish amongst 5000 people so they were all fed has some mileage
Not that I usually like to weigh in on these dead-end religious internet arguments, but this...
A fear of a greater power, and what might happen to you in the afterlife as a result of your behaviour on Earth in the majority of those who believe can manifest itself in a better, fairer and more sympathetic person than someone with no fear of eternal repercussions.
... is a load of bollocks.
Yeah, i think they are the words of someone desperatley trying to sound intelligent.
Please don't pretend to know anything about me, my beliefs or my intelligence.
That is what I think. I'm not saying that's the case for all people, and I know there are good people who don't believe. But fear CAN make a better person. People perform better at work when they think their job is at stake if they don't. People will drive slower if they think they may get caught speeding etc. etc. etc.
But fear CAN make a better person. People perform better at work when they think their job is at stake if they don't. People will drive slower if they think they may get caught speeding etc. etc. etc.
It can also make people lie, steal, cheat and kill. The argument is flawed.
This got me thinking has there ever been a game based on the MONKEY (80's tv show ). That would make a class co-op game you could play as monkey piggsy or sandy it could be like ICO having to help Tripitarka on his journey to tibet.
There was indeed - we had it for the Commodore 16...you basically had to fly around on his cloud and - erm...blast things, I think.
It certainly wasn't the best game in the world, but we absolutely loved Monkey.
But fear CAN make a better person. People perform better at work when they think their job is at stake if they don't. People will drive slower if they think they may get caught speeding etc. etc. etc.
It can also make people lie, steal, cheat and kill. The argument is flawed.
Flawed it may be, but in my opinion, it was the entire reason religion was 'brought into existance' in the first place - fear will keep them in line.
To be fair to the Hindu guy, it is just a bloody stupid idea for a videogame.
You wouldnt see a game in the west were you controlled Jesus would you?
Absolutely.
Anyone that claims that they're just 'attention seeking' or have some kind of agenda against games is completely missing the point.
I agree too, to a point. While I think some people need to a lighten up a touch in such matters, there is a line. As fanboy said, you wouldn't see a game where Jesus took up arms and took on thousands of Romans...
That said, a puzzle game here you have to split 5 loaves and 2 fish amongst 5000 people so they were all fed has some mileage
People will always get up in arms when you don't approach the source material with enough respect.
It's funny how I read a forum thread recently (not here, I might point out) where some were threatening to boycott Arkham Asylum because they believed that Batman kills in the game. Now, I know that I've personally got this particular facet of Batmans' personal code wrong myself; but it just goes to show you how 'outraged' people can be when the source material is not used respectfully (to be honest, I don't think Batman actually does kill in AA - I think it was just the terminology used in the game preview).
Now, if you apply that to religion, you've got to expect some kind of backlash.
But fear CAN make a better person. People perform better at work when they think their job is at stake if they don't. People will drive slower if they think they may get caught speeding etc. etc. etc.
It can also make people lie, steal, cheat and kill. The argument is flawed.
Flawed it may be, but in my opinion, it was the entire reason religion was 'brought into existance' in the first place - fear will keep them in line.
religion exists because people cant accept the fact that when you die... you die.
its a scary thought for most... that basically life is pointless.
But fear CAN make a better person. People perform better at work when they think their job is at stake if they don't. People will drive slower if they think they may get caught speeding etc. etc. etc.
It can also make people lie, steal, cheat and kill. The argument is flawed.
Flawed it may be, but in my opinion, it was the entire reason religion was 'brought into existance' in the first place - fear will keep them in line.
religion exists because people cant accept the fact that when you die... you die.
its a scary thought for most... that basically life is pointless.
The Gospel According to SVD_Grasshopper...
'...and on the 6th day, God created the Subaru Impreza....then he came back in the afternoon and added a huge speaker system - it was wicked, innit'
But fear CAN make a better person. People perform better at work when they think their job is at stake if they don't. People will drive slower if they think they may get caught speeding etc. etc. etc.
It can also make people lie, steal, cheat and kill. The argument is flawed.
Flawed it may be, but in my opinion, it was the entire reason religion was 'brought into existance' in the first place - fear will keep them in line.
religion exists because people cant accept the fact that when you die... you die.
its a scary thought for most... that basically life is pointless.
While I agree with the philosophy, I believe it exists as a way of those in power to maintain control of the masses. When you look at the tennets of most faiths, they are all about being good to your fellow man. By having some sort of omniscients wrath waiting for you if you betray this, it ensures compliance. This is largely my opinion on religion - as you can tell, it's not my favourite past time
This got me thinking has there ever been a game based on the MONKEY (80's tv show ). That would make a class co-op game you could play as monkey piggsy or sandy it could be like ICO having to help Tripitarka on his journey to tibet.
There was indeed - we had it for the Commodore 16...you basically had to fly around on his cloud and - erm...blast things, I think.
It certainly wasn't the best game in the world, but we absolutely loved Monkey.
'The spirit of Monkey was....Irrepressible!'
I thought there might have been i had a C64 im sure there was a game like that based on the arabian knights as well .
It's funny how I read a forum thread recently (not here, I might point out) where some were threatening to boycott Arkham Asylum because they believed that Batman kills in the game. Now, I know that I've personally got this particular facet of Batmans' personal code wrong myself; but it just goes to show you how 'outraged' people can be when the source material is not used respectfully (to be honest, I don't think Batman actually does kill in AA - I think it was just the terminology used in the game preview).
I read a preview just yesterday - he definitely only beats the absolute snot out of people, no killing there. Apparently, the Joker even invites Bats to kill him and end it all in the game...
It's funny how I read a forum thread recently (not here, I might point out) where some were threatening to boycott Arkham Asylum because they believed that Batman kills in the game. Now, I know that I've personally got this particular facet of Batmans' personal code wrong myself; but it just goes to show you how 'outraged' people can be when the source material is not used respectfully (to be honest, I don't think Batman actually does kill in AA - I think it was just the terminology used in the game preview).
I read a preview just yesterday - he definitely only beats the absolute snot out of people, no killing there. Apparently, the Joker even invites Bats to kill him and end it all in the game...
I'm pretty sure he doesn't kill in it - besides, DC would be on them like a shot if they mess around with the character. I was actually thinking that it'd be cool if you managed to finally track the Joker down at the end and basically just knock him out with a couple of punches....Batman always basically kicks the hell out of him with ease once he's cornered, right? (I was always more of a Marvel fan, so my knowledge of Batman is a little limited).
I'm absolutely buzzing about AA - I recently found out a bit more about the villains included....some great names in there, but the mere presence of Bane just makes me desperate to get my hands on it.
Can't friggin' wait - it actually seems to be turning out as well as I'd hoped.
Can't friggin' wait - it actually seems to be turning out as well as I'd hoped.
Me too!! It looks great, it really does. Loving the Riddler challenge idea too.
It can't come soon enough for me.
I really love Splinter Cell, but I've always thought that it'd be even better if they made a Batman game out of the engine - so, this is perfect for me. It'll probably not be as intense as SC, but it seems like they've done well balancing the game to add more variation....you even get a temporary Batcave on the island too.
I also think they've hit the nail on the head with the designs and voice-acting for the characters.
Like I've said before - I cannot wait to kick Banes' a**e....mind you, he looks positively vicious in the cutscene I saw.
You wouldnt see a game in the west were you controlled Jesus would you?
That would be awesome.
I disagree. It would be like a large-scale version of Cooking Mama, with the ability to feed more people than you would have expected to given the rations on offer.
Wouldn't a game where you're Moses be more exciting?
WTF, games shouldn't be released in countries like India.
They are so f**king backwards in these places, it's like they're all stuck in the 14th century, while the rest of us (the west) has evolved.
Honestly, stay away from the Mickey Mouse countries!
Have you been to India, or did you just watch some footage of the war on the news and assumed one of the next world superpowers was entirely like that?
Idiot.
are you sure about that. i played a game where you controlled noah and moses. Bible stories i think it was called. you had to collect animals and commandments and every time you finished a level it gave you some bit of scripture to read.
Those games were unofficial, and were technically accurate to the event they were trying to portray anyway. This situation seems like using the character for mascot purposes to sell the game, entirely different.
Have you been to India, or did you just watch some footage of the war on the news and assumed one of the next world superpowers was entirely like that?
Have you been to India, or did you just watch some footage of the war on the news and assumed one of the next world superpowers was entirely like that?
It's the last place i'd want to go to!
Now f**k off.
What an utter cretin...
Don't worry, I don't think you'll be missed in India (or anywhere else for that matter).
The guy is completly right this game should be pulled if a company decided to make a videogame concerning the Catholic religion i would be really angry and no doubt it would spark alot of criticism. I feel the video game developers have been very insesitive about certain issues and should have thought about this before releasing the game.
after watching that i have to agree with the guy in article. it makes no sense and does indeed look like they are using hanuman as some kind of marketing tool rather than making something of actual value. is a shame as its the first major game to be made in india.
man there are some incredibly backwards people on this forum. 'obviously the west is much more evolved' what a ton of s**t we were still chucking rocks at each other and hiding in caves while india was developing alot of things we take for granted over here. Modern medicine is a middle eastern practice for a start you damn idiot. also are current numeric system you know numbers. we use arabic characters gaahhh. its like chimps with straws i tell you.
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This is pathetic, stupid, utter garbage. Why does some religious group ALWAYS complain about a game? Think about it, religion as just as fanciful as video games. Has anybody seen Jesus lately? It's unfair that they are holding their holy scrolls for something that is on the same par in reality, while believing in, oh, I don't know, a talking snake?
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cos that game is ultra rare and if you still have it you could sell it for a bucket load of cash these days.
