Massive Poll: The Modern Warfare 3 Controversy

The Massive Poll returns with a twist! Before we begin we must mention that there are small spoilers for Modern Warfare 3 below, if you don’t want to read about a certain event, click here instead.

Right. A video had been posted showing a scene from Modern Warfare 3. The footage has been created  to look like it was filmed on a home video camera and shows a mother and child having a day out in London. Moments later a large truck pulls up and explodes, apparently killing the child.

This week, there are three options in our poll and in a none too subtle rip-off of the TV show Argumental, we have two guest speakers who will offer their opposing opinions.

Speaking first on behalf of the ‘It’s Part Of The Story‘ Party it’s Adam, a.k.a. AG2297.

In the clip you, the character, are not blowing them (the child and mother) up yourself, this is from the point of view of what seems to be the father in an attempt to provoke an emotional response. You are not a soldier watching it, or a news crew, this is your family, the character at the time.

This is not done for enjoyment; it is done for the shock factor. This same shock factor was used in the popular Dead Island trailer where the child was bitten by a zombie and thrown out of a window landing on the pavement below, dead. While the argument of it not being “tasteful” is often thrown around, how do you be tasteful about such a situation? Is life tasteful in such tragedies? Should games not be realistic when dealing with such issues and always add “taste” too such tragedies?

In the end, Modern Warfare 3 will be telling a story. In that story there will be much death and in this case a child died. This was not gory or graphic. The bomb went off, the child fell to the ground. Did it have to happen? No. Was the terrorist attack made much more shocking and personal to the player as a result? Yes.

This scene can be shocking and you could even call the act sick, but the fact is that these things happen and in fiction (whether a movie, book or game) real life events are often mimicked to engage the reader, viewer or player and this is no different.

On the opposing team we have a second guest speaking on behalf of the ‘Blatant Tabloid Scandal‘ party, it’s that devilishly handsome chap called Tuffcub.

After the headlines following ‘No Russians’ you would think Activision and Infinity Ward would be scrutinising every part of the story to make sure that it is justified, it is required to move the plot along and is something that they can defend. I’m sure they probably did that, and then asked themselves how they can get even more headlines than last year. What’s going to get those red tops in a frenzy? I know, let’s slaughter a child.

When was the last time you had a child blown up for you entertainment? It rarely happens in films or in television programs as – strangely enough – most people do not like watching children die. When it does occur (for example in  Heavy Rain or the film The Mist) it is handled sensitively and usually off screen.

Admittedly we do not know the story preceding the clip but as the person (presumably the father) holding the camera also seems to be dead it’s safe to assume this is not the viewpoint of a major character.

The child’s death is not shocking because they blew a kid up, it’s shocking as it’s in the game with sole purpose of  generating headline news across the world and shifting a few more copies of Modern Warfare 3. There was no need for this to be a family, the sequence could have had the same impact (possibly more) if they had blown the truck up amidst the crowds of tourists on Oxford Street.

To put it simply, Infinity Ward decided to kill a child in their game, to sell more games.

Strong words from both sides, how will you be voting? Will it be Team Adam or Team Tuffcub? Voting closes at midnight on Sunday, results will be published next week.

81 Comments

  1. I got 200 seconds on the nyan cat.

  2. In my humble opinion, this clip was cynically released purely to court controversy, no other reason than to get column inches. Until I see how it could possibly fit into the MW3 storyline, I shouldn’t judge it but since I cannot see how this could? Hence voted Tuffcub.

  3. It’s a child being killed and you’re all shocked. Good, you’re all nice human beings and the developer achieved what they set out to do. Believe it or not, people die in terrorist attacks. Some of those people are even children! Why people are so against it is beyond me. Maybe it says a lot about those who can immerse themselves in a game.

  4. I think the majority of people complaining will be the cod haters and those who don’t dislike cod will not be bothered. There are far more disturbing things happening in tv and other forms of media and no one cares.if I watch something disturbing I will turn it off and not watch/play. I won’t go on a forum and spend my time whinging about it. If this had been a scene in battlefield I imagine the voting would be wether this was the best graphical scene ever or best sound effects in a cutscene. Vote now….

  5. Will this stop the Orange faced Ugg boot wearing mums from queueing outside blockbusters at midnight for their precious 9 year old North Face kid …. nope.

  6. Deliberate tabloid baiting = free advertising.

  7. It’s nothing more than a publicity stunt and some free advertising. Battlefield 3 has been big news and more successful than a lot of people predicted. It has made a lot or chatter online and with MW3 being yet another COD game it has been somewhat pushed to the back of peoples minds. What better way to get it back to the forefront than a bit of controversy.

    Back in the day, when the juggernaught that was The Beatles was getting all the press, bands like The Stones used to do some outrageous stuff, smash hotel rooms etc. Just for a few column inches. The rule being that there was no such thing as bad publicity when it came to reminding people of your existence.

    In addition, if you take the average age of a COD player, why not kill one of them in the trailer?

  8. It’s clearly obvious tabloid baiting and anyone who disagrees is either a blind CoD fanboy or extremely naive. I don’t think it’s ‘offensive’ but they are clearly trying to stir up a hornets nest with people who do think it’s offensive (or in most cases, pretend they do, like the ‘red tops’ as you call them, so they can moan about gaming and make the industry look ‘evil’).

    • “It’s clearly obvious tabloid baiting and anyone who disagrees is either a blind CoD fanboy or extremely naive.”
      Considering your username, I don’t think you’re in much of a power position to suggest this. And people die in terrorist attacks, including children. Either live in your bubble where terrorists give children unicorns and rainbows and brutally murder adults only, or accept that it’s a viable situation that is designed to showcase the horror of a terrorist attack.

      • ‘Either live in your bubble where terrorists give children unicorns and rainbows’

        LOL idiot. I clearly said I DON’T find it offensive. I’m saying they made that scene, not for the story (since when has CoD ever been about the story),not to ‘showcase the horror of a terrorist attack’ but for the sole purpose of sending the press into a frenzy.

        Try reading more than the first line of my post before spewing your fanboy crap everywhere and you won’t look like so much of a prat to others. ;)

      • So while you resort to personal insults, I’m the one making a valid argument against what you say that makes me look the prat? Right.
        I can only presume you’re an Infinity Ward insider to know it’s all just part of a grand plan to send everyone into a uproar. And CoD is no masterpiece in storytelling, sure, but that you just say “lol never about the story” just shows that if this had been the most heart-wrenching thing ever, you would have just shunned it anyway because “lol, CoD”. When there was a terrorist attack in London, it was all over the news. The clip shown has a news report after it. All it does is show a few moments before the actual attack to show how dreadful a terrorist attack is.
        But you can’t get your head around that because “duuuuur every1 l00k at me guyz, I hate CoD, I’m c00l 2 rite?”

      • “Cod sucks” I can see this being a fair argument. I don’t think anyone can take your thoughts on cod seriously with a name like that which already suggests your biased against cod in all ways.
        I too disagree with the part of the game, it’s shocking and from no russian in MW2 they should have really damped it down a bit. But they like a bit of controversy and wan’t to be in the press as always.
        But i also think that it does show the terror and horrific(ness?) of a terrorist attack, and is well represented if a little bold.
        By the way it is also you looking like a prat no C_S15

      • How do I look a prat? Disagreeing with someone and putting forward an argument against it isn’t prattish at all!

      • i said not you! oops just missed the t out

      • Ah, sorry Origami Killer. No hard-feelings. :)

      • I think it’s someone’s time of the month. ;)

        You have a point C_S15, but that family seems to have been included just to get killed off and adds nothing to story. They could have created the same impact without the controlversy by having a scene of a crowd of people running away from the bomb after it detonated.

      • @CoDsucks If you cant comment without resulting to personal insults then I’m afraid you shouldn’t comment at all. Keep the comments mature or else they will be removed.

      • @Steven
        They could’ve done it differently, I say this elsewhere, but it wouldn’t have the same emotional impact. See all the reaction to this video for all the evidence you need. Would a group of people running away from a gas cloud be more effective and stirring a reaction? Hell no! I guarantee that it would be classed as one of MW3’s worst scenes in the game. Why? It’d be cheesy like a group of people running from Godzilla and wouldn’t be remotely as powerful as this.
        The bottom line is that the scene is hard-hitting, yes; but it certainly is a brilliant scene because it hits home with a lot of people. Terrorists create atrocities to promote their message and a child dying is /definitely/ an atrocity.

  9. hmm I think I’ll have to go with Tuffcub, or C as my PSN name is storm :P

  10. I’d tick all of em but it’s not an option.
    Eitherway it’s Elder Scrolls week so i’m happy.

Comments are now closed for this post.