Controversial Games

From the very beginning, video gaming has managed to stir up controversy. Exidy's 1976 arcade game Death Race raised the ire of the National Safety Council by rewarding players for running over gremlins. The 1982 Atari 2660 game Custer's Revenge angered women's rights groups for its tasteless depiction of non-consensual intercourse. Regardless of whether or not you happen to believe that video games are a valid form of artistic expression, you can't argue with their ability to tick people off.

And over the past fifteen years, they've gotten really, really good at doing just that. So grab your picket sign and get ready to march as we look at some of gaming's most controversial games.

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Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

(2004: PS2)

For a game featuring more acts of thoughtless manslaughter than a Terminator marathon, it's stunning that the excellent San Andreas was nearly derailed by a delicious cup of coffee. Okay, so maybe it wasn't the coffee as much as the simulated sex mini-game that, through patches or special code software, could be unlocked by persistent gamers. Calling Hot Coffee a significant controversy is an embarrassing understatement; the incident opened the floodgates of video game legislation, resulted in a massive recall and re-rating of San Andreas, and obliterated the 2005 fiscal earnings of Rockstar parent Take 2 Interactive, a blow the company is still reeling from. Maybe they should have ordered tea.

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Bully

(2006: PS2)

After years of letting gamers wreak havoc on the weak-willed digital masses that filled the streets of Liberty City, Rockstar decided to empower the little guy with this twisted take on schoolyard social castes. Still, their reputation preceded them as critics lined up to take potshots at Bully before it was released, claiming it sensationalized and trivialized the real-world problem of bullying. Florida attorney and video game critic Jack Thompson went so far as to attempt to get it pulled from store shelves even before it received an ESRB rating, though ultimately his plan didn't work and the game hit retail. Bully's sexual themes also caused a bit of an uproar, particularly the fact that protagonist Jimmy Hopkins was able to kiss certain other boys in the game.

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Resistance: Fall of Man

(2006: PS3)

This well-received first person shooter was one of the few PS3 launch titles worth the price of admission and served as the troubled console's high point through much of its debut year. Until, that is, Sony was threatened by the Church of England for featuring Manchester Cathedral without getting permission. Upset over the fact that a holy site was used in a game featuring guns, bullets and alien hordes, the Church demanded a formal apology and that the game be removed from shelves. Sony met them halfway, issuing an apology along with a statement claiming that they did not see a connection between their sci-fi tale and "contemporary issues of 21st century Manchester." That presumably ended the spat, but not before bumping the game back into the Top 40 and making it the best-selling PS3 game to date.

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BioShock

(2007: Xbox 360, PC)

By all accounts, this unnerving first-person action game is a diamond, a commercial hit and a shoo-in for countless game of the year awards. A few notable issues plagued the game's launch (including a devious little twist that allows users to only install the game twice - ever), but it's BioShock's central moral dilemma - whether or not to harvest "Little Sisters" for the precious material ADAM - that makes it a case study for Ethics majors. Most mainstream media outlets have thus far avoided the issue, although an article in Boston's Patriot Ledger openly questioned the inclusion of such a touchy practice in a video game. Only time will tell how this morality play will end.

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Manhunt 2

(2007: PS2, Wii, PSP)

The original Manhunt could have easily made this list, having been banned in several countries due to its depictions of extreme violence. Manhunt 2 picks up where its forbear left off, allowing users to perform horrific executions in order to escape from a mental institution. Or rather, it would have picked up there had it not received the dreaded AO rating by the ESRB, effectively rendering it useless since most game retailers refuse to carry AO-rated products. Though Rockstar initially planned to fight the rating, they eventually reworked the content and resubmitted to the ESRB. The now M-rated version will hit stores at the end of October, surely triggering another firestorm of controversy for the embattled publisher.