Back in 2013, shop owners filed a complaint against a couple of famous game titles for portraying Pakistan as a terrorist nation. The games were later banned and removed from stores. The games that got banned were “Call of Duty: Black Ops II” and “Medal of Honor: Warfighter”.
The aforementioned war themed games display Pakistan and its Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency as supporters of terrorist organizations like Al Qaeda. The All Pakistan CD, DVD, Audio Cassette Traders and Manufacturers Association (APCDACTM) boycotted and were reported to have removed the games from the stores at the time.
The games were banned because they showed Pakistan and ISI as supporters of terrorism
It seems as though the games remained available in stores despite the ban and the gamers continued to buy these games for their consoles and PCs. An unverified independent estimate puts 76,000 copies of both the games being sold during the past two and a half years for both PCs and consoles. These numbers are for the official copies of the games and do not include the pirated copies available for PCs that are easily available on discs and the internet.
It is indeed a very disappointing display of patriotism and pride by gamers and retailers. Retailers made both the legal copies and the pirated ones available through their outlets while the games’ fans disregarded the ban and the humiliation that these games have brought to Pakistan.
Both the gamers and the retailers put their own interests over their nation’s dignity. And it wasn’t anything major, as boycotting a couple of games would not have made even a minor dent on a retailer’s income. Had the fans and shop owners properly boycotted these games, it would have sent a message to the developers to avoid such controversial material in their future titles.
Despite the ban, the games were available in stores and people kept buying them
Shop owners are claiming that they were unaware of the ban. A renowned entertainment media retailer in Islamabad claimed that both the games were “hot sellers” and that “Call of Duty: Black Ops II” sold more than 5,000 while “Medal of Honor: Warfighter” sold about a 1,000 copies and the they were unaware of such a ban.
It is indeed possible that not all gaming customers were aware of the ban even though the ban was reported by local and international media outlets, social media and even the APCDACTM was aware of the ban. Therefore, retailers claiming that they were unaware of such a ban is nothing more than saving their faces. The games are still available at stores and the security forces are unaware of the matter to take a step against these retailers.
Nations where people put themselves ahead of their country end up in ruin and that is possibly where Pakistan is headed since the people just want the politicians to give highest priority to the country but when it comes to the themselves, they cannot even avoid a couple of games.
via PakGN
I remember saying as much last year that banning video games here would have no effect as they aren’t even officially sold in Pakistan (http://propakistani.pk/2013/01/28/famed-call-of-duty-and-medal-of-honor-video-games-banned-in-pakistan/#comment-780611711)
We need to let go of these stupid ‘false patriotic’ notions and learn to be able to tell fact apart from fiction.
The last paragraph is a gem.
“Nations where people put themselves ahead of their country end up in ruin and that is possibly where Pakistan is headed since the people just want the politicians to give highest priority to the country but when it comes to the themselves, they cannot even avoid a couple of games.”
Soon this paragraph will appear in a million news articles in the following way :
According to Aadil Shadman :
“Nations where people put themselves ahead of their country end up in ruin and that is possibly where Pakistan is headed since the people just want the politicians to give highest priority to the country but when it comes to the themselves, they cannot even avoid a couple of games.”
Could you please explain the anti pakistan element in these games?
Banning might work but only up to a point. And that too in a country which has a strong grasp on technology and the laws to govern it. Pakistan may have outstanding minds in the field of technology but our cyber laws are a joke. Ban a game that defames our country, good, it should be done. Report it on international forums as well. But have some worthy alternatives for the consumer. Do we have a game to counter the massive scale of Call of Duty? Even if we did, would we be able to portray the western countries in the same bad light as they do us? They probably won’t be bothered of a downfall in sales figures of titles sold in Pakistan. Remember the controversial YouTube ban? It’s still on, we all went the vpn/proxy way. Banning games won’t suffer their sales either. We’ve got no other options.
The image of Pakistan has been created, you know I know, It’s is indeed a bad image all the world over, no need to explain. And who are responsible for the ‘bad image’, you know better than me.
By the way, selling a game legally doesn’t make a nation respectable. Just 75,000 is not a six figure number rather a drop in the bucket. In Pakistan, there is no official store of EA or Rockstar rather all we download via Origin, Steam etc. The total 3 million copies were sold, MOH WF alone, on the other hand, it still remains a 6 figures for EA if we remove the number of copies that we bought 3,000,000-75,000=2925000 which is nothing if taken MOH WF solo. It’s clear It doesn’t make a big difference for big companies if they include Pakistan in their games. They know the country will write an article on it then silent.
But I don’t say such games should not be banned, it should be, but Pakistan have to be stable internally and externally. Once we become a stable country then we will focus on this topic. First, we need electricity, jobs, education and peace.
In business terms even 1 to 2 percent is big number. Though not enough for a widespread protest but still anyone who loves their nation should at least avoid the game.
I’m not saying the games should not be banned! It should be, Man!!
The game shows ISI supporting Al Qaeda and Taliban and became anti pakistan games.
Yes ISI created these talibans and they support them and till now the haqqani network of talibans supported by us. we created afghan talibans and we created TTP. We always take care of Osama till his death.
we are reluctant to accept the truth that we did amrrekas job in favor of billion of dollars and now the games are anti pakistan. If that is true than basically we are saying that ISI is anti pakistan.
USA created all these groups just like they did ISIS! ISI was one of the supporter not CREATOR! pakistan was never in a position to fund and create these groups! and you should stop wasting your empty brain in here! you know what you are no more different than all these MULLAHS! coz they are on other extreme side and other opposite extreme side.
FYI, US funded us to create these talibans and al qaeda and we work on their payroll. same thing happen again, US funded Saudia to create ISIS to capture the oil rich regions.
In the end talibans and ISIS, both are out their creator hands and are set free to do whatever they want and US step backward.
Actually Black Ops 2 just shows one ISI commander talking to Raul Menendez, who himself isn’t shown as a generic villain. His reasons are made very clear in the game and he is a tragic figure and victim more than a villain, the ISI commander’s reasons are also given. However, an anti-Soviet Afghan commander is shown as evil without reason.
And Al Quaida and Taliban are not in Black Ops 2 because it is set in 1970s and early 1980s when they didn’t exist and in the future where they have been defeated.
Warfighter was a massive commercial failure and isn’t even worth talking about. That game was destroyed without any ban.
The same happened with the only racist Call of Duty game, Ghosts. Again, without ban.
Rest assured the worst of these games will shoot themselves in the foot and cause massive loss to the publisher without our input.
Lame mentality which wants to block every single thing out there just because they dont agree with our self assumed piousness. Seems like author has association with far right mindset which lacks logic and rationality.
Banning is no solution. What have we acheived by banning youtube. Even in Suadia youtube is not banned.
Banning is definitely no solution. But when someone outright calls the whole country as a terrorist anyone with even a drop of self respect should protest against it. At least avoid such developers assistance by not buying the game.
And by the way many nonmuslim countries have banned YouTube because of the very same reason that Pakistan has. Just Google it and you’ll know.
Not country they show our Agencies support taliban alqaeda. I guss it’s true.we are the creator and supporter. No need to cry if they show you reality.
IMO Pakistan must protest at international forum and serve manufacturers and local resellers with legal notices to avoid such incidents in future because banning isn’t a solution. Torrents, Illegal copies will be there unless we have strong cyber crime laws, rules and regulations.
Who will realise voice against it? Janab Mamnoon Hussain, who doesn’t even know how to play Need For Speed Special Edition?
President don’t have to be an Elite Gamer in order to raise voice against such matters, it’s just that our leaders don’t have guts to face any such problems. or simply they just don’t care :P
O we need to raise voice?
grow up little chunk
Ap to khud anti pakistan hain aamir liaqat sahab. Ap to na hi sachai btain. Apki apni haqiqat chupi hui hai
He is an empty vessel that makes so much sound.
Why don’t you just die?
and do you think many of these so called gamers understand story of game,
For them its just gameplay
What do you think the movie of blasphemy against the prophet was just the trailer.
What will banning the games achieve? The videos are freely available and shared all over the net. Will you ban everything that’s related to COD… politicians will love you. They do the same thing and take away our freedom in the name of piety and religion.
There should be no need to ban games. The people should protest against these games themselves
Well if you support terrorists like Haqqani network and Mullah Omer, its bound to happen, its an open secret that pakistan army trained thousands of jihadis in 80s and 90s.
learn to accept the reality.
Those are nothing more than Allegations. Common for all countries. It wasn’t just Pakistan who funded jihadis to take out ussr, it was the USA who paid for all of it and who were behind. Why not name that terrorists then?
That’s the point.you get paid for dirty job. now don’t blame usa that they gave us money.
stop crying over game which shows nothing but truth
Dear App Ko US say itni hamdardi hai to US main He Paida hotay. Yahan Kia Kar Rahay Ho…
Yes they were trained to fight for there country afghanistan from ussr, not to becom a terrorist .
they are freelancers. they work for you and you set them free and now they work for raw or whoever gives them money
Don’t wanna sound rude but that’s nothing surprising. America called us terrorists but we are still getting aid from america.people’s still want american visa .Harsh truth
I will never ever play anti paksitan/anti Islam game.
It’s not anti Islam first and second it wasn’t against Pakistan.
Aap ko games ka shayad pata hi nahi hai k game aaj kal kis tarah kay ban rahay hain warna ye comment nahi kartey aap Aamir.
Jitney ghatiya kisim kay game aaj kal ban rahay hai ,sooch ho gi aap ki, aur ye baat wo bandah keh raha hai jis ko bachpan se hi games khelney ka shouk hai.
Hollywood films/games sharafat ki hudood se bhot door chalay gai hai,ye cheezain ab sirf shetaniat ka hi rasta dekhati hain.
true!
Just like how to eat MANGOES and LAWN
Great games
You must be an Indian or an idiot. :)
you are idiot because all fouji now a days get angry when you talk about amrrekan nokkars for the sake of dollars. i know they stop giving money
I don’t know when you will understand sarcasm.
Their CIA, Dark water moves freely in our country doing things but when they do it in a game that is somehow bad?
So the game shows that ISI supporting Al Qaeda.
what’s wrong in it?
yes they support Al Qaeda and Talibans and till today they support some of them. We get paid to do this and we did.Now feeling shame or what?
I played both of these games :)
All time best games and there nothing anti Pakistan.
Just there was few mission in Pakistan :D
First play these games available at Torrent then comment anything :)
Thanks.
And one more thing. they speak URDU us ne khaleel ko mar diya :P
Mujhe goliyon ki zaroorat hai etc. its good to hear URDU in any game there are few games.
Just Medal of Honor: Warfighter have URDU :D
“And never will the Jews or the Christians approve of you until you follow their religion. Say, “Indeed, the guidance of Allah is the [only] guidance.” If you were to follow their desires after what has come to you of knowledge, you would have against Allah no protector or helper.” 2:120
“We were the most humiliated people on earth and God gave us honour through Islam. If we ever seek honour through anything else, God will humiliate us again.” – Umar ibn Al-Khattab
Call of Duty and Medal of Honor series are my favorite games series, I have played both games. In call of duty a mission in future model of Lahore. in Medal of Honor couple of missions in our tribal areas. American devolpers always look in future in many games they blame China and Russia and Iran for future wars. it is not big problem they need stories for future games. So don’t take it hard.
in Splinter Cell Double agent we have objective in mission to kill an Pakistani nuclear scientist
games are made to play and for entertainment, labeling doesn’t make anything real or unreal. they should be treated as games, unless and until it offenses against religions, thats a sensitive issue, but using a label for a nation in game is merely a game.
there’s alot of war English movies that are against pakistan and also anti islamic, but ppl in pakistan do watch them…
depends how much serious one takes the issue.
ISI should mend its ways and such games would die of their own.
well said @ Uzair Sajid
It is not truth that Army and ISI support U.S during to fight against Russia in Afghanistan with the help of Taliban they created??? Now why to offend, better to accept the truth. Now you guys are talking about patriotism??? i mean WTF
Medal of Honor was actually racist and got its dues. EA has said it is putting the series in hibernation.
Call of Duty Black Ops 2 is another matter. One of the main characters is a Muslim (a first for any FPS as far as I know) and Pakistan isn’t just shown as a terrorist nation as oversimplified here. The game’s story is actually complex and looks a bit at the human side of the conflict. Just watch the intro online if you don’t believe me.