"Steam is currently listing a game called Rape Day in which you play as a 'serial killer rapist"-PC Gamer

[Ging]

I don't condone this game's release but yet logic questions the average gamer's thought process, that popping heads and blood gushing is just fine yet another violent crime is not ok?

Games are not real and do not affect real life, say we to the non-gamers... They do not understand, right?

I'm mostly worried about the unsupervised 12-18 year olds which may get their hands on this game. I'd rather see them play Fortnite tbh.

The sad thing is that as "adults" in the general space of today's conversations, I don't think we have yet evolved to discuss such complex issues with a sense of empathy, sensibility and thick skin that is needed to elevate how we handle such issues, merely succumbing to virtue-signalling, fragile minds and callouts.

 

[litebrite]

You probably needed a game like this to test what Steam will and won't allow on their platform since they allow AO rated and unrated games that Sony, Nintendo, and MS don't.

 

[PrimeBeef]

I guess it hos and hurts at the same time but this game would have gone unnoticed if there was no report on it and then the subsequent forum topics. Yeah we can find it and report it faster, but it brings attention to something, I'm sure most would never have ever noticed.

It's like all the fucking interviews and subsequent topics about Rosanne Barr. Just ignore the trash and stop giving it credibility. If this gets valve to completely stop these games from being listed then it's good, but I fear it will just bring attention to the game, the devs, and potential other shitstains on Steam.

 

[Gundam]

Say it with me:


Valve is trash

 

[Pixieking]

I don't condone this game's release but yet logic questions the average gamer's thought process, that popping heads and blood gushing is just fine yet another violent crime is not ok?

Click to shrink...

Short version:

1) Rape is different to murder in that the victim is left alive, violated, having had all their power removed during the act.
2) Rape culture: Rape jokes are still common, and the crime itself as well as the victims are often belittled or minimised. Witness all the "male prison rape jokes" in various films and TV series, the low prosecution rates of the crime, and even things like extreme anti-abortion campaigners and governments forcing rape victims to carry their abusers child to term.
3) The infantilisation of rape - taking a serious subject and churning out an "edgy" game - means the game has no artistic value.
4) Rape victims could easily see this game and have flashbacks to what had happened. I know a couple of women who have been raped, and it's not an exaggeration to say that at least one of them would not want to use Steam if she thought there was a chance that she would come across this title in the discovery queue.

The subject matter needs to be tackled seriously, and rape is different to murder in that only sociopaths think murder is fine, whereas society is still trying to claw its way out of non-consensual sex and rape culture. Whilst the number of states outlined here has changed recently - one state has recently outlawed it - the fact that non-con sex between spouses is still "legally okay" in some places shows how different rape and murder are in both the eyes of the law, and society.

Say it with me:


Valve is trash

Click to shrink...

Using this thread to bash Valve with a drive-by post isn't great. Yes, they're trash with this, but can we maybe be more specific than "Valve is trash"?

 

[Gundam]

Short version:

1) Rape is different to murder in that the victim is left alive, violated, having had all their power removed during the act.
2) Rape culture: Rape jokes are still common, and the crime itself as well as the victims are often belittled or minimised. Witness all the "male prison rape jokes" in various films and TV series, the low prosecution rates of the crime, and even things like extreme anti-abortion campaigners and governments forcing rape victims to carry their abusers child to term.
3) The infantilisation of rape - taking a serious subject and churning out an "edgy" game - means the game has no artistic value.
4) Rape victims could easily see this game and have flashbacks to what had happened. I know a couple of women who have been raped, and it's not an exaggeration to say that at least one of them would not want to use Steam if she thought there was a chance that she would come across this title in the discovery queue.

The subject matter needs to be tackled seriously, and rape is different to murder in that only sociopaths think murder is fine, whereas society is still trying to claw its way out of non-consensual sex and rape culture. Whilst the number of states outlined here has changed recently - one state has recently outlawed it - the fact that non-con sex between spouses is still "legally okay" in some places shows how different rape and murder are in both the eyes of the law, and society.



Using this thread to bash Valve with a drive-by post isn't great. Yes, they're trash with this, but can we maybe be more specific than "Valve is trash"?

Click to shrink...

???

Valve is trash because they let this through on their platform.


Is "Steam is trash" better?

 

[Deleted member 10629]

I don't condone this game's release but yet logic questions the average gamer's thought process, that popping heads and blood gushing is just fine yet another violent crime is not ok?

Games are not real and do not affect real life, say we to the non-gamers... They do not understand, right?

I'm mostly worried about the unsupervised 12-18 year olds which may get their hands on this game. I'd rather see them play Fortnite tbh.

The sad thing is that as "adults" in the general space of today's conversations, I don't think we have yet evolved to discuss such complex issues with a sense of empathy, sensibility and thick skin that is needed to elevate how we handle such issues, merely succumbing to virtue-signalling, fragile minds and callouts.

Click to shrink...

Because violent situations in games are usually put in some context (political wars, for example) for them to exist. Even when the objective of the game is to kill everyone 'just because' (arena shooters, battle royale), the violence depicted is usually acted by voluntary, willing participants. Rape, by definition, means that someone is being subjected to sexual violence against their will.

That's why media gets all fuzzed up when something does not conform to the 'laws of the war' if you will. And even then, for example in GTA you CAN murder innocent citizens but the game never portrays these actions as good, or give some context to them (are the people murdered by Trevor of GTAV on his Rampage missions even real? Or is he imagining things?). If you suddenly can rape someone on the next GTA, then yeah, it must be called out.

 

[litebrite]

Short version:

1) Rape is different to murder in that the victim is left alive, violated, having had all their power removed during the act.
2) Rape culture: Rape jokes are still common, and the crime itself as well as the victims are often belittled or minimised. Witness all the "male prison rape jokes" in various films and TV series, the low prosecution rates of the crime, and even things like extreme anti-abortion campaigners and governments forcing rape victims to carry their abusers child to term.
3) The infantilisation of rape - taking a serious subject and churning out an "edgy" game - means the game has no artistic value.
4) Rape victims could easily see this game and have flashbacks to what had happened. I know a couple of women who have been raped, and it's not an exaggeration to say that at least one of them would not want to use Steam if she thought there was a chance that she would come across this title in the discovery queue.

The subject matter needs to be tackled seriously, and rape is different to murder in that only sociopaths think murder is fine, whereas society is still trying to claw its way out of non-consensual sex and rape culture. Whilst the number of states outlined here has changed recently - one state has recently outlawed it - the fact that non-con sex between spouses is still "legally okay" in some places shows how different rape and murder are in both the eyes of the law, and society.

Click to shrink...

You can show fictional rape in any other medium like books, comics, tv, movies, porn, etc... because it's not real. However it doesn't mean they're above criticism for including it or for how poorly it's handled. I just looked at the game's page and it looks like a porn fantasy game with the fetish being "rape" with terrible looking 3d models. If I had to guess, I think Valve is going to let it stay on Steam.

 

[Pixieking]

???

Valve is trash because they let this through on their platform.


Is "Steam is trash" better?

Click to shrink...

It just struck me as a drive-by post, is all. But, eh, not anything to get stressed by. :)

You can show fictional rape in any other mediums like books, comics, tv, movies, porn, etc... because it's not real. However it doesn't mean they're above criticism for including it or for how poorly it's handled.

Click to shrink...

No, indeed, and it's why I've not watched Game of Thrones, even though I love the books - because the TV series depictions of rape are, by the sounds of it, appalling. But an interactive medium should have a different level of responsibility to a book, film or TV series, especially when it comes to something like rape. I would also argue that we should expect the same level of responsibility in the games industry with anything that has a deeper than average level of emotion or violence - war crimes, child soldiers, abortion, even climate change should all be more mature than than the average book or film, due to the interactivity that is inherent in the medium.

 

[MegaMix]

Being honest if Steam already allows porn and hentai games (many of which are essentially rape simulators) this is only another rung up their steep ladder. Not that I want to support this kind of media but it isn't as far as a leap as people are say it is. You can only go so far before you are within an arms of the ceiling.

 

[newmoneytrash]

Using this thread to bash Valve with a drive-by post isn't great. Yes, they're trash with this, but can we maybe be more specific than "Valve is trash"?

Click to shrink...

I mean the game is still listed with the dev saying that Valve is still reviewing it to see if it can be sold. I don't blame anyone for labelling the entirety of Valve as being trash for failing to remove this immediately

 

[Deleted member 10629]

You can show fictional rape in any other medium like books, comics, tv, movies, porn, etc... because it's not real. However it doesn't mean they're above criticism for including it or for how poorly it's handled. I just looked at the game's page and it looks like a porn fantasy game with the fetish being "rape" with terrible looking 3d models. If I had to guess, I think Valve is going to let it stay on Steam.

Click to shrink...

But it is not the same to be an spectator of said crime in other media, to be the one doing it as a gameplay mechanic. Of course you are not actually raping someone, but it is fucked up that rape is the objective of the game

 

[Htown]

Way too much garbage like this on steam, it makes browsing the sales an awful experience.

Click to shrink...

I have never run into one of these garbage games without having to go out of my way looking for it

this is not a game you would generally ever see unless you bypassed about 20 other ways to find games on the Steam store, and went to find an unfiltered list of all upcoming games

 

[litebrite]

No, indeed, and it's why I've not watched Game of Thrones, even though I love the books - because the TV series depictions of rape are, by the sounds of it, appalling. But an interactive medium should have a different level of responsibility to a book, film or TV series, especially when it comes to something like rape. I would also argue that we should expect the same level of responsibility in the games industry with anything that has a deeper than average level of emotion or violence - war crimes, child soldiers, abortion, even climate change should all be more mature than than the average book or film, due to the interactivity that is inherent in the medium.

Click to shrink...

Sure, I don't necessarily disagree but we know most art including interactive act are very shallow and don't treat violence with any level of responsibility.

 

[newmoneytrash]

I have never run into one of these garbage games without having to go out of my way looking for it

this is not a game you would generally ever see unless you bypassed about 20 other ways to find games on the Steam store, and went to find an unfiltered list of all upcoming games

Click to shrink...

Looking at discounted games I run into games like this all of the time. You're right that they aren't always directly there on the front page (though sometimes they are!), but they're not exactly buried either

 

[Pixieking]

Sure, I don't necessarily disagree but we know most art including interactive act are very shallow and don't treat violence with any level of responsibility.

Click to shrink...

Yup, totally true. But as I outlined, rape is different to "normal" violence, and we should expect more... Even though we'll not get it for some time yet (if at all). :(

 

[litebrite]

But it is not the same to be an spectator of said crime in other media, to be the one doing it as a gameplay mechanic. Of course you are not actually raping someone, but it is fucked up that rape is the objective of the game

Click to shrink...

Agreed and might have more of an issue if this game was more than a shitty looking no budget porn fantasy game. I give exceptions if it's nothing more than porn aimed at very specific and niche audience.

 

[Pixieking]

Agreed and might have more of an issue if this game was more than a shitty looking no budget porn fantasy game. I give exceptions if it's nothing more than porn aimed at very specific and niche audience.

Click to shrink...

So... Hang on, I don't want to put words into your mouth, but

It sounds like you're fine with this game if it's cheap pornographic material aimed at people with rape fantasies?

Apologies if I have that wrong.

 

[creamcake]

I don't condone this game's release but yet logic questions the average gamer's thought process, that popping heads and blood gushing is just fine yet another violent crime is not ok?

Click to shrink...

I just want to add that there's a pretty big difference of intent between, say, killing zombies in L4D and murder. Even in GTA, violence is often satirical or incidental. If there was a game about stalking and brutally murdering people for the pure, visceral thrill of it, people would turn heads. Manhunt, a very controversial, somewhat nihilistic take on violence in video games, still does a lot of set-up to not be just that. It's very difficult, probably impossible, to remove the intent behind rape.

 

[Deleted member 10629]

Agreed and might have more of an issue if this game was more than a shitty looking no budget porn fantasy game. I give exceptions if it's nothing more than porn aimed at very specific and niche audience.

Click to shrink...

Someting I'll never forget is that when I was 20 I went with my then girlfriend to a screening of the Swedish version of 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo', which depicts a very disturbing rape scene and if aftermath. The whole room turned very, very tense, with at least one woman audibly crying as the scene went on.

I dont have much experience with the topic, so I dont know if it is a good or bad treatment of sexual violence, but that scene and the reactions to it were fucking brutal, man.

 

[litebrite]

So... Hang on, I don't want to put words into your mouth, but

It sounds like you're fine with this game if it's cheap pornographic material aimed at people with rape fantasies?

Apologies if I have that wrong.

Click to shrink...

It's weird but the cheapness makes it look stupid than something I could get upset at? If the game looked and animated like Uncharted with higher productiom values then I could see it striking a nerve with me. Do you get what I'm saying? Maybe it doesn't make sense.

However the bigger thing is Steam essentially has a porn section for Adults only and the game is in the right section for Adults interested in that type of game, and non existent for people not interested and would never visit that section. It's why I think Valve is going to let it stay on Steam.

 

[litebrite]

Someting I'll never forget is that when I was 20 I went with my then girlfriend to a screening of the Swedish version of 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo', which depicts a very disturbing rape scene and if aftermath. The whole room turnee very, very tense, with atleast one woman audibly crying as the scene went on.

I dont have much experience with the topic, so I dont know if it is a good or bad treatment of sexual violence, but that scene and the reactions to it were fuckimg brutal, man.

Click to shrink...

The rape scene in Irreversible fucked me up the first time I watched it with how real it felt and the camera never moving forcing you to watch the full horrific act.

 

[VideogameVices]

How does one report it? I'm looking at it now.


*reported.

 

[XR.]

Hmm...

 

[burnsy]

Attention seeking Devs

 

[Yukari]

I Expect nothing happend.
look on Hatred.

 

[Grimminski]

I'd be shocked if Valve delisted this trash.

 

[TheClaw7667]

I just want to add that there's a pretty big difference of intent between, say, killing zombies in L4D and murder. Even in GTA, violence is often satirical or incidental. If there was a game about stalking and brutally murdering people for the pure, visceral thrill of it, people would turn heads. Manhunt, a very controversial, somewhat nihilistic take on violence in video games, still does a lot of set-up to not be just that. It's very difficult, probably impossible, to remove the intent behind rape.

Click to shrink...

I think the first Manhunt succeeded in it's setup to not be that. I don't think Manhunt 2 did though.That game made me feel sick.

 

[Deleted member 34618]

It just struck me as a drive-by post, is all. But, eh, not anything to get stressed by. :)



No, indeed, and it's why I've not watched Game of Thrones, even though I love the books - because the TV series depictions of rape are, by the sounds of it, appalling. But an interactive medium should have a different level of responsibility to a book, film or TV series, especially when it comes to something like rape. I would also argue that we should expect the same level of responsibility in the games industry with anything that has a deeper than average level of emotion or violence - war crimes, child soldiers, abortion, even climate change should all be more mature than than the average book or film, due to the interactivity that is inherent in the medium.

Click to shrink...

As much as I find this whole situation disgusting, the idea that games should be handled differently than books and tv/movies is complete bullshit and potentially dangerous.

 

[Pixieking]

As much as I find this whole situation disgusting, the idea that games should be handled differently than books and tv/movies is complete bullshit and potentially dangerous.

Click to shrink...

Okay. Then let's have every game pass a ratings board like films.

Oh, but wait, books don't pass a ratings board, do they?

Entertainment is already handled differently depending upon medium. Requesting games - an interactive medium - to be held to a different standard than non-interactive mediums in exceptional cases shouldn't be a huge ask.

 

[Deleted member 34618]

Okay. Then let's have every game pass a ratings board like films.

Oh, but wait, books don't pass a ratings board, do they?

Entertainment is already handled differently depending upon medium. Requesting games - an interactive medium - to be held to a different standard than non-interactive mediums in exceptional cases shouldn't be a huge ask.

Click to shrink...

1) The MPAA ratings system is a voluntary ratings system (similar to, but much less transparent than the ESRB). Films don't "have to pass a ratings board" so you're straight up just factually wrong here.
2) The MPAA rating system is complete bullshit and is generally terrible for the industry. It's extremely hypocritical and inconsistent in its treatment of gender and sexuality, among other things, and ratings are literally signed off on by a priest. I recommend watching This Film Is Not Yet Rated if you'd like to learn more.
3) There actually are age ratings systems for books they're just not as widespread and all encompassing than the MPAA and ESRB.

 

[Toxi]

I don't condone this game's release but yet logic questions the average gamer's thought process, that popping heads and blood gushing is just fine yet another violent crime is not ok?

Games are not real and do not affect real life, say we to the non-gamers... They do not understand, right?

I'm mostly worried about the unsupervised 12-18 year olds which may get their hands on this game. I'd rather see them play Fortnite tbh.

The sad thing is that as "adults" in the general space of today's conversations, I don't think we have yet evolved to discuss such complex issues with a sense of empathy, sensibility and thick skin that is needed to elevate how we handle such issues, merely succumbing to virtue-signalling, fragile minds and callouts.

Click to shrink...

I've noticed a bizarre trend of people calling for "respect" and "maturity" while accusing other people of being hysterical or disingenuous in the same sentence.

 

[Atom Heart Mother]

this game should be removed just due to how bad it looks

 

[Dreams-Visions]

3 weeks now Valve...

Click to shrink...

yikes

 

[Rose Red]

I don't condone this game's release but yet logic questions the average gamer's thought process, that popping heads and blood gushing is just fine yet another violent crime is not ok?

Click to shrink...

While normal games treat 'death' and 'murder' as normal story things that are simply easy to gamify, looks like this game is just a fetish simulator for pervy sociopaths. I mean it's shitty renders with 30 minutes of non-existent gameplay.

Unless you can convince me that the average gamer masturbates to the joy of killing people in CoD, it's apples and oranges.

 

[Toxi]

this game should be removed just due to how bad it looks

Click to shrink...

Why did impotent Fox News viewers corner the market on shitty shovelware anyway? I want to laugh at a progressive game that looks like it was slapped together with some stock assets in 3 seconds.

 

[Pixieking]

1) The MPAA ratings system is a voluntary ratings system (similar to, but much less transparent than the ESRB). Films don't "have to pass a ratings board" so you're straight up just factually wrong here.
2) The MPAA rating system is complete bullshit and is generally terrible for the industry. It's extremely hypocritical and inconsistent in its treatment of gender and sexuality, among other things, and ratings are literally signed off on by a priest. I recommend watching This Film Is Not Yet Rated if you'd like to learn more.
3) There actually are age ratings systems for books they're just not as widespread and all encompassing than the MPAA and ESRB.

Click to shrink...

1) In the UK, every film has to pass the BBFC.

It has a statutory requirement to classify all video works released on VHS, DVD, Blu-ray (including 3D and 4K UHD formats), and to a lesser extent, some video games under the Video Recordings Act 1984.[3]

Click to shrink...

( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Board_of_Film_Classification )

3) In the UK, anyone can purchase pretty-much any book, and "extreme works" such as A Clockwork Orange are often used in English Lit under-18 education (A-Levels, for instance).

What I said:

I would also argue that we should expect the same level of responsibility in the games industry with anything that has a deeper than average level of emotion or violence - war crimes, child soldiers, abortion, even climate change should all be more mature than than the average book or film, due to the interactivity that is inherent in the medium.

Click to shrink...

It's just asking the videogames industry to step-up and a) develop games that tackle the subject matter in a non-edgelord way, and b) for games that are just edgelord anti-SJW literal masturbatory devices to not be offered on the largest digital distro store on PC because their interactivity makes them especially insidious.

 

[Deleted member 34618]

1) In the UK, every film has to pass the BBFC.
( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Board_of_Film_Classification )

3) In the UK, anyone can purchase pretty-much any book, and "extreme works" such as A Clockwork Orange are often used in English Lit under-18 education (A-Levels, for instance).

What I said:

Click to shrink...

Alright, sorry for being america-centric. I will unequivocally say that the double standard that apparently exists in the UK is a bad thing.

It's just asking the videogames industry to step-up and a) develop games that tackle the subject matter in a non-edgelord way, and b) for games that are just edgelord anti-SJW literal masturbatory devices to not be offered on the largest digital distro store on PC.

Click to shrink...

For a) that is absolutely not what you were originally asking since you explicitly stated that games should be held to a different standard than books and movies (unless you're saying it's totally fine for books and movies to go full edgelord but not games??)
For b) I agree that Steam made a bad decision by allowing this on their store. I don't think it should be illegal to make or sell this kind of media though.

 

[BeI]

Quite clearly they need to use a better screening system than whatever they have to pick out stuff that is obviously trash by either the name and / or description.

 

[Mr.Deadshot]

Not just a serial killer rapist, but a serial killer rapist during a zombie apocolypse.

The title really doesnt sell how nuts this is

Click to shrink...

It reads like straight satire/trolling. Not only that part of the article.

 

[SprachBrooks]

Hmmm, I'm not against Steam allowing this game to exist on its platform. I might check it out to see how bad it really is.