Grand Theft Auto fans in Germany may want to consider moving if the country’s parliament passes a law banning violence in video games. According to Daily Variety, a bill has been drafted in response to public outcry over links between gaming and real-life acts of violence. If passed, the law could significantly hinder European distribution of top games from publishers around the world.
The proposed law was spurred by a Columbine-like high-school shooting in Emsdetten, Germany, in which the 18-year-old assailant wounded 37 people before killing himself. Officials said the young man spent a lot of time playing Valve’s first-person shooter Counter-Strike. Shortly after that, another gamer posted a message on a video game forum detailing plans to murder schoolmates.
A ban on violence in games would specifically target instances of violence against human characters, meaning all war games and other shooters are likely to end up on the black market rather than retail shelves. If successful, the movement could spread to other parts of Europe since the European Commission is already looking into the correlation between game bloodshed and violent behavior.
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