Grand Theft Auto in Trouble – Again!

…we at The Herald experienced some technical difficulties that conspired against us, thus I was unable to post on Friday as I usually try to.

So with that you have my apologies… and a wall of text that will make you flinch.

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Milton, Ga. – Three teenagers arrested in connection to a string of car bombings professed to have learned to make Molotov cocktails playing Grand Theft Auto.

The teens, one 15-year-old and two 16-year-olds are to be charged with 57 felony counts that include possession of an explosive device, arson, and criminal damage to property.

Video surveillance shows the teenagers buying the materials for the Molotov cocktails which consisted of glass soda bottles, Coleman lantern fuel and some rags. A video that later led to their identification by high-school police officers.

After their apprehension by the Milton Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, the teenagers told authorities that they learned “how to do it” by playing Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto.

Police Chief Chris Lagerbloom told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the teens committed the crimes for fun. “They did it for the entertainment value,” he said.

Due to the nature of the crimes the teens would face federal prosecution – however, their age prevents them from being tried in federal court. None of the teens have any records of prior arrests before the fire bombings.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Milton Police Department classified GTA as ‘a computer game series that has been blamed for inciting juvenile crime sprees in the United States and globally, including murder and carjacking.’

“This case is another strong example of the serious ramifications that can come from letting impressionable teens play violent video games like this one,” Lagerbloom said to Doug Nurse of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “We urge parents to pay particular attention to their children’s extracurricular activities and to intervene before it’s too late.”

Why should Cliffy B have all the fun?

On Nov. 7, Amazon.com is offering a special promotion with the yet to be released Gears of War 2: a replica COG Lancer Assault Rifle.

Evidently no replica Locust torso is available to saw through. Rubbish!.

The replica Lancer comes complete with the infamous chainsaw bayonet and what appears to be Locust blood spattered liberally.

According to J. Mennella, who commented on the Amazon.com offer, he/she/it claims that they were able to handle it at the San Diego Comic Con and that “it lights up and makes noises. And its pretty heavy too.”

While Gears of War fans may be panting over the offer, I’m waiting for Games Workshop to offer a working chainsword for Dawn of War II. Though nothing of the kind has been announced, I can only wait with baited breath for such a thing to be available to all budding Space Marines, lumberjacks, and Canadian bus riders.

San Francisco, Calif. – Protesters gathered outside the South Park offices of game developer Ubisoft in an effort to call attention to possibly unethical and illegal practices as defined by the United Nations.

Ubisoft, which publishes “America’s Army” console versions, was singled out for protest by the bay area activist group Direct Action to Stop the War.

In a statement posted on their website, the group claims that America’s Army is a recruitment tool for children into military service, a practice forbidden by U.N. protocol.

America’s Army” is a game developed by the U.S. military to instruct players in “Army values,” portray the army in a positive light, and increase potential recruits. The “game” is the property and brainchild of the US Army, which admit freely, and with pride, that it is one of their principal recruitment tools.

America’s Army has been available since 2002 as a free download or as a CD available in recruiting stations. It is published and distributed by Ubisoft right here in South Park. Ubisoft is not the only South Park neighbor engaged in the development of the game, Gameloft is working on the cell phone application and Secret Level was a designer on the 2005 Xbox version. The game has been granted a “teen” rating, allowing 13 year olds to play.

In an e-mail response to WIRED’s Chris Kohler, Ubisoft public relations team:

Ubisoft is a leading publisher that strives to create the best entertainment experiences possible. Ubisoft worked with the U.S. Army to create America’s Army games for the Xbox and Xbox 360 in order to deliver a compelling experience for our customers. As we discussed with the Direct Action to Stop the War (DASW) organization, our games are created to meet a diverse range of interests and not to express or endorse any political view. We respect DASW’s First Amendment rights, and would hope they also respect and recognize ours.

It was only a matter of time.

As the popularity of rhythm games continues to gain purchase in the pocketbooks of gamers worldwide, Warner Music is of the opinion that the publishers are getting away with robbery.

Executive Edgar Bronfman explained that Activision and MTV, developers of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, respectively, will eventually have to pay more for the licenses for the songs from their catalogue.

“The amount being paid to the music industry, even though their games are entirely dependent on the content we own and control, is far too small.” Bronfman said to Yinka Adegoke of Reuters.

Bronfman’s opinion comes as little surprise considering the losses posted by the music industry as file sharing continues to eat into their profits despite vigorous prosecution of offenders by the RIAA.

Blizzard Entertainment is having a devil of a time with Diablo III.

As Diablo die-hards festoon the fan sites with their own Photoshopped versions of the yet to be released dungeon crawler, art director Brian Morrisroe is hitting the bricks.

In response to a query by Kotaku regarding the position opening, Blizzard resonded with the following e-mail:

Regarding Brian, he recently resigned to form a startup company “outside the game industry”, which is why we posted about the open position. That change won’t impact the game…we’re really pleased with the look and feel that Brian helped create for Diablo III, and the new person we bring aboard will work with other artists on the team to maintain the art style moving forward.

Many Diablo fans have been up in arms over the new look of the game, saying that the brighter and considerably more colorful sequel is a betrayal of the traditionally darker tones of the games aesthetic.