The game has been pulled in both Austria and Switzerland, according to a tweet from id boss John Carmack, “due to the offensive swastikas”.
This shouldn’t be too big a surprise. Like Germany, Austria has strict laws prohibiting the public display of the Nazi swastika, and while Switzerland has no such law (indeed, recent attempts to bring such a law in were defeated), it won’t be the first body to willingly censor the game: Nintendo did just the thing nearly 20 years ago.
[@ID_AA_Carmack @ Twitter]
Lobo
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 6:30 PMWait. So Ze Germans didn’t pull it? Or it was just a case of ‘no fucking way’ from the get go?
James
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 6:58 PMI doubt id ever gave Germany the chance to pull it. They would already have known it was illegal in that country.
Pioneer
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 6:47 PMWhat ever you do, don’t-mention-ze-var.
Lobo
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 7:08 PMVhat var? Zere vas never a var.
proto
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 7:13 PM* vor
Lobo
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 7:51 PMVatever.
Prashi
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 11:50 PM+1 to this conversation.
MikeZdoesit
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 8:03 PMim pretty sure the swastika was originally a symbol of peace until it was hijacked by nazis annnnnd yada yada yada.
Lobo
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 8:10 PMIndeed. Swastikas in various forms have been around for ages. It’s just THAT one that people get funny about.
Also, I’m suprised id tried it on in Austria when they have it banned like Ze Germans.
thorn
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 8:28 PMif i remember correctly hindu religion and the reversed one is asian called a manji
James
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 10:19 PMSure, but the swastikas in Wolfenstein 3D are Nazi swastikas. You’d have a hard time claiming that they weren’t Nazi references.
thorn
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 8:29 PMi dont know why they would pull a game loosely based on history isnt it about killin teh germans
Lobo
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 9:05 PMBecause as far as those countries are concerned, the 3rd Reich has been erased from history.
Ad
Friday, August 26, 2011 at 12:18 PMWell, no, you’re an idiot. The laws drawn up banning the swastika etc were part of the denazification after WW2 – pushed in no small part by the Allies. They’re very aware of WW2 over there, as opposed to the “I know about WW2 because I played COD!” crap I see on the internet way too often.
Lobo
Friday, August 26, 2011 at 2:06 PMI think you’ll find that in those countries, they touch on the nazis in school as part of history then it’s pretty much not spoken of. Kinda the same way Australia doesnt talk about the stolen generation and the slave trade is all but folk lore in America.
If that’s not erasing it from history it’s damn close.
McGarnical
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 8:51 PMObligatory Fawlty Towers video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfl6Lu3xQW0
John
Thursday, August 25, 2011 at 10:57 PMThere are swastikas in Wolfenstein? OH SHI-
Mark
Friday, August 26, 2011 at 8:02 AMThis is so stupid.
brad
Friday, August 26, 2011 at 9:07 AMit amuses me that people seem to disregard the fact that Nazi Germany shaped the world as we know it.
History cannot be erased. Sieg Heil
Reoh
Friday, August 26, 2011 at 3:37 PMYou’re shottin’ the Nazis.
Isn’t that a good thing?