A new version of Grand Theft Auto V has prompted New Zealand retailer The Warehouse Group to stop selling all R18 games and DVDs.
This is an absurd decision.
I awarded the Xbox One / PlayStation 4 version of GTA V five stars, acknowledging the enormous achievement it is as one of the greatest games ever made.
It is most definitely an R18 game. It is adult entertainment that pushes the envelope and is not for everyone, and that is reflected in the correctly chosen NZ Office of Film & Literature Classification's rating.
Of course, The Warehouse doesn't have to sell every product and we consumers can simply support their competitors by buying entertainment products elsewhere.
But The Warehouse is displaying hypocrisy by banning some adult rated DVDs and games, but not all adult products.
The retail chain continues to sell condoms which are about as adult as a product can get, for example.
Just a few weeks ago, fireworks were being sold in Warehouses up and down New Zealand, which we know beyond doubt cause burn injuries to children and animals every year. Banning R18 DVDs and games is therefore solely about Warehouse bosses' own personal morals, rather than an actual, measurable danger to society.
The sexual content in GTA V is tame when compared to other R18 material available and while the violent content is full-on and will disgust some people, they don't have to play the game, and won't be exposed to that material by seeing the box on a shelf.
If you want to get rid of sex and violence in these sorts of products, you'll have to get rid of almost all films - not just R18 ones - along with practically the entire works of Shakespeare. And the Bible.
In other entertainment news this week, the first full trailer for Jurassic World has been released, and it is terrific.
I appeared on Firstline this morning to discuss these topics.
Watch the video.
3 News
source: newshub archive
