Minecraft Developer Responds To Possible Ban In Turkey
Turkey’s Family and Social Policies Ministry has come to a surprising verdict: Minecraft encourages children to act violently (Yes, you read that correctly). But Mojang doesn't sound worried.
The country is calling on authorities to ban the block-building game after publishing the result of a probe launched in February.
Here's a snippet from the report (via BBC News):
However, according to Fatih Oke, the Turkish Embassy Press Counselor in Washington, D.C., Minecraft won't find its way onto any black lists. In an interview with the Christian Science Monitor, Oke said the Family and Social Policies Ministry has no control over social policies. Its only role is to "raise awareness."
Here's how she explains it:
Minecraft is one of the most popular games in history. In fact, it's so prominent that Microsoft purchased the game's developer for $2.5 billion last year. Until this week, not a single country has threatened to ban Minecraft, which is actually impressive when you remember that it recently passed 100 million registered users.
Mojang doesn't appear to be concerned about the situation. In a statement to GamesBeat, a spokesperson brushed the allegations aside:
Turkey doesn't usually ban video games, but the country isn't exactly friendly to free speech. They recently banned Twitter, YouTube, and 4Chan, and in 2013, Turkey jailed more journalists than any other country in the world (for the second year in a row).
If this were a free speech battle, Minecraft might be in trouble. But it's about whacking hostile blocks with a pixilated sword. So, everything will probably stay exactly the same.
CINEMABLEND NEWSLETTER
Your Daily Blend of Entertainment News
Ruth Shellhorn: Why This Disneyland Designer Deserves Disney Legend Status This Year
We Broke Down Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender’s Season 1 Ending With The Showrunner: From The Shocking Final Scene To The Giant Water Monster
Even James Wan Has No Idea How Contact's Wild Mirror Scene Was Filmed, But I Do
Most Popular
By Ryan LaBee
By Riley Utley
By Riley Utley
By Ryan LaBee
By Erik Swann
By Mike Reyes
By Carly Levy
By Adam Holmes