Games taken off shelves after Oslo killings

By Fred Dutton Published 29 July, 2011

Coop Norway de-lists 51 titles, inc. COD.

A major Norwegian retailer has announced it is to remove 51 games from its shelves following the tragic killings in Oslo and Utøya last week.

As reported by VG247, the titles affected by Coop Norway's decision include Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and World of Warcraft – both of which gunman Anders Behring Breivik claimed to have played regularly.

The move was inspired by "consideration for those affected" by the murders, Coop Norway director Geir Inge Stokke told newspaper Rogalands Avis.

"The decision to remove the games was made around the time we realised the scope of the attack," he said.

"Others are better suited than us to point to the negative effects of games like these. At the moment it's [appropriate] for us to take them down. I wouldn't be surprised if others do the same.

"We have to think very carefully about when to bring these goods back. The economy involved is of no importance."

Breivik killed over 70 people in a bomb attack and shooting spree last week, and injured many more. His 1500 page manifesto apparently stated that he viewed Modern Warfare 2 as a "training-simulation".

We've contacted Blizzard and Activision and will update if they choose to comment.

Picture of Fred.

About Fred Dutton

Fred Dutton is Eurogamer's US news editor, based in Washington DC.

Read more articles from Fred by visiting the Fred Dutton archive page.

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Comments (115) Latest comment 10 months ago

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  • darkmorgado #1 10 months ago

    And the knee-jerk reactionism begins in earnest...

  • FenderMaster #2 10 months ago

    So games turn normal morally sound people into sociopaths?

    ...

    or people who are already sociopaths are attracted games that allow them to live out sick fantasies?

  • sega #3 10 months ago

    And there it is - I was wondering how long it would be before the game link was made. Thought we almost made it that time too...

  • LazyNinjaUk #4 10 months ago

    So it has nothing to do with him possibly having underlying psychological issues, its all World of Warcraft's fault. What if he said he liked Goodfellas pizza and Birdseye Fish Fingers, would you remove them from stores as well? What about books, internet sites, films?

    I don't want to downplay what happened in Oslo in any way, but it's the person who takes it upon themselves to commit such attrocious acts not the media or environment they are exposed to.

  • bloodflowers #5 10 months ago

    Are the video stores going to take down all violent videos, and the music shops remove anything with aggressive lyrics too? Seems like a bizarre knee jerk reaction, if they wanted to do something that matters they could just go to visit the memorial and pay their respects, games had nothing to do with this - it was politically motivated murder.

  • tretin #6 10 months ago

    whilst a respect there decision that shit with it a training sim is where the problem is but not the game the indiviuals they should take responsibilty and be punished severly fro there actions

  • dirtysteve #7 10 months ago

    Unlikely that Acti-blizz would make too much of a fuss, but they must be thinking that this is bollocks.

  • GamesConnoisseur #8 10 months ago

    What about the movies, music or books that are among Anders's most favoured collections and of possible influences? Or is it just the games that are responsible?

    His childhood? Missing and distant father and other family life complications?

    Tragedy but this is an attribution of blame.

  • Chrisw373 #9 10 months ago

    Ahh, I see. It's video games' fault this happened. That explains it.

    It was a terrible thing to happen, but the fault lies with the individual, nothing to do with the games. I really can't understand how taking the games off shelves is going to make anyone feel any better. I honestly believe if I was related to a victim of something like this that I wouldn't care what games they had been playing. I got done for speeding a while ago, didn't blame it on Forza or say it was a training simulation.

  • Kano-11 #10 10 months ago

    What about all those violent films he most probably watched, eh? If he's playing COD then he must have taken some tips from Arnie and Sly.


  • CaptainTrips #11 10 months ago

    Unbelievable that, when their Prime Minister is promoting embracing the spirit of freedom, tolerance and democracy in every address to his nation, there are still some retailers and CEOs that just don't get it.

  • Jonathan_Fakenham #12 10 months ago

    Hardly the biggest videogame retailer though, but this is the country's largest grocery co-op chain. This is just such a wierd reaction to make, I wonder what's in that list of 29 titles?

    What, 51 now? Do they even have that many games in stock?
    Edited by Jonathan_Fakenham at 29/07/11 @ 18:39

  • Irien #13 10 months ago

    I think this is more about companies trying to gain kudos by being seen to be "sympathetic" in the followup to the tragedy. Never underestimate business' ability to turn grief into profit. Most of us had never heard of this company before this, now they're getting international coverage...

  • Quak #14 10 months ago

    Did they remove films from the shelves as well? Saving Private Ryan, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Nightmare on Elm Street etc?

    No?

    Then what a bunch of morons.

  • Mkwone #15 10 months ago

    An over reaction in my opinion but when a killer of 90 odd people calls COD a great training aid people have to be seen as taking action.

    I'm sure in due course things will be back to normal.

    Feel sorry for WoW though, because he's justification for playing that was that it stops family and friends questioning the time you spent on the PC etc, claiming that when somebody asks where he's going he'll answer he's meeting someone fro his guild.
    Edited by Mkwone at 29/07/11 @ 18:24

  • TheJuriel #16 10 months ago

    Yay, retarded knee-jerking. Showing that Scandinavia can do it too.

  • joelstinton #17 10 months ago

    i know this is an sensitive issues. But by far books, and texts are the most powerful and influencial medium to subject one mind two. Unfortunarly until theirs a new medium that exists, games will be the first one to be called out.

  • des #18 10 months ago

    Retarded decision,made by retards--I bet that shooter liked coffee.
    Ban coffee!

  • FortysixterUK #19 10 months ago

    A pathetic and ill considered reaction.
    All it means is they will sell in greater numbers via online retailers.

  • mumblyjoe #20 10 months ago

    We've contacted Blizzard and Activision and will update if they choose to comment.

    Aren't they the same thing..?

  • -cerberus- #21 10 months ago

    Sweet! Don't forget to ban all movies, the news and r&b music!

  • Mister-Wario #22 10 months ago

    Sigh. Thank you, you bastard, for not only massacring innocent teenagers but further criminalising a largely harmless past-time.

  • kongzi #23 10 months ago

    yes.. let's yield to any desperate moron that decides to wave a gun around. Screw liberty, we has cheap sympathy points!!

  • drxym #24 10 months ago

    I hope they're taking bibles off shelves too.

  • Dreadaxe #25 10 months ago

    Good, these games sell a lot so that mean these people will lose out on making money.

    Like to see how any publicly traded companies do when shareholders find out how much not stocking MW3 will cost them.

  • danielbuzz69 #26 10 months ago

    I've been waiting for the Developer of the upcoming Dead Island to say they are changing the name of their game due to the events in Norway. Even though it has NOTHING to do with what happened and it's about Zombies. It wouldn't surprise me at all

  • distraet #27 10 months ago

    It's not 51 games, but 51 different brands including eight games, which have been named, and several others classified as "realistic/role-playing shooters". The original list of the eight games can be found here: http://bit.ly/nCAPNl
    Edited by distraet at 29/07/11 @ 18:50

  • darkmorgado #28 10 months ago

    "There has been a strong controversy about video game role in the attack, the man behind has made it clear that he used the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 as virtual military simulator"

    Is this true?

  • Dave #29 10 months ago

    I don't think this Norwegian retailer is really blaming games for what happened. It just took the games of shelves out of respect, because it's claimed the guy used MW2 as a training simulation.

    And I applaud EG for not turning this into a tabloid sensationalist article.

  • Gromit #30 10 months ago

    "His 1500 page manifesto apparently stated that he viewed Modern Warfare 2 as a "training-simulation"

    So how the hell is this a knee-jerk reaction? They are showing some respect for the people killed and their families by temporarily withdrawing those products. There are so many examples of music & games getting unfairly blamed for things like this, yet when the killer apparently admits to a video game spurring him on, people are still claiming they are somehow hard done by.

  • whoyouknow #31 10 months ago

    Problem is, how much time will pass before it's considered acceptable (or even respectful) to start selling the games again? A month? Six months? And what about new games that come out in the interim that are violent? I think this has put them on the back foot and it may be a difficult stance to maintain as a games retailer.

  • distraet #32 10 months ago

    @28 - He wrote in his manifesto that MW2 was the best virtual training you could get, if it wasn't possible to gain access to real life training.

  • Vortextk #33 10 months ago

    "Others are better suited than us to point to the negative effects of games like these. At the moment it's [appropriate] for us to take them down. I wouldn't be surprised if others do the same. "

    You mean no one? It's horrible what happened, but if he watched a lot of casablanca or indiana jones, do you take those off store shelves?

  • darkmorgado #34 10 months ago

    Perhaps because it's pretty clear from his 1500 page brainfart of a "manifesto" that he was actually fuelled by lunatic conspiracy theories and not by playing computer games? Anyone with an ounce of common sense would laugh that something as simplistic as COD or, even more laughably, WoW, could be used as simulators to train people to carry out massacres.

    Are they going to ban the films and the music he watched as well? Or the food he ate? Banning a computer game he happened to play does nothing except create a lightning rod for people looking to assign blame. People are struggling to understand the reasons behind what he did (and really, for someone as twisted as him, we will never understand it). Pinning the blame on games just creates something tangible that people can point at without adressing or recognising the more serious underlying issues and problems. It's a futile exercise in trying to see order in chaos.

    What happened was a horrendous, unspeakable atrocity carried out by a lunatic fuelled by conspiracy and paranoia and he deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison. Just because he happened to play computer games which just happen to also be the most popular games in the bloody world does not make computer games responsible, and ultimately the clamping down on expression and the freedom to access these sorts of materials, or any other form of media, will only fuel the sort of paranoid antiestablishment delusions that these people feed on to justify their acts in the first place.

  • rochyroch #35 10 months ago

    nothing to do with access to real guns then ?

  • KDR_11k #36 10 months ago

    Yeah, sure, it takes videogames to turn a freaking Nazi genocidal.

  • uzivatel #37 10 months ago

    @Gromit: How many of his victims played those very same games?

  • Rack #38 10 months ago

    Pity, but under the circumstances it just doesn't seem right that people have access to such dangerous things, people are just going to have to make the best of it and find something they are allowed to have. Maybe they can take up shooting?

  • repeater #39 10 months ago

    Shameful. Will they stop selling clothes of a certain brand too if word comes out that the killer has worn that brand?
    The very fact that they seem to think WoW would even in a thousand years inspire an act like this clearly demonstrates that they are utterly oblivious to games and gaming.

  • Spekingur #40 10 months ago

    How the heck is Modern Warfare 2 in any way a training tool in shooting people? And in no way does a game teach you about guns and how your mind (and body) reacts to them being fired by your hands.

    My biggest question would be though, does Coop sell guns?
    Second question would be, what other products did they remove if games only count for 8 of those products?

  • Davemanz #41 10 months ago

    There's nothing particularly wrong about what they've done. It's a national tragedy and they feel better about temporarily removing the games from the stores to avoid people coming in and feeling needlessly reminded by what's on the shelves. If you want to blame anyone, blame the murderer, who HIMSELF said MW2 was a "training-simulation". It's not like the media or "family groups" came out and blamed games immediately or without basis in the killer's own words.

    I expect lots of negs, thanks.

  • higgins78 #42 10 months ago

    Finally albeit a little too late, people beginning to realize the links between fragile minds and violent unconsiquencial videogames such as COD and GTA may be a risk. Expect of course the massive amounts of videogame addicts to lay blame only in one place and not accept videogames take any responsibility whatsoever. My non-professional advice...ban all videogames and have done. Can anybody really give me any positive effects which somebody may benefit playing videogames anyhow?

    "Retarded decision,made by retards--I bet that shooter liked coffee.
    Ban coffee!" @des.

    Nice one @des, comparing coffee (a natural bean) with videogames (artificial and violent showing few if any repercussions for violent actions. even a lot of the time REWARDS). Give us a break and take off your "videogames rule" baseball cap please!
    Edited by higgins78 at 29/07/11 @ 20:55

  • evarofzentral #43 10 months ago

    The usual reaction - someone going on a rampage is doing because they play violent video games, not because they are mentally disturbed. Maybe they should stop allowing people to own farms, since he owned one of those. Oh, and he must have had computer too to play those games, we better stop selling those because they are obviously the route cause of this.

  • Golgo #44 10 months ago

    higgins78: you really are such a thunderously ignorant fool it's hard to know where to begin...

  • higgins78 #45 10 months ago

    Ignorant @Golgo is only blaming one side. Both sides (the individual AND outside influences) need to reassess. Anyhow, I go back to my original suggestion...what harm caused if videogames were to be banned? Less time spend wallowing in ones room, less mood swings, less social phobia, headaches and numbness?

  • Matthew_Hornet #46 10 months ago

    Excellent. I assume we'll be pulling his favorite movies, songs and books from the stores too? Out of respect?

    What do you mean 'no'?

  • PaulieWaulie #47 10 months ago

    Post deleted at 14:23:40 06-01-2012

  • higgins78 #48 10 months ago

    People it appears seem to be missing the obvious difference between literature, movies and music with that of a videogame which is mindless and rewarding in its violence simply for the sake of it, that and with a videogame it is YOU who are in the driving seat. Will people PLEASE stop comparing videogames with other mediums and instead judge them on their own "merits".

  • TheRealBadabing #49 10 months ago

    "...what harm caused if videogames were to be banned? Less time spend wallowing in ones room, less mood swings, less social phobia, headaches and numbness?"
    So videogames cause teenagers, it all makes sense now!

  • higgins78 #50 10 months ago

    @TheRealBadabing. No, bit it certainly makes a big contribution.

  • The-Jack-Burton #51 10 months ago

    Games, movies, books - BAN THEM ALL!

    I see no other solution at this point.

  • darkmorgado #52 10 months ago

    higgins78 is an undercover reporter for the Daily Mail AICMFP

  • mukki #53 10 months ago

    Here we go... Ignorant knee jerk reaction...

  • Flipper79 #54 10 months ago

    He said he used COD to 'train'. That says he already knew of his intention and the game played no part.

    Shouldn't Christianity be banned? Perhaps farming? What food and drink did he like, ban those? He dressed as a policeman so uniforms should be banned, shouldn't they?

    He was involved with fascist groups and worked in an industry that allowed him easy access to bomb making materials. If you want to place blame (which I really can't understand why isn't solely being directed at the individual) then blame the naivity or ineptitude of the security services for not picking up on this. Blame whoever's job it was to arrange security (or lack thereof) for a political get together of a large number of people on a isolated island.

    You want proof that games aren't the cause? Look at how shocked everyone is when something like this happens....BECAUSE IT'S SO DAMN RARE and yet games are one of the most popular forms of entertainment.

  • Harmonica #55 10 months ago

    This is horrendous. The world is kind of falling apart these days. I hope it'll get better eventually.

  • darkmorgado #56 10 months ago

    @Flipper79

    Slight aside, but it is interesting that instead I've not heard any section of the media call him a Christian Extremist, despite the fact that he describes himself as a devout christian.

    You can damn well bet if any muslim committed this, no matter the reason, they'd be described as an Islamic Extremist.

  • darkmorgado #57 10 months ago

    This is horrendous. The world is kind of falling apart these days.

    The world isn't more violent. It's just more televised.

  • Alestes #58 10 months ago

    A stupid reaction, and it doesn't really matter either. People go to Coop to buy grocery, not to buy games.

  • alcides #59 10 months ago

    Did those fucktards get weapons off the shelves too?

    Let them take the games away, and let it be another shooting (I'm seriously NOT wishing for that). Morons will go on killing sprees because other morons won't go to the root of the evil : racism, bigotry, untreated mental illnesses, open threats left unattended...

  • ShiroBen #60 10 months ago

    He also breathed oxygen, I believe, so we're going to be removing the atmosphere from Norway shortly.

  • Ares42 #61 10 months ago

    It should really be noted that this is a grocery-chain where parts of the stores also offers "assorted goods". They only really offer well established titles, and rarely any new releases. In most cases none of the staff would have any clue about games at all.

  • effinjamie #62 10 months ago

    Remove Bread from shelves because he ate that too!

  • 32768Colours #63 10 months ago

    Well as everyone knows, human beings hadn't committed a single act of violence until video games came along. The depiction of human conflict in gaming is sickening because it doesn't reflect what a sweet and innocent world we live in. As we all know, guns were only invented after someone put one in a computer game. Games are a scourge on humanity's otherwise spotless track record for peaceful resolution.

    I'm sure everyone remembers the tragic story of the thousands of people who seriously injured their knuckles after trying to do the grand upper move from Streets of Rage 2. And as for those poor folks who copied the antics of Chuck D Head from Decap Attack, well, the less said about that the better.

    So yeah, we really should just ban the hell out of video games, because to be honest I have it on pretty good authority that Hitler owned an Intellivision, Pol Pot was a big fan of Frogger and Colonel Gaddafi became the nutcase we all know today just because he played his mate's Mario's Cement Factory Game & Watch.

  • CamberGreber #64 10 months ago

    Im sure there are RAPISTS out there that MASTERBATE to RAPE SCENES in movies.

    Should we ban MOVIES NEXT?

  • doragonpawwa #65 10 months ago

    So if I went mad and go on a killing spree of killing wildlife (of the insects) would that cause the Earth Defense Force to be disgraced in the public eye?

    Simply it makes no sense to ban WoW... far as I'm aware its fantasy RPG than being a military sim.

  • omniscient #66 10 months ago

    Well we only have ourselves to blame, if the most violent games weren't the most successful ones we could at least have a leg to stand on, but as that isn't the case it' all to easy for games to be targetted. Next time you're undercided about getting Call of Duty or LittleBigPlanrt don't be :).

  • stryker1121 #67 10 months ago

    A bizarre and ass-hatted reaction to the tragedy. This type of thing just sets a bad precedent. MW2 sold somethiing like 8M units and one man's heinous crime means a retailer pulls the game (and others like it) from its shelves? Specious reasoining, that.
    Edited by stryker1121 at 30/07/11 @ 04:33

  • MagnificentDuke #68 10 months ago

    So the law abiding citez

  • MagnificentDuke #69 10 months ago

    So basically all the law abiding citizens of Norway that w going about their own business, possibly rushing home to play COD:Black Ops,are being punished. Good move for sure. Lol.

  • MagnificentDuke #70 10 months ago

    If Call of Duty was to blame then fuck, hold on to your hats guys, we will all soon perish! Take that EA! Battlefield hasn't got a chance in this war!

  • MagnificentDuke #71 10 months ago

    I apologise for the consecutive posts! I am a little tipsy here. (and playing cod) for some reason it makes me so angry!?

  • Graveland #72 10 months ago

    In all fairness, I do support the fact that they removed CoD from shelves - because it's fucking shite.

  • jaec #73 10 months ago

    To be fair, he also extols the virtues of Microsoft Word, but I don't see PC World dropping Office from their shelves...

  • Ternon #74 10 months ago

    Holy shit, what an idiotic,, imbecilic, irrational decision to make!
    Amazing...

  • djed #75 10 months ago

    Apparently he killed the wrong people.

  • jetsetdemo #76 10 months ago

    He only cited MW2 so I am guessing MW3 will neatly by pass the issue and fill the void. Let's hope the next Norway psycho dose not steal a tank as his weapon of choice or that's BF3 fucked.

  • djed #77 10 months ago

    Also, major translation error.

    "Others are better suited than us to point to the negative effects of games like these". If you go to the source, Rogalands Avis, he only says "effects/consequences", nothing about "negative".

  • super_monty #78 10 months ago

    He was a Christian, we should ban all religion.

    Mmmmmmm wiat a world without religon now that will stop a lot of murders, hate crime, terrorism, kidnapping, child abuse, inferior women's rights, aids victims, forced marriages, homophobia etc etc

    RIP

  • Inmediasress #79 10 months ago

    @super_monty
    Yes agreed religion is worse than politics that is if you can tell the two apart nowadays.

  • smokingslim #80 10 months ago

    Have they removed the movie Rampage? (guy blows up a building and goes on a rampage somewhere else) when I heard about a bombing + a shooting made me think this guys watched too much rampage, not playing too much MW2... if anything shouldn't it be that COD that lets you kill the civies in the airport that got removed?

  • callum9999 #81 10 months ago

    I've never known a group of people to be so touchy and think everything is an attack on themv (well, without good reason). No one is saying games caused this. One non-gaming shop decided to stop selling a few games, at least some of which are irrefutabley caught up in this tragedy, as a mark of respect. It isn't releasing a report on the matter judging people or attributing blame - in fact they specifically said as much.

    It astounds me how hysterical people on here (I was about to say gamers but I can't actually think of anyone I know how gets so worked up over non-events) get over things like this. Perhaps an ironic twist being the huge support for age ratings - themselves a form of censorship...

  • barat #82 10 months ago

    From his manifest:

    "F example, tell them that you have started to play World of Warcraft or any other online
    MMO game and that you wish to focus on this for the next months/year. This ”new
    project” can justify isolation and people will understand somewhat why you are not
    answering your phone over long periods. Tell them that you are completely hooked on
    the game (raiding dungeons etc). Emphasise to them that this is a dream you have had
    since you were a kid. If they stress you, insist and ask them to respect your decision. You
    will be amazed on how much you can do undetected while blaming this game. If your
    planning requires you to travel, say that you are visiting one of your WoW friends, or
    better yet, a girl from your ”guild” (who lives in another country). No further questions
    will be raised if you present these arguments.

    Blaming WoW is also quite strategic due to another factor. It is usually considered ”tabu”
    or even shameful in our society today to be hooked on an MMO. By revealing ”this
    secret” to your close ones you are therefore (to them at least) entrusting them with your
    innermost secret. Usually they will ”contribute” to keeping this secret for you which can
    be very beneficial. (If people from your ”secondary” social circle ask them they will even
    usually ”lie” on your behalf (giving you alibi), in order to keep your MMO project a secret."

  • bobfish09 #83 10 months ago

    This happened in the UK when Manhunt was linked to a death here (turned out the victim played it not the killer). It was simply done to ensure continued goodwill from the public, there was never any intention of keeping it off the shelf.

    So I wouldn't read too much into this, public opinion matters and unfortunately the press have done a very good of painting games as evil in most cases.

  • canoot #84 10 months ago

    What a complete over reaction, the bloke is a fucking nutter, end of.

  • ACCH #85 10 months ago

    Coop sells games? It's a grocery store

  • Anslant #86 10 months ago

    I hope he read the Harry Potter books and the Twilight Saga, too. And maybe listened to Coldplay? Fingers crossed, some good can come from this yet!

  • Davemanz #87 10 months ago

    @higgins78: For what it's worth I agree with what you've posted and I've upvoted you.

    And you, Callum9999. Gamers (on the internet) will jump on anything that supports the "I played Doom at age 8 and I turned out fine, so it must be entirely harmless!" line, without the maturity to understand that for some people and some ages it might not be. Now, some (probably growing, thankfully) will at least admit violent games really SHOULD be kept away from children, but even a lot of people in these kinds of discussions will complain about age restrictions for purchases (ignoring identical restrictions for films) as though it's a double standard. Yeesh.
    Edited by Davemanz at 30/07/11 @ 11:02

  • vicheous #88 10 months ago

    This is just stupid

    -Norwegian gamer-

  • Ternon #89 10 months ago

    One would think they would ban christianity after the Norway mass murder, not fucking games...

  • hitvish #90 10 months ago

    Just make sure you will never go to this stupid store ever again my fellow gamers in Norway. They can sell whatever they want in their stores, but it's up to you people to make sure this r tarded freaks never see a dime from you again. should make sure that they have to take all of their other shit out of shelves, pack their stuff and go home.
    Edited by hitvish at 30/07/11 @ 13:02

  • Averice #91 10 months ago

    I hear he really loved ice cream too. That he ate ice cream all the time. And fish. Swedish Fish.

  • JadedSoul #92 10 months ago

    Post deleted at 08:10:55 26-04-2012

  • Optyk #93 10 months ago

    He also grew vegetables. Best remove them from shop shelves too.

  • dragulagb #94 10 months ago

    well crap, ive played warcraft, modern warfare and metal gear solid oh and dark siders, so im going to get my assault rifle and dress as a orc while i ride my horse and try to find metal gear ray..... riiiight

  • callum9999 #95 10 months ago

    Davemanz - Quite the opposite on here. Every story that is related to children playing games is full of people slamming parents for allowing their children to play games rated higher than their age.

    I'd hardly call myself a gamer, but I played games like GTA ever since I was about 9 and am now a vegetarian pacifist. Children are people too - if violent games can have a dangerous affect on children then they can also have a dangerous affect on certain adults. You can't have it both ways.

  • butler` #96 10 months ago

    You're all getting ahead of yourselves. It's idle PR.

  • Lucodeath #97 10 months ago

    Well thats going to help matters. Not! The event has already happened so what difference will it make?

  • vijay_UK #98 10 months ago

    Religion is fucking everything up in the world. I wish people could just chill out a bit, watch movies and play pc games. Too many fucknuts have nothing in their lives and want their 15mins of fame.

    I say we should deny them their moment of glory; instead wish good thoughts for those who went through such an atrocity, and move on.

  • Jonathan_Fakenham #99 10 months ago

    Well, it appears this hasn't been followed through yet, as I when deliberately walked past the game isles while doing my weekend shopping earlier this evening, I still saw copies of Black Ops, World at War, Homefront, etc.

  • HeNiCiDe1988 #100 10 months ago

    moronic completely moronic the damage was already done if the games really caused his actions but frankly that line of thought is totally bull crap, the dude clearly would of done this without games just panic reaction of people who think violent games should be banned.

    Just waiting for some right wing people to start claiming violent video games should be banned or the issue re-visited

  • Bluetooth #101 10 months ago

    So the Norwegian PM saying we will respond by being more democratic, more open... I guess that really doesn't work in practice eh

  • Bluetooth #102 10 months ago

    Oh btw anyone who's shot a gun in real life, on target, will know that it is NOTHING LIKE PLAYING GAMES. So for a mass murderer to say such a thing, then for the people in charge to believe it, is essentially letting the nutter win.

  • kirankara #103 10 months ago

    I heard he listened to Justin bieber , can the world now ban him on this basis??? Please ?

  • Lunatic4ever #104 10 months ago

    yeah, so here we go again. so many people play videogames. is it surprising then that even sick sociopaths play it,too? nope it ain't so whats the big deal. I'm sure that he also at least once watched a violent movie with guns and listened to aggresive music about beating people up. but hey, games are so easy to hate,right? I've killed literally millions of people online and never felt the urge to transfer this to real life. If you dont have that deep inside of you than it will never happen. never.

  • menage #105 10 months ago

    Oh for god sake.

    Remove Lego as wel then, he probably played with it at some point.

    I can almost understand the MW2 thing, but banning WoW?
    Edited by menage at 31/07/11 @ 12:22

  • Monkey_Chops #106 10 months ago

    Provided they take down violent action movies, thrillers and music with violent lyrical content as well, I have no problem with this as a temporary measure.

    Clearly it's the biggest tragedy in Norway's recent history and showing degree of sensitivity is all well and good, but there has to be consistency as well.

  • Neil__ #107 10 months ago

    @higgins78

    Just because you're so feeble minded, easily influenced and utterly out of control that you can't tell the difference between gaming and reality and in consequence find yoiurself acting violently after playing said games doesn't mean we are all like you.

  • TheTrueSpin #108 10 months ago

    So have they also taken violent films of the shelves? What about music with lots of swearing? Has any porn been banned? No? So we can safely blame all this on video games?

  • bigtechno #109 10 months ago

    Yeah that's my favourite level - the one where you land on an island & start shooting everyone

  • Caimbeul #110 10 months ago

    So it wasnt his extremist links that encouraged him or any psycological issues? No, clearly it was just all that grinding in WOW that just got to him. What a fucking farce. Like other, my comment is in no way intended to downplay the horrific incident but if he watched friends, eastenders or any other media/books would they too be pulled from sale? NO, it just shows what idiots are in power over there.

  • darth_paul #111 10 months ago

    what a populist thing to do...

    yeah, its the game's fault. never mind finding out the real reasons why he did it. "gaming" fits it perfectly

  • 5h1nj1 #112 10 months ago

    This is so wrong on so many levels. Sad, really.
    Will they ban all the movies, that person has ever seen? Will they ban the food, he ate? Will they ban all the books he ever read? When will people understand, that videogames are the same as any other medium? They don't make a person a psychopath.
    World of Warcraft? For christ's sake, WoW has made him to do so? Not the society, not his unfortunate psychological condition, WoW has lead him to it?
    And how will this help to the affected people? I doubt anyone will feel better (after loosing a relative or a friend) knowing there is now another game on the shelf in a shop, where WoW has been.

  • username84 #113 10 months ago

    I wonder if they've taken films like Elephant off the shelves?
    I doubt it.

  • chrisjm #114 10 months ago

    guns dont kill people, video games do.

  • geeza2020 #115 10 months ago

    Anyone who used CoD to train for a military operation would be killed in seconds, surely?

    /sprint forward loudly screaming abuse at all
    /see enemy
    /dive to prone
    /dead