Halo 2 delay due to "partial nudity"

By Games Industry.biz Published 25 May, 2007

MS fashions fig leaf out of words.

Microsoft has revealed that the discovery of content featuring "partial nudity" was the reason the Windows Vista version of Halo 2 was delayed.

In a statement issued this morning the company said, "It has come to our attention that an unfortunate, obscure content error which includes partial nudity was included in our initial production of Halo 2 for Windows Vista.

"As such, we have updated the initial game packaging at retailers with a label, so customers are aware before purchasing the game... This packaging will only be labelled for the initial run of games; subsequent shipments will not include the content."

The company has also released an online update, available from Halo2.com, which consumers can download in order to remove the content in question.

The Vista version of Halo 2 was originally due to launch on May 8 in the US and May 18 in Europe. However, the dates slipped twice and the game is now due out on May 31 in the States and June 8 in Europe.

Microsoft is doubtless keen to avoid a repeat of the 2005 'Hot Coffee' controversy, where a hidden mini-game which featured the main character having sex was discovered in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. A series of investigations and lawsuits followed, and the game was re-rated as being suitable for 'Adults Only' by the ESRB.

Microsoft's statement concludes, "We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause our customers. At Microsoft we take the Entertainment Software Ratings Board guidelines very seriously and hold ourselves to high standards, with our customers always in mind."

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Comments (67) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Dizzy #1 5 years ago

    Partial nudity? Silly Yanks.

    Did MC take his helm off or what?

  • Overlush #2 5 years ago

    Liars. Stupid publicity stunt to garner interest in early copies more like.

  • SeesThroughAll #3 5 years ago

    WTF?

    I wonder if this was done to please Jacky boy. :p

  • GamesConnoisseur #4 5 years ago

    Please let it be Cortana!!!

  • AcidSnake #5 5 years ago

    Indeed...It just screams out to halo fans to see the girl character naked...At least I hope it's the girl character...

    "Now I'll show you why they call me master chief!"

  • Moz #6 5 years ago

    I'm with Overlush, they've suddenly realised that there is near zero interest in the game and it's not looking like it will generate the vista sales they were hopeing for

  • WJF #7 5 years ago

    Partial Nudity? Is this the same Halo 2 I played or have I woken up in some strange alternate reality where up is down and backwards is salad?

  • vegard #8 5 years ago

    master chief sodomizing cortana ftw!!!

  • Haloboy #9 5 years ago

    Next they will be blaming a leaf on the Halo 3 coding track.

    We all know it's going to be crap, why keep delaying the inevitable backlash?

  • Moz #10 5 years ago

    Halo 3 is getting a mixed reception at the mo, have a friend who works in Toy r Us and they had their software demo day on wednesday said Halo 3 was awsome! Transformers was also ment to be good.

    Still scepticle myself

  • dr_faulk #11 5 years ago

    Hahahaha!
    Master Nude.

  • Uncle_Fishboy #12 5 years ago

    I would buy the game again to see master chief sodomising Miranda Keyes while cortana gives a covenant elite a virtual blow job and three of those little grunts jack each other off in a parked up warthog

  • ChrisOTR #13 5 years ago

    "This packaging will only be labelled for the initial run of games; subsequent shipments will not include the content."

    That has GOT to be a publicity stunt... Buy the first manufacturing run of the game to get "collectible" version with partial nudity.

    Very suss.

    Lucky for me I never understood what was so great about Halo anyway.

  • Moz #14 5 years ago

    Out of interest what is there for the 360 beyound Halo3?

  • Avenger1324 #15 5 years ago

    What a load of rubbish

    You port a 2 1/2 year old game, and only now spot a bug like that? BullSh**

    Pure publicity stunt

  • menage #16 5 years ago

    It's okay to kill each other with a 100 headshots, but you can't show a tit.


    360 Beyond Halo 3??? Ehm, lots. Alan Wake and Lost Odyssee for starters.

  • Haloboy #17 5 years ago

    "Out of interest what is there for the 360 beyound Halo3?"

    Why Halo4 of course.

  • GamesConnoisseur #18 5 years ago

    Moz: Appreciate that you raised it out of interest, I am keeping hold of my X360 as there are much more interesting titles coming out for it compared to what coming for my PS3 for next 12 months.

    Yanks are such a frigid, they are so over the top about any kind of partial nudity, so if we were able to send them picture of partial naked ape whilst playing online matches, they ll be so distracted every time!!

  • Dizzy #19 5 years ago

    "Lucky for me I never understood what was so great about Halo anyway. "

    It is called a lobotomy.

  • Aurifex. #20 5 years ago

    Might be worth buying and keeping it to sell later. May be rare in a few years time.

  • lordofdeadside #21 5 years ago

    "I know what the ladies like"

  • DrunKao #22 5 years ago

    Moz, if that's a serious question then I don't even know where to begin. I smell bait.

  • speedjack #23 5 years ago

    Partial nudity ?

    WTF !!!

    Do you see Master Chief's helmet ?




    /sorry

  • Garulon #24 5 years ago

    Out of interest what is there for the PS3 beyound er... now?

  • Haloboy #25 5 years ago

    KillZone 2?

  • chupachups #26 5 years ago

    "Did MC take his helm off or what?"

    Maybe he left it on, but took everything else off.

  • bushwod #27 5 years ago

    Next month, Limited edition Gears Of War accidently released with a Marcus/Dom shower scene!

  • zuljin #28 5 years ago

    Quick question... The delay is due to partial nudity.

    Are they taking it out, or replacing it with full frontal nudity?

    Edit:
    /Groans at very tired old "my console has better games than your console" jokes...
    Edited by 1 at 25/05/07 @ 10:46

  • Whizzo #29 5 years ago

    "This packaging will only be labelled for the initial run of games; subsequent shipments will not include the content."

    That has GOT to be a publicity stunt... Buy the first manufacturing run of the game to get "collectible" version with partial nudity.


    It's not going to need more than one duplication run, surely?

  • Steroyd #30 5 years ago

    Out of interest what is there for the PS3 beyound er... now?

    Lair, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, Heavenly Sword and a few others.

    Not a space marine in sight.... except maybe Killzone kinda.

  • Moz #31 5 years ago

    " Out of interest what is there for the PS3 beyound er... now?

    Lair, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, Heavenly Sword and a few others.

    Not a space marine in sight.... except maybe Killzone kinda."

    add to the, warhack, tekken 6, Final fantacy (though admitedly a little delayed), metal gear solid, singstar.

    And that's just the exclusive stuff

    edit/ "Moz, if that's a serious question then I don't even know where to begin. I smell bait." I'm being seriouse, maybe it's just Halo fever, just you go to places like gamespy, and the 360 section doesn't talk about much else but Halo. But even with looking more closely at what's coming there still seems to be gaps in the 360 line-up. Which could put PS3 in favourable possition by the end of september
    Edited by 1 at 25/05/07 @ 10:56

  • Dizzy #32 5 years ago

    "Lair, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, Heavenly Sword and a few others. "

    So nothing really?

  • HyperShadow #33 5 years ago

    wasn't Cortana always nude?

    Or does DX10 make her more nude O_o

  • Talha #34 5 years ago

    Yes there is nudity and it's not partial. It is the NUDE inability of MS to port a three year old XBox game on time, it is the NAKED greed on MS's part to plug Vista, and it is not helped by the BARE hate heaped upon this port by the gaming press.

  • sickpuppysoftware #35 5 years ago

    Oo partial nudity, must buy an early copy now erm maybe not. Don't worry about removing it Microsoft. It's on the PC, there will be an unofficial patch to put it back in within a day of release even if you do.

  • Steroyd #36 5 years ago

    So nothing really?

    You dare call Uncharted NOTHING!?!

    BLASPHEMOUS!!!

  • menage #37 5 years ago

    Why the 360 vs PS3 discussion?

    Oh and what gaps. Both PS3 and 360 lineups are loaded for the last half of the year.

  • Dizzy #38 5 years ago

    >Why the 360 vs PS3 discussion?

    The anti Halo emo kids always stream in if they see *any* mentioning of the word Halo.

    >Oh and what gaps

    Indeed... the release is loaded with stuff. Please (Moz) do not temp people to post lists of games... I hate that. The gap is only between your ears I think.

  • Xerx3s #39 5 years ago

    Why the 360 vs PS3 discussion?

    Oh and what gaps. Both PS3 and 360 lineups are loaded for the last half of the year.

    Because people feel insecure.

  • Moz #40 5 years ago

    Now now Dizzy no need for personal insolts, I was refering to genera gaps in the 360 line up. But as you don't want anymore game lists I will save it for a more appropiate discussion.

    EDIT/ "Xerx3s - Because people feel insecure." I'm more afraid of what will happen if MS snub out the PS3 all together.
    Edited by 1 at 25/05/07 @ 11:38

  • zuljin #41 5 years ago

    @Xiphos
    You can't get too upset at the Americans, at the end of the day there is no law that a game has to get rated. Even then, I'm not even sure that a rating means its enforceable...

    EDIT:
    @WayOutWilly
    So female nudity is okay, but male nudity isn't? No wonder gamers are so often seen as immature teenage boys...
    Edited by 1 at 25/05/07 @ 11:53

  • Moz #42 5 years ago

    @zuljin

    from what i understand it is unconstitutional to have govenment enforced age rateing in the states!

    However with the film industry, the film board stops shops selling to people that are too younge by not letting them have any films to sell if they do sell to minors.

    As for games everything is advisery, why JT doesn't focus his time on getting the games industry to adopt the same approach as the films industry, instead of trying to sew people left right and senting and generally makeing an arse of himself I don't know!

  • Darkedge #43 5 years ago

    Moz there arn't any gaps in the 360 lineup - just in your knowledge it seems.

  • Haloboy #44 5 years ago

    A patch to remove the "undesirable content" has already been released!

    http://fi les.filefront.com/Halo2Vista+Up...

  • tenma #45 5 years ago

    "Partial nudity? Silly Yanks."

    Pardon me while I roll my eyes.

  • Nithron #46 5 years ago

    Worst. Excuse. Ever.

  • login_name #47 5 years ago

    "The anti Halo emo kids always stream in if they see *any* mentioning of the word Halo."

    It would appear the pro Halo emo kids do the same.

    "Indeed... the release is loaded with stuff. Please (Moz) do not temp people to post lists of games... I hate that. The gap is only between your ears I think."

    So it's ok for you to say there's nothing due out on PS3 but not for him to ask IF there's anything due out on 360? Maybe he's trolling, I dunno Moz, but you most definitely are and need to heed your own words.

    As always there's a drought during the spring/summer but both consoles have a few gems lined up for the latter 3rd and 4th quarters, as does the Wii (well, maybe, depends if they pull their finger out and treat euros equally...so probably not then).

  • SBfistfun #48 5 years ago

    "So female nudity is okay, but male nudity isn't?"

    There's the hammer hitting the nail on the head right there.

  • The-Bodybuilder #49 5 years ago

    Wow, a blatant MS publicity stunt involving nudity in a 3 year old game that didn't have it before (and in the first few batch), and yet it still turns into a halo and ps3vs 360 battle?

  • zuljin #50 5 years ago

    @Moz
    Well the ESRB is optional, and since you have to pay to get a rating, I'm surprised any company applies for it at all...

    Jack Thompson seems to be getting less insane recently though. I think his next lawsuit is Microsoft on Halo 3, but I think he's happy with a guarantuee that the game won't be sold to under 17's.

  • Walshicus #51 5 years ago

    Opinion has it that the offending image is one of the Bungie developers mooning at a webcam, buried deep in the SDK's error reporting.

    Silly really.

  • Tweakmonkey #52 5 years ago

    There are so many questions. Where is the nudity? When was it put there? Why is it being taken out?

  • Kami #53 5 years ago

    Covering up that Halo 2 Vista will be shit?

    Why do I feel like the only person in the universe who thought Halo 2 WAS shit?

  • GamesConnoisseur #54 5 years ago

    Maybe it is subjective, and we acknowledge that it was a bit hyped up, but if you go to metacritic or game ranking, including votes of individuals as well as critics halo 2 is not a complete stinker, indeed there are many who actually enjoyed it!

    Halo 2 multi-player side of it remain one of the more popular online gaming and it is something that Halo 3 must live up to.
    Sure some dont like Halo 2 that fine and not end of the world. As some have said repeatlingly ad infindium.. dont buy Halo 2 Vista if you dont want it!

    I think it will sell well but not as much as what was sold on xbox.

  • Haloboy #55 5 years ago

    "Why do I feel like the only person in the universe who thought Halo 2 WAS shit?"

    Makes two of us at least.

    Fact is I adored the original Halo but Halo 2 was nothing more than a hyped up mess of a game. I'll always remember the time I came across a covenant who was firing green shit at me and just as I was about to cap his ass he warped from the floor to a box and was practically stood in thin air while still firing at me. From that point forward the more I played the less impressed I was with it.

    Halo 2 was a joke on the Xbox in 2004
    Halo 2 Vista is the joke of the year in 2007.

  • Dizzy #56 5 years ago

    >he warped from the floor to a box and was practically stood in thin air while still firing at me

    Oh man... that must have been the worst experience of your life. Damn CHEATORZ!!! Lucky it happened to you, I would just cuddle up in a corner and do the fetus. I understand your hate now...

  • Pulsar_t #57 5 years ago

    Halo 2 was a joke on the Xbox in 2004
    Halo 2 Vista is the joke of the year in 2007.

    QFT.

    Is it me, or does this Gaming For Windows movement signifies a shift in MS's strategy?

    1. Vista still sucks.
    2. Halo 2 sucks.
    3. Even more so on the PC.
    4. ???
    5. 360 profit!

    I sincerely hope this is not the case however. Besides Windows will suffer in the long run due to gamers flocking over to Console Land™.
    Edited by 1 at 25/05/07 @ 15:02

  • zuljin #58 5 years ago

    @WayoutWilly
    "Ofc, female nudity is OK, and male isn't, at least by my account. Since I'm a male, if there's any nudity I prefer that it's female.... I really can't see why would that make me a teenager; it only says I like women."

    I just find it a childish attitude. If women objected as vehemently to all appearances of female nudity as men did to male nudity, there wouldn't be any more films or games.

    If women can put up with a 10 second flash of breasts in God of War, then I don't think it'll exactly kill you seeing partial male nudity for a few seconds in another video game.

  • kangarootoo #59 5 years ago

    @Dizzy

    "Oh man... that must have been the worst experience of your life..."

    Hehe :)

  • Pulsar_t #60 5 years ago

    Ofc, female nudity is OK, and male isn't, at least by my account. Since I'm a male, if there's any nudity I prefer that it's female.... I really can't see why would that make me a teenager; it only says I like women.

    What a hypocrite. And yes I'm a bit of a homophobe.

  • smelly #61 5 years ago

    >Moz there arn't any gaps in the 360 lineup

    guffaw!


    >Worst. Excuse. Ever.

    Hardly

  • cyber_nicco #62 5 years ago

    I don't think MS would do this for publicity. They just wouldn't make enough money to even vaguely justify the hooplah here in the US.

    Oh, and not all Americans are so uptight about this stuff, it's just the old 'tards on the various ratings boards... I hope to see that all change as the last of the pre-babyboomers die off...

  • immateriaux #63 5 years ago

    They are removing the nudity but the killing, the blood, death and destruction are all still there, right? Insane fucking world this, no wonder I play games to escape reality.

  • Pirotic #64 5 years ago

    Turns out it just has a picture of somebody mooning in the credit scroll of the map editor.

  • Pulsar_t #65 5 years ago

    They are removing the nudity but the killing, the blood, death and destruction are all still there, right? Insane fucking world this, no wonder I play games to escape reality.

    I wish I could give you one internet for that remark :)

  • hulahoops #66 5 years ago

    They are removing the nudity but the killing, the blood, death and destruction are all still there, right? Insane fucking world this, no wonder I play games to escape reality.[/i}
    Amen.

  • captainrentboy #67 5 years ago

    ''Out of interest what is there for the 360 beyound Halo3? ''
    .......Must resist making a sad whopping list of upcoming games.........Ahhhh there we go!! Anyway I agree that Halo 2 is veeerry late coming to the PC, nobody gives a toss in my store, Halo is a big thing in the console market because it's arguably pretty much unrivalled scope/storyline/Multi-player wise, the PC market of course is overflowing with quality FPS , most of which are considerably better than Halo 2.