Final Fantasy VII ist ein Killerspiel!

[Jari]

Ok Germans, don't you das kill me, I'm very hard trying to forget all that [size=4pt](very little) German I had to learn almost 20 years ago, so most likely the thread title assrapes German language. And I don't care. [/size]

Anyway, Kotaku had an interesting article:

Germany's Latest Killer Game: Final Fantasy VII

Two 17 year old boys were arrested for murder this past weekend in the small German village of Tessin, after invading a couple's home and stabbing them both to death. The police caught up with them after they had kidnapped a 15 year old female friend, bound and gagged her, and then held a knife at her throat for an hour before giving themselves up. The murderers' names? Reno and Sephiroth.

At least that's what Torben B. and Felix D. called themselves as they carried out the grisly crimes, and when the police seized their computer they discovered a copy of Final Fantasy VII installed. You probably know the rest here. In Germany, Final Fantasy VII is now being labeled as a "Killerspiele"; a killer game.

Clickety the link above for more text.


EDIT: The commenter who said:

Did they get the materia she dropped?

...made me LOL very hard. :-D

Mod Edit: Corrected german topic title ^_^

 

[Borde]

Je... Didn't the police find FF7 at Columbine's murderers homes too? This is so damn typical...
Maybe you don't know, but we had a similar case here in Spain a few years ago. A teenager killed his mother, father and sister with a Katana. Acording to the news, the murdering was inspired by Final Fantasy 8. A TV channel went as far as to say that the killer resembled a lot phisically to Squall. I'm still trying to see where they saw the resemblance.
They kept talking about this for weeks. After all, it was about a role playing game. The spanish media has a long tradition crimilaizing role playing games and video games (and this one was both).

Anyway... correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that Reno and Sephiroth aren't exactly friends in FF7.

 

[EAngelos89]

Anyway... correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that Reno and Sephiroth aren't exactly friends in FF7.

You don't need to search for a relation between Reno and Sephiroth... these guys just chose their favorite bad guys and committed random murders. I think they got the game after watching Advent Children and I don't think they even went far in the game, and that's because they were nuts!!! Why should we blame the game if the ones who played it were psychos? :x (I wouldn't say this if they were 12-year olds, but keep in mind we're talking about two 17-year old students.) There are thousands of games far more violent out there, is Final Fantasy VII really that violent??

PS: The thread title in German would be: "Final Fantasy VII ist ein Killerspiel!" (right, Alhexx? :-D). Jari doesn't care though... and why should he?

 

[miracle.flame]

What if I went killing people and then when they arrest me I'd call myself Jesus and wave with a Bible in my hand? I'd like to see similarity in the news and consequences. OK, that's not about a videogame but the principle reamins... cause<->consequence

 

[Alhexx]

PS: The thread title in German would be: "Final Fantasy VII ist ein Killerspiel!" (right, Alhexx?  :-D).

Right, I corrected that...

I have heard about that murder on radio a few days ago, but that was directly after the murder happened - so there haven't been any details about the murderers released then.

USA is not the only country on this planet where insane kids walk into schools and start shooting around - the most popular case was in the Gutenberg Gymnasium in Erfurt a few years ago. There were discussions about games like Counter-Strike, violent splatter horror movies and music bands as Slipknot...

I just wait for the government now to forbit FF7 in german - that would be typical for germans - simply forbit a "problem" and try to do so as if it was solved now...

 - Alhexx

 

[Chrisu]

Yeah that would be very funny, but it wouldnt be funny if the forbade it in Austria, cause i am from Austria

 

[Alhexx]

Let's see what N24.de, a big and serious german news channel, says:

"Final Fantasy" als Vorbild?
(...)
Nach einem Bericht der «Bild»-Zeitung (Dienstag) sollen sich die beiden 17-Jährigen bei ihrer Bluttat an dem Gewalt-Computerspiel «Final Fantasy VII» orientiert haben.(...)

The newspaper 'Bild' said on Tuesday, the the two 17-years old boys have imitated the violent game 'Final Fantasy 7'...

(Oh man, I'm not a good translator, you see... )

I have also found the 'Bild' report with the FF7-part (Note: Bild is a newspaper, but not a serious one...)

Die als freundlich bekannten Gymnasiasten haben das Computerspiel „Final Fantasy VII“ nachgespielt. Darin kämpfen auf einem fiktiven Planeten „Gut gegen Böse“.
Die Idole der Jungen: „Sephiroth“, der mit seinem Langschwert unschuldige Bewohner tötet. Und „Reno“, der den Anführer der Guten killen soll. (...)
Am Tatabend sollen sich die Killer mit den Spielnamen angeredet haben. Wollten sie sein wie ihre Vorbilder, ohne Gnade töten, wie sie es schon hundertmal am PC geübt hatten?

The two boys, both know as very kind and friendly, have imitated the computer game "Final Fantasy 7". On a fictive planet, there is a battle beween "good and evil".
The idols of the boys: "Sephiroth", who kills innocent people with his sword. And "Reno" who is supposed to kill the leader of the good ones. (...)
On the evening of the murder they have been talking to each other using their nicknames. Did they want to be like their idols, kill without mercy, as they have been practicing on their computers a few hundret times before?

But I don't see where Bild called FF7 a violent game... damn press...

 - Alhexx

 

[Chrisu]

Your translation is not as bad as you say, i think its correct.

 

[EAngelos89]

Did they want to be like their idols, kill without mercy, as they have been practicing on their computers a few hundred times before?

 :? I didn't get that part?!? Do they mean that in FFVII you take the role of a killer and destroy the world??? F*ckin Press!!  :x

 

[Claude]

What if I went killing people and then when they arrest me I'd call myself Jesus and wave with a Bible in my hand? I'd like to see similarity in the news and consequences. OK, that's not about a videogame but the principle reamins... cause<->consequence

I'd prefer Mario, seriously though, this can only happen in Germany.

 

[Alhexx]

(...) this can only happen in Germany.

I suppose you're right - the Germans (or the german government) think(s) it's a better idea to forbit anything related to a crime, instead of searching and fighting the real reasons - that's much more comfortable, but quite senseless and, as we see, quite ineffective...

 - Alhexx

 

[Elbart_]

A few days ago the Bavarian goverment introduced a law in the Bundesrat (a lower house of the federal government) to forbad every "violent game", may it be real or virtual.

Which means: Good Bye Paintball, Good Bye Snowball-Shooting, Good Bye Dodgeball.

Plus they want legal safety to use trojans for pc-inspections. Nice, huh?

 

[Alhexx]

I just wait for the bavarians to forbid ice hockey and american footbal, heh... 

 - Alhexx

 

[Cyberman]

Remeber that people use such things like this for there own agenda.  They could care less about 'protecting people' or helping people it's all about control and power.  Such things as V for vendetta aren't all that far off the mark with some peoples thinking.  The US is no exception to people like that apparently (see Al Gore and his latest 'humanitarian efforts').  This is very Machievellenian seemingly no?  I think most people are asleep in the head.  I know sometimes I think I am .  (sigh)  This reminds me of people who buy something because "it's cool" and not because they can use it.

Cyb