One of the biggest exclusive title this year, Heavy Rain, has been banned in the Middle East. Sony has confirmed that the title has been banned in the United Arab Emirates due as the game presumably containing nudity and mature content. Sony released a statement to Kotaku earlier today, though specifics were not mentioned.
Official Statement:
The UAE’s National Media Council (NMC) has banned Heavy Rain on PlayStation3. Heavy Rain has an 18+ PEGI rating and has been conceived from the earliest stages as a genuinely adult experience. This means that it deals with strong content including blood and nudity, but treats this content in a mature and sensitive manner. The game is not intentionally controversial or sensationalist, and all the themes and content are consistent with what consumers would expect to see in a mainstream Hollywood thriller.
Darksiders suffered a similar fate earlier this year when the title was also banned in the UAE.
This is a bit silly, WHY BAN IT FOR BEING TOO ADULT? Do the UAE just want to drip feed the gaming community with frogger and peggle and keep people from experiencing possible the best title coming to playstation this year?
@weber134 I think anything being “too adult” is banned in the UAE, or heavily edited, whether it’s a game, movie, tv series, etc. I guess it’s due to the belief that such content is against their moral & religious beliefs, hence can aid in corrupting society. Besides, every nation censors entertainment in one way or another depending on what they believe is acceptable. Just look at Austrailia, no 18+ rating games allowed [at the moment].