ASA Adjudication on Midway Games Ltd

Ad

A TV ad for "Stranglehold," a computer game, showed a prolonged shoot-out between four men. Voice-over stated “Honour is his code. Vengeance is his mission. Violence is his only option. John Woo presents Stranglehold. The next generation of action gaming has arrived”. On-screen text during the shoot-out stated "Not actual game footage." More on-screen text at the end of the ad stated “JOHN WOO PRESENTS STRANGLEHOLD” alongside the logo for an "18" rating.

Issue

1.  One viewer believed the ad glorified violence and gun crime and that it was a dangerous incitement to susceptible people.

2.  The second viewer, whose three-year-old son had seen the ad, challenged whether it was acceptable for transmission before 9 pm, when young children were likely to see it.

BCAP TV Code

Response

1. & 2.  Picture Production Company (PPC) said they had edited the footage to ensure bullets were seen to be fired into mid-air and did not result in any character or person being shot.  They believed it was clear to viewers that the footage was animated game play and not real-life violence.  They said that Clearcast (formerly the BACC) had approved the ad with the restriction that it should not be shown before 7.30 pm, which PPC believed was reasonable.

Clearcast said they had noted the violent content of the ad when approving it for transmission but considered the violence was stylised, unrealistic and had a fantasy quality.  They noted there were no shots of people being hit by bullets and that there was no blood or gore as a result of the shooting.  They believed that, in the context of an ad for a video game, viewers appreciated that what was shown was fantasy and did not reflect real life.  They said that bearing in mind the lack of interpersonal, contact violence and absence of blood or gore, they had approved the ad on the condition that it should not be shown before 7.30 pm.  They believed this reduced the likelihood that younger children and younger, susceptible people would see the ad.  They did not believe the ad was unsuitable for older children or that a later restriction was necessary.

Assessment

1. & 2.  Upheld

The ASA noted that the shooting was almost continuous throughout the ad and considered that the violence depicted, although computer-generated, was realistic in appearance.  We considered the voice-over, which stated "Honour is his code.  Vengeance is his mission.  Violence is his only option," suggested that it was honourable to seek revenge and that violence was an acceptable solution to a situation.

We considered the ad was likely to be seen as encouraging and condoning violence.  Because the issues raised by the ad could not be addressed with a timing restriction, we considered the only solution was to withdraw the ad from transmission completely.

The ad breached CAP (Broadcast) TV Advertising Standards Code rules 6.2 (Violence and cruelty) and 6.7 (Health and safety).

Action

The ad must not be broadcast again in its current form.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Broadcast)