Judge to Spend Today Playing Bully
The judge in the Bully case demands to see a copy of Bully for himself
Jack Thompson and Rockstar Games had their day in court over the release of Bully and the judge said he'd make his final decision after seeing the game for himself.
Miami Judge Ronald Friedman is expected to spend today, and possibly the next 100 hours, playing Rockstar's upcoming Bully with a Take-Two Interactive employee to see just how violent it is.
The decision to play through the game follows yesterday's hearing, where Florida lawyer Jack Thompson looked for an injunction to prevent the game, which he's called a "Columbine simulator," to minors.
Rather than issue and injunction based on evidence at the hearing, Judge Friedman demanded that Take-Two Interactive produce a copy of the game by 3 p.m. today so he could decide if it is a "public nuisance," as Thompson claims in his legal brief.
Thompson's brief goes on state that "lives are at stake" should this game be released, particularly since the worst weapon reported to be available in the game is a sling-shot which Thompson describes as a weapon "so deadly...it cannot be sold in most states."
"Such a weapon, glamorized for use in Bully, can easily get through any security check at any school in America, given its non-metallic component," his breif continued.
According to a first-person report of the hearing on the game blog Destructoid, Thompson made this point by sneaking a sling-shot into the courtroom.
Bully is set in a private high-school where the player controls a student who goes to class and whatnot, but also has missions to complete as well. Initial previews haven't found excessive violence, but Thompson claims there's something more sinister going on.
Tomorrow we'll see if Take-Two Interactive delivers the game for review or if they appeal.
In the meantime, Bully is set for release Oct. 16.
UPDATE: Court Rules in Bully's Favour
