School-shooting game ‘beggars belief’, says MSP

BACKLASH: Petition against offensive product has gained 180,000 signatures

A gaming-industry watchdog should be established after a video game which depicted a school shooter was released.

A backlash against Active Shooter, which simulated a gunman going into a school and firing at civilians and police, saw it being withdrawn from sale.

Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Alexander Stewart said it “beggars belief” such a product could be conceived after the horror of Dunblane 22 years ago and more recent attacks in the US.

He said: “I feel it is essential that there should be some kind of watchdog set up, specifically that the writers and publishers are rightly held to account.”

Active Shooter was due to be launched this week. Publisher ACID claimed the game, in which players took on the role of an armed police officer, did not promote violence.

However, developer Revived Games appeared to have added an option to play as a civilian, and screenshots showed a score for the number of “civs” and “cops” killed during the game.

It provoked fury from parents of children killed in the Parkland shooting in Florida, and a petition was signed by more than 180,000 people.

Valve Corporation, which runs Steam, said: “We have removed the developer Revived Games and publisher ACID from Steam.

“This developer and publisher is, in fact, a person calling himself Ata Berdiyev, who had previously been removed last fall when he was operating as ‘[bc]interactive’ and ‘Elusive Team.’”

cpeebles@thecourier.co.uk

A screenshot of Active Shooter, which has led MSP Alexander Stewart to suggest that a video games watchdog be put in place to prevent the release of any similiar products in future.