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Rockstar Games has released a game patch to counter the problemattic 'Hot Coffee' mod which landed them in hot water!

The version 1.01 patch not only corrects a few game bugs, it also adds display options to suit its use on HD display devices and completely disables the 'locked' offensive content which recently led to the game being banned from sale in many places about the globe.

I don't know about you, but to me that kinda sounds like the little boy with his finger in the dyke! There were millions of copies of the game sold, and most of them in games console versions rather than the PC version to which this patch applies. I hope Rockstar Games doesn't consider that this move 'fixes' the problem.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by benna

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was right to be skeptical about a single patch “solving” the whole problem, and ’s point about the social double-standard between nudity and onscreen violence is worth mentioning as part of why this blew up beyond usual patching debate. The ESRB’s investigation concluded that the sexual scenes existed on the retail discs for PC, Xbox and PS2 (they were not created by the Hot Coffee mod), and the board revoked the original M rating—prompting retailers to halt sales until corrective action was taken. ESRB statement. (esrb.org)

Rockstar/Take‑Two’s response combined technical and commercial steps: a downloadable update for PC to neutralize the unlocked content, reissued “clean” copies for retail, and options for retailers to re‑sticker or exchange inventory. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission later settled with the companies, requiring clearer disclosure practices; Take‑Two reported large return costs associated with the rerating. . FTC press release. ()

Part of the shock came from market mechanics: an AO rating effectively kills mainstream distribution because major console manufacturers and big retailers won’t carry AO titles, so a relatively small piece of hidden content had outsized commercial consequences. That structural reality explains why nudity—despite often being less graphically violent than other in‑game content—can trigger much sharper fallout. WIRED analysis (AO impact). (wired.com)

For historical completeness: owners were offered remediation at the time (PC patch, exchanged/relabelled discs, and a class‑action settlement that allowed pre‑July‑20‑2005 purchasers to request an edited copy or modest refunds); uptake on the claims was small. Wired coverage of settlements. Post‑settlement reporting on claim uptake. (wired.com)

Relevant primary sources: the ESRB statement, Rockstar’s support/patch page, and the FTC settlement notice give the full, verifiable timeline and remedies listed above.

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This whole thing is so ridiculous. GTA is a game where you steal cars, kill and evade police, and any number of other very violent things. With all these things, the game is rated M, as it should be.

But then it is revealed that the game contains nudity and people are so outraged they change the raiting to AO (nevermind that the difference in recommended age limit is 1 year). What kind of sick culture do we live in, where a woman's breast is scene as far worse than the dipiction of murder?

Don't get me wrong, I don't think even dipiction of murder in a video game is such a horrible thing, but if one is going to react so strongly to a fucking body part, he should most certainly react even more strongly to murder. Why are we so damn prude as a society? It is pathetic.

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