Fungi Forums
Video Games => Video Game Chat => Topic started by: Keiji Dragon on March 08, 2009, 12:31:35 AM
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Have you ever noticed any animal abuse in video games?
I know that in some games like Mega Man Legends where you can do more then just kick dogs. In fact, in its Japanese counterpart, Rockman DASH, you can not only kick the dog to save a certain female character early in the game, but you can even kick cats, and shoot down birds too with no penalty whatsoever. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtQ1yWro2b4) (This video is almost full of annotations that save me the trouble of describing everything in complete detail.)
There's more too. In many Zelda games you can strike at the Cuccos (The chickens) out of amusement. Though, they'll practically curse you with a flurry of them after your cruel ass.
Also, in the MOTHER/EarthBound series, you can strikes stray dogs, crows, etc. with a baseball bat. Even though its in self-defense. Plus, in MOTHER 3, there's a character that shocks his monkey servant out of amusement.
What kind of examples of "animal abuse" do you spot in video games nowadays and before?
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In MGS3, you can shoot the guard dogs and they won't count as a kill if I remember correctly. I don't know how close to abuse this is 'cause Snake does it in self-defense.
In any case, you almost have to do this in order to get the Big Boss rank. There are some really, really good players out there that know how to avoid the dogs, but I certainly didn't on my original BB run.
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Go Squirtle! What, how dare you not win! Into the suspended animation of Bill's PC with you!
What about human abuse done by animals in video games? Metal Gear Solid has those EVIL FRIKKIN' WOLVES, too. I think they're impossible to kill. But DANG it's possible for them to kill you!!
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^
Haha, I agree. The wolves were actually tougher to avoid then any solider in the game. Of course, Sniper Wolf was the toughest "wolf" of all and you couldn't avoid her.
I should shoot myself for saying that.
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I was going to bring up Pokémon but BP beat me to it.
The fish in one of Claude's stages in Peggle.
Pretty much any RPG that lets you fight animals.
Earthworm Jim.
Sam & Max.
Do headcrabs count as animals? What about non-sentient creatures in Spore?
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I forgot to mention that in order to survive in MGS3, you have to eat wild animals. Depending on how you answer the game's first question, that can be very frequent or practically nonexistent.
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Earthworm Jim.
Considering you play as an earthworm anyway, I don't think that'd count to the same degree, if it all.
Also, Super Mario World. Punching Yoshi in the back of the head to get him to stick out his tongue is not cool.
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Is there a loophole if they're furries?
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(https://themushroomkingdom.net/board/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fen%2Fb%2Fb5%2FCabela%26%23039%3Bs_Big_Game_Hunter_Coverart.jpg&hash=af39fb09574bdc94661415eb326bf81e)
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I played one of those Cabela games recently. A part of me died inside when I shot a bullet through a polar bear's brain. It wasn't even doing anything, it was just standing there minding its own business. Never mind that you can also hunt endangered animals.
Maybe flying though cows in any typical racing game with a country level would count. I recall you could blast away cows and pigs and chickens in Redneck Rampage too. Or getting up close to an animal in Paperboy before whacking it at full velocity with a flung newspaper... or maybe I'm the only one who did that.
I'm just glad there hasn't been a videogame version of "Oh Brother Where Art Thou" yet. You remember that one scene where the guy starts shooting cows for no reason and shortly thereafter a cow gets hit by a car. I wonder what it is with the nonchalance in killing cows. Maybe because in games they just stand there and are easy targets?
Another example could be in Black & White where you could slap your Creature if it's misbehaving. Or you could be the cruel sort and slap it hard and slap it many times. I remember doing that to the Cow in the first example where it's frightened of its new home and needs reassurance, and slapping it just makes it cry. I think the Creature weeps in other cases if it's unhappy. But in general, you can pet the Creature to praise whatever it did or slap the Creature to disapprove of what it did. And then usually do it multiple times before it finally gets it.
It seems it's abuse if they're minding their own business or they're visibly scared. But if it's in self-defense, then it's fine. Is it fine even if you were the one who provoked the animal?
"Shadow of the Colossus" seems to be built on having colossi that usually don't care about you until you start stabbing them. Many reviews have pointed out that it's a pretty sad game, that you're indiscriminately killing these colossi in an attempt to save a girl that may or may not happen. And after you kill one, you have to watch it slowly fall to the ground in a lifeless heap.
...But that one colossus had it coming, I mean, it kept attacking me when I was laying on the ground stunned, so I couldn't do anything to fight back. Cheap jerk.
Looks like we've already mentioned the loopholes when a game's characters consist of anthropomorphic animals (or "furries" if you're inclined), where I believe it doesn't really count since presumably they act more like humans in those games.
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Is there a loophole if they're furries?
ABSOLUTELY.
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...But that one colossus had it coming, I mean, it kept attacking me when I was laying on the ground stunned, so I couldn't do anything to fight back. Cheap jerk.
I think if you don't get out of the way straightaway, you'll die from getting hit repeatedly.
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I feel as bad about killing animals in video games as I do about killing people in video games.
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If abuse against mutated humans counts, then Valve's horrible rape of the Smoker is a notable case.
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Oh yes another example is Duck Hunt. How could I fail to remember the quintessential duck hunting game?
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Why has no one mentioned Animal Crossing? I'm sure everyone here has, at one time or another, sent their neighbors hate-mail, hit them with shovels/nets, and/or pressed the reset button just to tick off Resetti.
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Don't forget you can hit them with the axe too!
What about the Mario games? Stomping on turtles, throwing turtle shells, grabbing monkeys and rabbits, pulling legs off of Bloopers, hitting monkeys with hammers? The list could go on and on..
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I just remembered I actually had a conversation about animal cruelty in Pokemon games after seeing Watchmen. I pointed out (and the dude I was talking to agreed) that the cruelest thing you can do is put a pokemon in digital storage on a PC and leave them there forever in the timeless darkness.
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I only do that to about 90-95% of my Pokemon.
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Why has no one mentioned Animal Crossing? I'm sure everyone here has, at one time or another, sent their neighbors hate-mail, hit them with shovels/nets, and/or pressed the reset button just to tick off Resetti.
I enjoy digging holes completely around people.
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What about the Mario games? Stomping on turtles, throwing turtle shells, grabbing monkeys and rabbits, pulling legs off of Bloopers, hitting monkeys with hammers? The list could go on and on..
Could it be that we've let Nintendo talk us into playing as one of the world's premier animal abusers?
Most games are going to contain some degree of abuse, even if it's subtle. At one point or another, someone is gonna wanna beat the snot out of Diddy Kong in Brawl.
EDIT: Hm...I guess that really isn't subtle.
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I...honestly don't care. At all. People who try to give me crap about animal abuse in games just drop a few notches on my "Cool Dudes" list.
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I don't really care about animal abuse in games because...well, they're bloody virtual. People getting riled up over real animal abuse is one thing, but virtual animals don't deserve any sympathy whatsoever.
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Especially not Diddy.
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Actually, I like Diddy Kong. He's my best character in Brawl, but it's always fun to beat the snot out of a shrieking chimpanzee.
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How come no one said Runescape yet? You can KILL virtually every animal. Cows and chickens included.
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Especially not Diddy.
I will brain you.
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Easy now, easy now. Diddy is awesome, but he definitely doesn't appeal to everyone.
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Not technically animals as such, but in Fire Emblem 9/10, I get a kick out of owning the various types of Laguz (half-animal, half-human people who can (when their guage is high enough), transform in to cats/birds/dragons).
Especially, if it's fire magic...
Besides, tossing a hand grenade at a bunch of crows in RE4, usually yields a lot of money (and possibly herbs/ammo)... So it makes sense to do it.
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Easy now, easy now. Diddy is awesome, but he definitely doesn't appeal to everyone.
I hate apes in general. Donkey Kong escapes my wrath solely because he's a classic character. Diddy just annoys me. Plus he's one of maybe two level 9 CPUs that I still consistently have trouble with.
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Is there a loophole if they're furries?
Yes, but you need to be the giant disembodied hands and face of an ape in order to utilize it. Word of advice: Don't let them shoot your palms. or your eyes. Or your medula. But if its a raccoon with a mustache, just leave it be.
Why hasn't anyone mentioned the hamster from Maniac Mansion for NES?? You kids are all too young, methinks. You can get this hamster in the game, go into the kitchen, put it in the microwave, and make it explode!!
Also, I don't think anyone has mentioned jumping on top of and/or setting on fire turtles/dinosaurs/bugs/waddling muffins/Klansmen/frogs/fish/dolphins, not to mention jumping off an innocent dinosaur and sending him plummeting to the depths of cheese bridge/ melting in lava.
...I thought this was a Mario board.
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Why hasn't anyone mentioned the hamster from Maniac Mansion for NES?? You kids are all too young, methinks. You can get this hamster in the game, go into the kitchen, put it in the microwave, and make it explode!!
I love you.
I also remember the glitch where it's possible to have the hamster in both its pre- and post-microwave states.
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I hate apes in general. Donkey Kong escapes my wrath solely because he's a classic character. Diddy just annoys me. Plus he's one of maybe two level 9 CPUs that I still consistently have trouble with.
What do you have against apes (and monkeys)? I mean, if science (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_ape) is anything to be believed, we ARE apes! You can't ate the animal most closely related to you!
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Chef, people can hate apes if they want. You need to stop acting like it's against the law to hate them.
I hate hate hate monkeys and apes. I hate Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong (Classic character status doesn't stop me). I'm not gonna try to force anyone to hate them as well, but I won't listen to any "BAWWWW U HAEV TO LIEK THEM"s either.
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I didn't say he HAD to like them. I was just messing with him, 'tis all.
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What do you have against apes (and monkeys)? I mean, if science (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_ape) is anything to be believed, we ARE apes! You can't ate the animal most closely related to you!
So...we automatically have to love apes because we're distantly related to them?
That's bull.
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I'm related to a lot of people I don't like.
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As far as I'm concerned, I'm not related to an ape whatsoever. Our DNA might be similar, but that in no way makes them likable or a beloved member of my human family.
Apes are among my least favorite animals. Diddy is cool because of Diddy Kong Racing, not because he's an ape/chimp/whatever the heck he is.
EDIT: It just occurred to me that TC said "we can't ate apes," not "we can't hate apes."
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Also, I don't think anyone has mentioned jumping on top of and/or setting on fire turtles/dinosaurs/bugs/waddling muffins/Klansmen/frogs/fish/dolphins, not to mention jumping off an innocent dinosaur and sending him plummeting to the depths of cheese bridge/ melting in lava.
...I thought this was a Mario board.
Ahem
What about the Mario games? Stomping on turtles, throwing turtle shells, grabbing monkeys and rabbits, pulling legs off of Bloopers, hitting monkeys with hammers? The list could go on and on..
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@ Jim and PL:
Again, I was joking. How can you seriously think I was serious? [/redundancy]
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Of all the Kongs, Diddy's my favorite. I don't actively hate them, I just don't really care for Donkey Kong Country. I did hate the uncontrollable popularity of monkeys some years ago. Seems that the baton's been passed to penguins now.
But why did Brawl not give Diddy his real voice? Why why?
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Real chimpanzee noises are hilarious.
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Klansmen
Wut.
Also, my fault for forgetting the MM hamster.
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But why did Brawl not give Diddy his real voice? Why why?
They didn't give DK his real voice either. Consistency. Plus, they do have that "pseudo-realism" thing going on.
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I miss Diddy's old voice. His cartoony voice beats his generic chimp voice any day.
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I always thought his falling yell in DK64 was hilarious.
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I especially laughed at DK's falling yell. Chunky's was pretty funny too.
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As my brother finally got the Flash Arrows in Shadow of the Colossus, I was reminded of and will note this: Attempting to blow up your horse.
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Shadow of the Colossus is pretty bad for animal abuse. Take this quote from the insane main character for example.
WHITE LIZARD TAILS! THEY MAKE ME... STRONGER.
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Not to mention the murder of innocent colossi.
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I don't know if they count as animals. They are part of a magic spell.
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Klansmen
Wut.
Shy Guys
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Oh, you mean like the head Klansman in Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?.
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Yeah, but I'm sure there's white Shy Guys too...
...wait, are they even animals?
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No, I think they're Guys.
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Totally off the discussion currently happening, in Kingdom Hearts, during the game, you have to fight a tiger. Multiple times.
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I thought it was a leopard or cheetah... unless you refer to the tiger head in Agrabah... but you only fight that once.
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The "tiger" he's talking about is Sabor from Tarzan, which Tarzan himself actually slayed within the context of the movie. Didn't you watch any of the the movies that the worlds from KH are based on?
...just let 'em TRY to say no...
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Besides, tossing a hand grenade at a bunch of crows in RE4, usually yields a lot of money (and possibly herbs/ammo)... So it makes sense to do it.
Adding onto that, you can kill rats, crows, and dogs in RE5. The dogs are excused because they're parasite infected, but the rest of the animals listed aren't.
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Oh! In Metroid Prime, there are some bird-like creatures flying way overhead in.. one of the first areas you visit. You can shoot at them, and when you KO one, there is often an explosion of feathers.
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KO? This isn't Pokémon.
In a rare counterpoint to video games promoting animal abuse, arcade btmup Growl has you saving animals from evil poachers and the like. However, the second form of the final boss is some inexplicable snake-monster, so I guess that cancels it out.
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Star Fox 64/Lylat Wars; those bird-like creatures on Solar that you can shoot down (at least I think they're creatures?).
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Some of the bosses are "bio-weapons", so those sun dragon things might be too.
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Adding onto that, you can kill rats, crows, and dogs in RE5. The dogs are excused because they're parasite infected, but the rest of the animals listed aren't.
Adding onto this, there's an old Umbrella (the evil cooperation) lab in RE5. There's an animal testing room. Since there's no freakin logical reason for them to still be alive after years of it being abandoned, I killed them all. That includes, a giant rat, a mouse, 2 dogs, and 2 goats.
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I guess the beginning of animal abuse came before rated games and what not. Perhaps it seemed like at the time that killing animals was a lot less violent than killing other people. Or you could go the EarthBound route and just say that they became tame.