iPhone App Rejected for being too Violent

This is pretty typical of Apple. In the early days of the App Store someone wrote a little app that displayed a picture of a knife and would make slashing noises when you swung the device. Apple gave it the axe. Likewise there have been several shooters that depicted violence that was deemed too realistic to pass muster. In fact, one of the most recent controversies was ttursas' I Drop Dead, which had been in the App Store through several versions before Apple decided there was just too much blood and prevented any further updates to the existing game (though they left the original version, now free, to be available for download still), leading ttursas to release the Flower Edition out of spite.

The rule of thumb is, if it can depict remotely realistic violence on remotely realistic life forms -- or in your case, actual real life forms -- Apple will reject it. Change the blood to, say, green goo, or make your app shoot sucker darts instead, and you'd get approved without a hitch.

 

The violence in your game seems pretty excessive… What's to stop you putting a child in the camera view and splattering their brains everywhere. Despite it being virtual, it's still a very violent and ugly premise for an app.

Just change the pistol into a foam gun that bounces off the person, or a dart gun with suckers that sticks to their face. You could even have multiple weapons, like a pie shooter, or a ray gun… I think that would actually make it an app worth playing.

 

That IS pretty violent, shooting real people with a virtual gun.
I don't know, it seems like a bad influence to younger kids

 

but that is where the age ratings come in.

 

I can see why apple rejected this one. The only game that comes to mind that is as violent is CoD: Zombies. But that was shooting zombies, not real people. It definitely would be a bad idea for little children. But a game thats bloody like CoD: Zombies is okay because its not real people.

I like the idea of putting a dart gun in instead.

 

Actually, I much prefer the idea of a dart gun as well. Especially if it made funny sound effects. Also, you have to consider the worldwide market. This could NEVER be sold in Germany, as the last time I checked they had strict regulations on FPSes.

 

I'm kinda torn. It's obvious that any sane person would be able to use this app responsibly and not as a training excercise for real murder, but I suppose Apple has to account for the fact total psychos may have access to it as well.

 

Game looks like a yawnfest anyway, glad apple rejected it. Just sayin'...

 

Not at all, there are lots of cases where people have jumped victims to death after playing Mario.

 

Full acc!
Problem here in germany is, we had a few amok runs (by young people on a killing spree in their schools) in the last 2/3 years, and on their computers were found games such as Counter Strike... maybe everything shooter-like will be forbidden soon, our politicans already work on projects, trying to take all these games from the market...

Btw, I love your Flickitty-game!

 

Well yes, but something has to make him snap. Considering the argument about whether or not games cause violence is still raging and there's no definite proof for either side I suppose Apple just want to take the safe option.

 

Upon reading the title of this thread, I was annoyed at Apple, but then when I clicked the link to your app, I can't praise Apple more! Dude, that app looks horrible!! haha - shooting photos of real people and shooting people in your camera?? Wow - who is the sicko who thought that would be a good idea? (And it takes A LOT to make me cringe.) Plus the app looks poor in-itself.

Thank you Apple. But that is far from redeeming them for rejecting he Google Voice app...

 

There is a difference between cause and correlation. How many people have done a violent act after eating ice cream - that doesn't mean it was a cause.

However, with violent games - cause or correlation is hard to determine, but I suspect there might be some cause, since it familiarizes people with weapons.

 

Actually I believe statistics show that the number of rapes correlates directly with ice-cream sales in several countries.

Now, this could of course have something to do with the fact that more ice-cream is sold during the summer, when people also drink more and stay out for longer hours.

Anyway, I'm not sure this is the place for this discussion, but if you go back a couple of decades it was movies that apparently was the cause for violent mad men, another couple of decades earlier it was rock-music. Not sure what was Jack the Ripper's reason or Vlad Tempest for that matter, perhaps they were reading books!!!

Yes, I do believe violence in games might work as a trigger for people who are inclined to become violent in the first place, but I also believe the same goes for comic-books, watching television, reading novels, arguing with your mates, playing football, playing chess, and a gazillion other things. When all this is said I don't understand why so many game-makers insist on making their games as violent as possible, personally I find it juvenile and I believe violent games appeal mostly to young men desperate to demonstrate they are not kids anymore.

I promise to refrain from hijacking this thread any further.

 

yet they let porn apps?!? Your app was pretty violent, but thats a GOOD thing

 

OMG!!!! I just thought of a REALLY COOL APP!!!!!!!! You use the 3GS's camera to target things and shoot them with fake blood and stuff like that and the app could tell what your targeting!!! For iTouch users use pic from photo albem!!!!!!!! o dammit that is the app you came up with good idea guys