Teachers protest Bully re-release

An international coalition of teachers unions is protesting the re-release of Rockstar’s Bully: The Scholarship Edition for the Xbox 360 and Wii, The Globe and Mail reported.

The game is back on store shelves today (March 4, 2008) with either better graphics for the 360 or waggle controls on the Wii.

According to the paper’s report, teachers and unions in the United States are asking retailers to refuse to sell the game. The ESRB gave both versions of the game a “Teen” rating, which means the game is suitable for ages 13 and older. That’s one below the “Mature” rating for those 17 and older. But that didn’t stop the game from drawing some controversy the first time around for a particularly vivid depiction of teenage violence.

Anyone who had the pleasure of guiding Jimmy Hopkins through that particularly difficult time in his life know that he’s neither completely innocent nor cavalierly vindictive. Jimmy’s rush to violence is a slow trial of self-realization and self-loathing. But it’s hardly a bar room brawl, either. Fisticuffs are the norm, but there’s a small arsenal of projectiles stopping short of anything that could be considered a firearm. But these aren’t space marines, these are kids. And it isn’t impossible to see how someone who’s stuck in the life-imitates-video-games mindset could be so upset.

Source: The Globe and Mail