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May 29, 2008

And the Hammer came crashing down...

Well... I've been banned. For the second time in about as many months. For an entire week.

The first time, I don't even think I did anything. My bio was clean, and it was just a revenge attempt by a fat egomaniac midget from Wisconsin who's entire profile was about killing people.

This time, I had a quote from the popular video game "Grand Theft Auto 4" in my bio. It was from the TV, and it was about Tony McTony.

Now- here's where the bullshit reeks. My profile is only viewable by friends. That means either Xbox Live caught me on some sweep, or some conniving ass betrayed me. Oh well.

I don't have a problem with getting banned, when I deserve it. In this case, one of several scenarios could have played out. Xbox could have deleted my bio and had me re-type it and warned me not to use offensive language again. Or they could have given me a warning to remove the word from my bio within 24 hours.

My point is- they didn't. Instead of doing something reasonable, leaving all parties satisfied and offending nobody, they decided I needed to be punished for using a word that they don't even bother censoring (if they don't want anyone to use it, make it easy and don't let them!). I've been denied service with one of my favorite pastimes for a week, and the prospect of a Playstation 3 seems that much more likely.

At least I have a week to catch up on my PSP games. Maybe play some single-player (do achievements earned offline translate to online?) GTA or Viking.

So I ask you, readers, co-authors- what's your opinion on censorship policies and bans for related infractions? Do you think they are too harsh? Have your own story to tell? Post a comment.

Oh- and just a tip for all you players out there. "Bitches love the initials!"- Tony McTony. That quote right there got me banned.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Surprisingly, I'm not going to say the mandatory "get a ps3".
Instead I ask, why?

Why does Microsoft think it has the power to censor its users, and more importantly, ban them with no prior warning.

Strangely, it's like Microsoft is pushing away its fanbase. Between the censorship, bannings, and hardware failures I don't see how you guys put up with MS.

PS: I guess now you can spend more time writing. =D

Tha Pirateninja said...

That sucks, something tells me it was Insane Guy, but I doubt it. Oh yeah, Josh, we deal with MS because they actually have the best current online service and most expansive and impressive library of games for their system. Just saying...

Make a 1 month for now, Mailman, to be able to do SOMETHING.

Jayge said...

Honestly, I really do admire Sony's content policing structure. Games like Unreal Tournament 3 and LittleBigPlanet would be so much worse on the 360 because of Microsoft's tight control. Sony actually trusts (most) of its users to make their network good on their own, and I think people respect them more for that.

Anonymous said...

@thapirateninja
Yeah, no one here is debating the fact that Xbox Live is the superior online service. But what I'm saying is someone should stand up and tell MS that what they're doing is just bullcrap.

DW said...

I'd suggest viking, its pretty sweet, i've been playing it alittle recently.