Minecraft Ban Reports Investigated By Microsoft

Minecraft bans are investigated by Microsoft By Kevin Rawlinson BBC News

11 March 2015

Microsoft Minecraft, the owner of Minecraft, is investigating reports that suggest the Turkish government is planning to ban the game. The BBC understands.

According to local media, a research conducted by the Turkish Family and Social Policies Ministry found that the game encouraged violence.

There were conflicting reports about what actions the government was planning to take in response.

Some said it would request the court to impose a ban on the game. Others claimed it would request Microsoft to make modifications.

Haberturk newspaper reported that the report of the ministry stated: "Although it can be seen as encouraging creativity among children by letting them build houses, farmlands and bridges, mobs (hostile creatures) must not be killed for the structures to be protected. In other words the game is built on violence."

'Social isolation'

The report stated that some children might confuse Minecraft with the real world and be misled into believing that torturing animals will not cause pain, according to the newspaper.

It added the report was based on the experiences of a nine-year-old and suggested that playing Minecraft could lead to "social isolation".

Haberturk said that the department's legal affairs division of the ministry was given the task of taking the first steps towards banning Minecraft.

According to Fatih Oke (a spokesperson for the Turkish Embassy in Washington DC), a ban is "out of the possibility".

Christian Science Monitor was told by Mr Oke that there was no ban.

"The game is not banned and it is not likely to be banned.

The Family and Social Policy Ministry does not have this sort of authority to ban any product.

"I understand that this was what was reported in the Turkish media, but it's not true.

"The ministry cannot work with complaints.

"In this instance I was informed that there were many complaints from parents regarding Minecraft's influence on children.

"The purpose of this ministry is to raise awareness."

The government would not be able to unilaterally ban the game, it would need convince a court to make the decision.

While Turkey is not known for banning computer games certain websites have been removed in recent times.

Last year both YouTube and Twitter were temporarily blocked. Facebook had to block certain pages that were deemed to be offensive to the Prophet Muhammad in January.

'Creative freedom'

Mojang, the company behind Minecraft under Microsoft's umbrella, did not discuss the reports.

He said that "Minecraft is enjoyed in a variety of ways by many players."

"While many are enthralled by the creative freedom Minecraft and its tools offer some are more interested in the chance to explore a world with no boundaries and share exciting adventures with their friends.

"We encourage players to join forces and encourage them to work together in order to reach their goals, no matter whether they are building, exploring, or exploring.

"The Minecraft world can be dangerousbecause it's home to terrifying, genderless monsters that come out at night.

"It may be necessary to defend against them in order to live. souldevteam

"If people find this type of fantasy conflict disturbing, we suggest they use Creative Mode or to allow the Peaceful setting to be used.

"Both of these options will keep monsters from appearing everywhere."

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