Thailand has banned the sale of satirical city builder Tropico 5 on grounds that the content of the game mirrors real world events a little too closely. The game allows players to take the role of a dictator of a banana republic and rule with an iron fist while suppressing human rights and the media. This theme has apparently hit home with the Thai government as its Film and Video Censorship Board decided that the storyline “might affect peace and order in the country”.
“Actually it’s a good game with positive reviews. We’ve had licenses to distribute Tropico 3 and 4 before, but in the fifth installment, the story line has developed further and there might be some part of it that’s not appropriate in the current situation,” explained distributor New Era Thailand marketing manager Nonglak Sahavattanapong.
The company will apparently not be appealing against the ban, as this was apparently seen coming. Developer Kalypso Media had been working hard to get the game approved, but it appears those efforts did not bear fruit.
Thailand has been ruled by the military since it launched a coup on 22 May. Which, incidentally, is how the player comes to power in the Tropico series. However, unlike the Thai junta, the players are then taken down the path of rigging elections, posturing against Western powers for foreign aid, and occasionally arranging for political dissidents to disappear.
[Source: Associated Press]
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