Virtual Vox Pop: What’s The Most Shocking Game You’ve Ever Played?
By Jeffrey L. Wilson On 17 Nov, 2009 At 10:35 PM | Categorized As Fighters, Virtual Vox Pop | With 2 Comments

Virtual Vox Pop is a weekly open mic in which we ask you, the reader, to sound off on a particular topic. This week, it’s shocking video games.

Left 4 Dead 2 and New Super Mario Bros. Wii have made big splashes over the last few days, but no game has been in the mouths and hearts of gamers, pundits, and journies alike as much as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for its infamous “No Russian” level.

FOX News, that bastion of fair and balanced reporting, essentially called it a terrorist training sim. Slashgamer‘s  Jon Christensen referred to the game as “pixelated violence.” Regardless of ow far left or right you stand on the issue, it’s not without great risk to say that many gamers were surprised by the brutality of the level, if not outright shocked. This isn’t, however, the first time that we’ve experienced an earth-shattering gaming moment.

Mine occurred in 1992 with the release of Mortal Kombat. Before actually playing the game I had gleaned from a bud that this “Street Fighter killer” was one hardcore game with blood and guts, practically splattering onto the inside of the monitor. I expected a goofy fighting game with lots of blood (in retrospect, that initial deduction was quite true), but when I waded my way through the sea of bodies surrounding the arcade cab, I saw decapitation and impalement. It was gory, it was dirty, it was shocking, and it was awesome.

Mortal Kombat traumatized every parent and politician over age 40, and eventually led to the formation of the ESRB. In other words, it had plenty of shock factor. What was your most shocking gaming experience?

pixel Virtual Vox Pop: Whats The Most Shocking Game Youve Ever Played?

About - Founder and Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey L. Wilson’s love of all things shiny/digital has lead to jobs penning gadget- and video game-related nerd-copy for E-Gear, Laptop, LifeStyler, Parenting, PC Magazine, Sync, Wise Bread, and WWE. Besides overseeing the editorial content at 2D-X.com, the Brooklyn College grad hosts New York City’s monthly Bits and Bytes video game media and public relations meetup. You can find him at a bar sampling foreign beers, or on Twitter doing twittery things.

  • Al Powell

    My most shocking moment was with NBA Live 97, or whenever EA went 3D. That game was so much ass, I couldnt believe it. My boy and I were down in the dumps for hours, until I took it back to the store.

  • http://www.the-other-view.com Valkor

    I have to go with Soldiers of Fortune on the PC, I believe it was because this was the first game where you could blow away individual body parts. Mortal Kombat was definitely the first “WOW!!!” moment, but this game, made me gasp. lol

  • http://www.theflatness.com Justin Bailey

    I’ve never played it, but probably Manhunt.

    I’ve always felt a little uneasy about games like GTA (though that is a great series, no doubt). But with Manhunt it was just like, “Huh, I guess they dropped all pretenses and just made a murder simulator.”