Stranglehold TV Ad Banned
via Next Generation
The ad for the 18-rated third-person action game featured a prolonged shoot-out between four men. During the gunfight a voiceover stated, "Honour is his code. Vengeance is his mission. Violence is his only option. John Woo presents Stranglehold. The next generation of action gaming has arrived."
The ASA received complaints about the advertisement from at least two viewers. One argued that the commercial “glorified violence and gun crime and that it was a dangerous incitement to susceptible people”, while another challenged whether it was acceptable for transmission before the 9pm watershed.
The agency responsible for the commercial, Picture Production Company, said that it had edited the footage to ensure bullets were seen to be fired into mid-air and did not result in any character or person being shot. It also argued that it was clear to viewers that the ad featured animated game play and not real-life violence.
In its assessment of the advert the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said that that the shooting was almost continuous throughout, and noted the realistic appearance of the violence, even though it was computer-generated.
“We considered the voice-over… suggested that it was honorable to seek revenge and that violence was an acceptable solution to a situation,” said the watchdog.
“We considered the ad was likely to be seen as encouraging and condoning violence. Because the issues raised by the ad could not be addressed with a timing restriction, we considered the only solution was to withdraw the ad from transmission completely.”
Midway declined to comment on the ban when contacted by Next-Gen.
