Modern Warfare 2 NOT banned in Russia

Fear not, Comrades, Modern Warfare 2 has not been banned in your country – only censored.

Rumors of the title’s banning started swirling yesterday when a Russian gaming site, GotPS3, claimed their country had begun recalling all console-based versions of the title. According to Activision, in a statement released today, these reports are incorrect:

“Activision only released a PC version of the game in Russia which went on sale on Tuesday, Nov. 10.”

Can’t very well recall something that was never released, can you now GotPS3? More on this after the break.

Much of this uproar has been over the game’s controversial “No Russian” level, where the player joins four Russian-born terrorists in an assault on helpless civilians in a Russian airport. In response, Activision has opted to censor out the level via a patch.

“Other countries have formal ratings boards that we regularly work with. However, Russia does not have a formal ratings entity. As a result, we chose to block the scene after seeking the advice of local counsel.”

The moral of this story? Russia is still REALLY embarrassed by that whole cold war debacle. So when portraying them in the media, best to stick with the established and accepted bumbling, drunk Russian template.

via Edge