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Well, it has now been confirmed that the PlayStation 2 version of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas includes the controversial Hot Coffee mod of the game. We at Cheat Code Central have a first-edition version of this game sent to us directly from Rockstar Games. In fact, this edition does allow us to unlock the Hot Coffee mod with a $30 Action Replay device. Uh-oh, Rockstar.
And not only does it appear that Rockstar is guilty, they now have almost the entire world mad at them. Let’s see…Hillary Clinton, Joseph Lieberman, the ESRB, parents, the National Institute of Media and the Family (NIMF), Jack Thompson [whose latest comments threatened prosecution if retailers don’t pull the game (wait, didn’t he threaten that last week already?) and “other things”- huh?], but the gaming community is pretty ticked off too. I mean, didn’t Rockstar blame their mistake on modders, some of their hugest fans? And didn’t they just bring a lot of attention to violent and sexually explicit video games that now has members of the government up in arms and a bill passing in Illinois that will not allow sale of any violent or sexually explicit games to anyone under eighteen without a $5,000 fine? Good job, Rockstar.
It seems the only people that haven’t said anything on the issue is the ESRB who is still continuing an investigation the rest of us consider “case closed”. Clearly, the ESRB rated the game M for Mature with the Hot Coffee content in it instead of AO for Adults Only which means they may be in hot water (or should I say coffee?) too for misrating the game.
The media coverage and mounting pressure on Rockstar over the issue is not it’s only problem. Many are predicting a full recall on Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. One industry insider says, “If (Rockstar is) forced to recall GTA: San Andreas over this, the company is doomed. They cannot afford this.” After all, Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar’s parent company, was just forced to pay the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) $7.5 million after they “shipped hundreds of thousands of video games to distributors who had no obligation to pay for the product, fraudulently recorded the shipments as if they were sales, and then accepted return of the games in subsequent reporting periods”.
Make sure you stay tuned to Cheat Code Central for coverage on this story. We are bringing you the latest on this story days before other sites! Or check out our previous coverage for more info on the story.