Earlier this week, we shared an Associated Press report, in which the publication claimed that Saudi Arabia’s General Commission for Audio-Visual Media (GCAM) banned a list of 47 games after two young people committed suicide as part of the Blue Whale challenge. It has now emerged that the games in question are legacy banned titles, and GCAM has actually been working with video game developers and publishers to relax its rules. The authority did not issue any bans in response to the tragedies.
Ubisoft Middle East’s Head of Localization, Malek Teffaha, was the first one to lament AP over its false reporting and urged the publication to issue a correction. He said in a series of tweets (verbatim):
One inaccurate article from AP has caused a heap of mess externally and internally. Saudi has not issued a banning of 47 games on Monday. These are legacy banned titles. I beg you AP, please remove the article and clarify the mistake. It’s insane to see more Western media cover the same exact story because it came from you, when neither GCAM nor any local publisher was contacted to clarify. You have scared developers and distributors into thinking that their approved games are in danger. You are helping propagate stereotypes and ruin years worth of progress and work we and other publishers have strived to achieve, all in the span of one inaccurate article. Please own up, and admit to your mistake and mess and help clean it up.
Teffaha later told Games Industry that Ubisoft hasn’t had any of its games banned in the last 5 years except for Watch Dogs 2 and South Park. In fact, the developer had GCAM overturn Far Cry 3 and Far Cry 4 bans.
Saudi Arabia localization expert Nazih Fares added that The Witcher 3 was localized in Arabic but certain aspects, like the game’s nudity, were censored. The Japanese version underwent similar treatment.
PlayStation LifeStyle would like to apologize to its readers for sharing the erroneous report.
[Source: Malek Teffaha (Twitter), Games Industry]
Ranking Assassin's Creed
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Ranking the Assassin's Creed Series
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12. Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines
While it's definitely impressive that Ubisoft was able to get the series working on PSP, there really isn't any reason to play Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines. The gameplay feels clunky, it looks outdated and the story isn't anything special.
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11. Assassin's Creed Chronicles
Assassin's Creed Chronicles showed how well the series could translate to a 2D setting, but the installments actually got worse over time. While India and China both were enjoyable, the Russia installment was absolutely terrible. A sequel could be something special, but this just feels like missed potential.
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10. Assassin's Creed
The original Assassin's Creed was a good proof of concept, but it wasn't anything special. The game was simply too rough around the edges and forced players to ride from area to area on horseback for way too long. Only those that want to know how Desmond's story began should check this out.
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9. Assassin's Creed III: Liberation
While the Vita offering in the series was better than its PSP counterpart, Assassin's Creed III: Liberation still isn't great. The series simply isn't meant for handhelds and feel way too limited by the lack of power. It's too bad as the New Orleans setting is awesome.
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8. Assassin's Creed Unity
There was a lot of hype going into Assassin's Creed Unity, but it simply couldn't live up to it. While the game is gorgeous, it lacks the charm of its predecessor and launched with plenty of bugs. It was a rare misstep for Ubisoft as it couldn't fully capitalize on the good ideas it had.
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7. Assassin's Creed: Revelations
There is always a point of diminishing returns and for Ubisoft it was Assassin's Creed: Revelations. The third game to star Ezio was totally fine, but it felt more like filler than the next logical step for the series. Thankfully, this ended up being the last game to star the Italian assassin.
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6. Assassin's Creed Rogue
Assassin's Creed Rogue was basically an expansion pack for Black Flag and there are way worse things to be. While it isn't quite as fun the second time around, it's still really cool to be a pirate and sail from island to island.
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5. Assassin's Creed III
While it didn't live up to expectations, Assassin's Creed III was still a solid entry. The game's US setting was interesting to explore, as its forests were a stark contrast to the huge cities in past games. History buffs will also get a lot out of it taking place during the American Revolution.
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4. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
The second game to star Ezio was Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. The ambitious sequel featured a new mechanic that allowed players to gain a group of followers, and introduced a surprisingly good multiplayer mechanic to the mix. It was a proper sequel to the second game, even if its mission design wasn't quite as impressive.
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3. Assassin's Creed Syndicate
Assassin's Creed Syndicate was an impressive return to form for the series after Unity. Playing as both Jacob and Evie Frye is a blast, and it's the best playing game in the entire series even if some of the mechanics could use an update. Syndicate was simply a really good video game that came out when the series desperately needed a solid entry.
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2. Assassin's Creed II
It really can't be stressed enough how much of an improvement Assassin's Creed II was upon its predecessor. It took all of the potential that the first game showed and actually delivered on it. Few games feel this realized, and it's this reason why gamers adored the second entry in the series. Throw in the game's best protagonist, the likeable Ezio, and you quickly realize why no other Assassin's Creed entry has been able to spawn several sequels in the same time period.
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1. Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
Very few games have ever allowed players to drink grog and sing sea shanties while steering a pirate ship, but few games are as good as Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag. The pinnacle of the Assassin's Creed series allowed gamers to live their pirate fantasies, hangout with Black Beard, and find hidden treasure throughout the environment. It also features a fun first-person story set in modern times that makes fun of Ubisoft, and you have one of the greatest games that the publisher has ever put out.
