A game which challenges players to, "kill any non-Romanian alien prick in cold blood," has sparked huge controversy in Hungary after it was announced that a "satirical" poke at the unsettled relations between Romanians and ethnic Hungarians would feature strongly in one of the levels of the game.
According to GameSetWatch, Romainians in Space
starts in 1988, when Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu conquers the United States and becomes the emperor of Earth ten years later. Romanians dominate the planet for 100 years, but the new emperor, Traian Basescu (the current president) promises to conquer the entire galaxy.
Eurogamer provides more of the meat which fed the controversy:
Yes, it seems supporters of the former republic of Hungary have set up a new nation on a recently conquered planet. They have claimed independence from the Romanian empire, and want to be left alone to live in freedom.
The Romanians are having none of it, obviously, and Basescu sends out a few squadrons to do over the Hungarians. But they fail their mission - and now a full-scale war has kicked off.
Which is where you come in, playing as a pilot assigned to the 88th fighter squadron of the 3rd Romanian Fleet. Your task is to provide cover for bigger vessels as they take on the Hungarians, and to "viciously murder millions of non-Romanian alien scum."
Eurogamer has watched the controversy boil up and provides some in-depth coverage of the flame wars which have erupted over the Net.
While the barbs fly, the developers claim to have been inspired by other war games which feature real-life opponents. Further, they suggest that, "Everything was a joke and it was meant to be a joke that mocks all the problems between Romanians and ethnic Hungarians."
While this kind of joke clearly cuts too close to the bone, are there other examples of satire in games which have been successful? And, as Britain is so renowned for its handling of the art of mocking (Gulliver's Travels, Spitting Image, Private Eye), perhaps satire is an area which could be explored to bring "Britishness" in games?
