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In a recent blog entry, Richard Bartle, the creator of the MUD
or multi-user dungeon spoke out against Blizzard, alleging that they
have broken the Geneva convention in their recent Wrath of the Lich
King expansion. In this expansion there is a quest that requires the
player to torture a non-player character. Mr. Bartle was offended, nay,
more than offended by this virtual tasering of a virtual person.

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Terrorists
have really enjoyed the new "torture" quests in Wrath of the Lich King.

Ten Ton Turnip has delved into this issue, torturing the NPC
repeatedly. No matter how many times we torture him he keeps returning
for more. In fact, he appears in the same chair over and over again.
Surely someone who was being tortured would ensure that they eluded
capture after the first, second or oh, 100th time? We believe this
quest to be some kind of freak sadomasochistic statement by Blizzard
rather than a shot across the bow at the Geneva Convention.

Blizzard has many strange and unconventional statements within
its World
of Warcraft title. Nearly every creature within their world
is not only aggressive, but outwardly hostile toward players. Let's not
even get into the whole 'furry' aspect of the game. Tuskarrs,
Tauren...shiver. The costume contests at Blizzard events seem to lend
weight to this deviant behaviour.

Mr. Bartle was unavailable for comment, probably because we
didn't try to contact him. We were afraid that he would put us in one
of his dungeons. What kind of a person creates dungeons? Aren't
dungeons against the Geneva Convention?

In other news, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals) has ensured that they are not left out of this tsunami of
public attention by protesting that killing and injuring virtual
animals is immoral. A second group, also going by the name PETA (People
who Eat Tasty Animals) is running their own publicity campaign claiming
that there is plenty of room for animals, right beside the mashed
potatoes on their plate.

More on these stories as it becomes available.