A Washington state video game developer is toeing the line of sensitivity with new game “Active Shooter.” The simulation game allows players to pretend to be either an active shooter whose goal is to kill everyone in sight, or a member of the SWAT team.
CNN reports the game, published by a Russian company called Acid, is planning to sell the game on gaming platform Steam between $5 and $10 starting June 6. Given the sensitivity around the topic of gun violence, the game has received inevitable backlash from survivors of the several shootings within the last couple of years despite writing a disclaimer.
Parents of Parkland shooting victims, Orlando’s Pulse Nightclub shooting survivors and Las Vegas shooting survivors have all spoken out against the release of the game. Deadline reports a petition with over 100,000 is going around on Change.org.
“This can’t be the new age of America,” Pulse nightclub survivor Christopher Hansen said. “Our reality has become someone else’s virtual playground on the broken hearts and homes of others as real-life active shooter gaming scenarios. Schools, churches, movie theater, and even nightclubs have all been victimized by such tragedy and now to allow young minds to be filled with the corruption of how to carry out an active shooter situation is inhumane.”