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Trouble’s afoot! Hardy Macia of Catamount Software brings word that his latest iPhone application, Prohibition 2: The Dope Wars, has been rejected by Apple and will not be featured in the iTunes App Store.
Prohibition 2, a remake of the classic DOS and TI-series calculator simulation title Drugwars, challenges players to live 30 days in the life of a New York City drug dealer. Players must deal with loan sharks and the local police as they take advantage of drug supply and demand in nearby cities.
Unfortunately, though Prohibition 2 was fully prepped for release, Apple has rejected the title from distribution, likely due to content issues. Macia notes that there is little in his game that can’t be found elsewhere in Apple’s online storefront, citing App Store movies like The Godfather and Cocaine Cowboys as featuring similar content.
“I personally find applications like iFart much more repulsive, yet Apple has approve it,” Macia says. “DopeWars is about current political events. We had alcohol prohibition in the 1920s, and we have drug prohibition today. It is no more objectionable than many of the songs and movies Apple is selling on iTunes.”
Within hours of issuing a press release announcing Prohibition 2′s rejection, Macia updated Catamount Software’s front page announcing his second game, “Prohibition 3: Candy Wars,” a grim title in which players struggle against the great candy prohibition of the year 2040. I don’t know if he’s joking or not, but I’d totally play a game about dodging the candy police in a dystopian New York City.
It’s frustrating, and a little bit scary, to know that Apple might block your game for any reason. I guess it’s something we all know going in to the process… but if Apple doesn’t define their restrictions on applications they are going to create some big problems and possibly scare away developers.
what do you want? iphone is a brave new world in a ‘have to have!’ compact form. its been set up like that from the beginning. there are ways around it though. the more people with jailbreaks and switched sims the better. that way developers can sell their titles without getting pimped.
Apple approved “Prohibition 3: Candy Wars” today, so it’s not the issue of buying and selling illegal substances in a game that Apple has the issue with, but what substances. Kids do not try to snort the sugar sticks. I have links to it in the AppStore up on my site http://www.catamount.com
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