Posted Oct 17, 2008 at 10:05AM by Gino D. Listed in: News, Games, LittleBigPlanet Tags: Sony, Europe, North America, Media Molecule, LittleBigPlanet
Ó

Trophy list LittleBigPlanet - Image 1As an update to earlier's news of LittleBigPlanet getting delayed in Europe, Sony's now released their official statement. This has now also been confirmed to be a statement that applies globally.

During the review process prior to the release of LittleBigPlanet, it has been brought to our attention that one of the background music tracks licensed from a record label for use in the game contains two expressions that can be found in the Qur’an. We have taken immediate action to rectify this and we sincerely apologise for any offence that this may have caused.


We will confirm the new launch date shortly.


Considering that the game has gone gold and been pressed to so many discs already, you can probably imagine the extent of this worldwide recall.



*Update* Media Molecule has responded that when they found out about the lyrics in the soundtrack, they went to work right away. Within 12 hours, they've already managed to patch the game. They have it ready and waiting to go live as a Day Zero automatic patch.

This patch was vetoed by Sony, apparently, saying that "the right thing to do for quality and support of people with no on-line was to replace existing disks." Hence, the recall - a very wise decision on Sony's part.

The only thing we need right now are the rescheduled dates from Sony for LittleBigPlanet's launch. But as for Media Molecule, they're reassuring everyone that no matter how the updates will arrive, whether on-disc, on-line, or both, they've already done what they can:

The patch is ready from our side and I imagine it will go live at the same time as the game.




*Update2* Sony's announced that North America gets LittleBigPlanet on October 27.



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50 Comments


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   by klownslayer - 2008-10-17
 » 3 Words:

***** you, Sony.


   Re: Darkthunder90 - 2008-10-17
 » Nice,

Nice choice of picture Gino.

   Re: jamiestepanian - 2008-10-18
 » p

you shouldn't be mad at sony, its the "politicaly correct" society we live in today, if sony realeased it, they would of gotten sued, and would have lost lots of money, which is bad for us. If they realeased a patch, they would get sued by some nutcase without internet. so a recall was their only choice.
   by beastlie23 - 2008-10-17
 » what a load of crap

a complete load of politicly correct crap so what if it has phrases from a filthy book of lies and hate are they scared they are gonna get bombed



   Re: Shatterdome - 2008-10-17
 » Wow...

You are pretty ignorant.....and it's other ignorant people on the opposite end of the spectrum that make Sony recall games like this....So thank yourself for this buddy....

   Re: beastlie23 - 2008-10-17
 » screw you

i hate all religion equally so im not ignorant

   Re: Shatterdome - 2008-10-17
 » definition...

1. lacking in knowledge or training; unlearned: an ignorant man.
2. lacking knowledge or information as to a particular subject or fact: ignorant of quantum physics.
3. uninformed; unaware.


Saying that the Qu'ran is a book of "hate" just shows you know nothing about it.....yet are talking like you do, that is being ignorant....

Anyone who blatantly states "There is no god" is ignorant, based on the fact that no one knows for sure....

I'm an atheist, but still make sure to be informed enough about every religion so that I can make intelligent arguements....and I still admit that no one knows what is forsure and that there is a possibility i'm wrong...

   Re: beastlie23 - 2008-10-17
 » i am god

oh yes i am

   Re: RommelTJ - 2008-10-17
 » Sony made the right thing

A video game should contain no references to religion, unless it's a specifically religious videogame.

Patching the soundtrack would've lead to problems like the GTA Hot Coffee incident.

This was the correct thing to do. And remember guys, this is JUST A VIDEO GAME. Don't bo so angsty pansy about everything. Jeez.

   Re: hama90 - 2008-10-18
 » delete this comment

any mod please to delete this comment

   Re: jamiestepanian - 2008-10-18
 » HA

hehehe, there are so many idiotic people here at Qj (mostly wanna be psp hacker kids) if a mod had to delete all the stupid comments, there would be like 5 comments per post

   Re: beastlie23 - 2008-10-18
 » they should delete it it is a bit wrong

bollocks ***** ***** arse
   by Shatterdome - 2008-10-17
 » Yeah....

Why did that little bastard in the forums speak up....

"our review process...." haha, it went gold fawk....

I say we lynch the dude on the forums :P


The funniest thing is, the word of the Qu'ran is meant to be spoken and spread.....it is the word of Alah and therefore the truth...

If Sony is afraid of being blown up or insulting muslims....I highly highly doubt this will offend.....

*****'in sucks major balls....

   by mupet0000 - 2008-10-17
 » Gah

Come on why do these guys have to be offended at EVERYTHING, ever heard of free speech!! If you don't like it suck an egg.

   by beastlie23 - 2008-10-17
 » they need to grow up

and realise gods and ***** like that are not real

   by ISOHaven - 2008-10-17
 » WTF!?!?!?!?!

This is a lie. There is absolutly no reason to delay the launch. To begin with, copies have already sold! Everyone has their stock.

This will simply require a patch.

Just wait for the news to change.


   Re: Shatterdome - 2008-10-17
 » Unfortunately...

There is a patch ready to go, but they are being asses....

It's really really unfortunate....cause this will delay it by at least 2 weeks, if not 3 or 4.....I was super stoked to ignore my responsibilities and play LBP all week...

Hopefully they will fix socom servers so I can at least play that...

   Re: ISOHaven - 2008-10-17
 » WTF!?!?!?!?!

What's sad about this is, I seriously doubt anyone over 1% of total users ever would have realized.

The next time you're at Burger King, ask the guy behind the counter is he/she knows what the Qur%u2019an is. Yet alone expressions from it!

   Re: Silver-Tiger - 2008-10-17
 » ...

I agree with ISOhaven. If you feel offended, just download the patch.
If you don't have Internet to download the patch, I would say bad luck, welcome to the 21. century.

   Re: ISOHaven - 2008-10-17
 » WTF!?!?!?!?!

SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I went down to my local XXXXXXX where I preordered the game. I showed my receipt of which I paid in full and BEGGED them to just give me my friggen copy now before sending back any units. They had no clue what I was tasling about. So I whipped out my iPhone and showed them. The store manager was PISSED THE F OFF!!!!!! I guess he's not looking forward to many pissed off customers that don't read blog sites often that will come in and demand their copy.

In his current frame of mind, he went to the back, grabbed a box, took out a copy and not only gave me my copy, he also gave the employees their copy as well.

I can't wait to get home and play away!!!!

   Re: Shatterdome - 2008-10-17
 » Nice Score....

I would try the same thing if I had at least pre-ordered it....

Have been tempted to start calling my buddies that work at Futureshop and see if they will score me a copy b4 it's out.....but honestly if I had pre-ordered it from EB I would do the same thing you did....as EB/Gamestops and other such smaller stores are usually more resonable then big chains.....

Damn, enjoy....

   Re: abumu - 2008-10-17
 » awww

I tried what ISOHaven did and the guy said no, but he did print me out the email he recieved saying they have to send the games back, and it does say Oct 27 as the new date.

   Re: ISOHaven - 2008-10-18
 » WF!?!?!?!?!

The game is AWESOME!!!

Kept me up 'til 2am.

   Re: vannk - 2008-10-19
 » ....

Im gonna guess the game was so good you forgot to put the "F" on WTF. or didn't press the key

   Re: ISOHaven - 2008-10-20
 » WTF!?!?!?!?!

You mean the "T"? Nah, that's 2am typing!
   by solidus4prez - 2008-10-17
 » .

That's *****ing retarded.

Unrelated, I would've gotten one original launch day anyway, if not sooner, cuz my store already got em in.


   Re: jackstraw419 - 2008-10-17
 » Can...

...any one who actually has the game confirm there is reference to the Qu'ran. Hopefully it is just a rumor. Any ways I heard the best places to get an street date broken would be Best Buy or Meijers( if your in the US).

DAMN everyone has been waiting for this to come out. I just paid for my copy at Blockbuster and tried getting the dude to give me the copy early. He said they only have the copies that will be available for rent.

This is B U L L *****
   by StingBlah - 2008-10-17
 » lolz

the guy who got the copy before the street release date got soo lucky...


   Re: Fade3e - 2008-10-20
 » yup

this game rocks my socks, i got it two days ago when it came to the store i work at so i grabbed it before the origional release date, this is the first time i came away to do something else
   by phiyuku - 2008-10-17
 » waste of money for something stupid

Sony should not pull back LittleBigPlanet because of something this stupid. People really get offended with anything these days. Smart thing to do is the copies that are already out stays and goes into consumers hands where there will be a patch that they have to update to take off this "religious" song. The new copies of the game then have it completely taken off the discs. This would make consumers happy with the original release date and save a bunch of money for Sony because they don't have to destroy all the old discs and press new ones.

   by Giske - 2008-10-17
 » I thought it was funny.....

...I went into Woolys today to pre-order LBP which is only £34.99 by the way and they told me that the launch date is 14th Nov

Hmmmmmm

   by nathandude21 - 2008-10-17
 » ...

This patch was vetoed by Sony, apparently, saying that "the right thing to do for quality and support of people with no on-line was to replace existing disks." Hence, the recall................
Why would you even buy this game yet alone buy a ps3 unless you were going to have it connected to the internet. Anyone that doesn't have LAN or wireless wouldn't be smart enough to hear the Quran phrases. I have a feeling Sony will not want to waste it's $4.03 billion it made this year on this and just let media molecule release an update.

   by Esaar - 2008-10-17
 » They're right.

This is not Sony's fault. This is the fault of all the worldwide religious fanatics. This is Sony's flagship title and Sony doesn't want anything that could hurt it even in the slightest so they're being very cautious and I salute them.

This game will be the driving force behind the PS3 sales and is theoretically never-ending and hence a very very powerful title. As such, if Sony had released the game as is, even with the patch fixing the problem, the song would still be on the disc and would come back to bite Sony.

They would catch hell from Muslims where they would boycott Sony for blaspheming their religion by including their Holy book in a song in a video game and they would also catch from Christians who would say that Sony is a devil company who wants to convert their youth to Islam and feeding them the Quran through their video games. A Lose-Lose situation. This is why Sony pulled the game as soon as they got wind of it.

So my friends, this is not Sony's fault. You should not be saying ***** you sony. You should be applauding Sony. If anyone is at fault, it's those dumbass religious *****nuts who spread religious intolerance like the black plague.


   Re: Shatterdome - 2008-10-17
 » Funny thing is....

The word of Alah, as given to Mohhamed was written down in the Qu'ran so that it would not be forgotten in ages to come, Muslims developed unified script of caligraphy for this purpose, So having some of the words of Allah in a video game is just one more place for those words to be heard and stored for future generations.

The TWO phrases in the ENTIRE game are "Every soul shall have the taste of death" and "All that is on earth will perish" Those are pretty universal themes in every religion, including christianity, so I doubt they would have much of a problem with it......and they are definately not any types of phrases which would convert anyone....

So yeah, I still think Sony is over-reacting and being little b*tches.....

   Re: jmak0 - 2008-10-18
 » What exactly were muslims going to do if they did release it?

I don't see what their argument would be - "i am suing you because the words of the qu'ran are in your game"!?!?!? oh no it's spreading the word of mohammed without our permission, curse you! (sarcasm). "Every soul shall have the taste of death" and "All that is on earth will perish" How could any muslim find those words offensive? the qu'ran isn't even in english, so it's already an wierd claim to say they are from the qu'ran, especially since phrases very similar to that have probably appeared in thousands of films and video games already. People need to stop being so up themselves about beliefs, and be able to accept other people's rights to freedom of expression. If you can't question your own beliefs, you are blinding yourself from the truth.

   Re: khaijiao - 2008-10-18
 » lolocaust

The dude who discovered this shouldn't even be playing video games in the first place if he really is muslim. Video games are considered a "worldly pleasure" and doesn't help you prepare for the hereafter, so he shouldn't even know about this. If he really is a muslim, which I'm guessing he is because they all eat during ramadan, have non-muslim bfs/gfs, and indulge in worldly pleasures constantly. I don't even give a ***** if the game is delayed a few days, this guy's a hypocrite and needs to shut his mouth. deeply offensive my ass.
   by nathandude21 - 2008-10-17
 » LUCKY ISO

I went to my local gamestop where I previously reserved LBP and told the employee about this delay and he didnt know anything about it. I even begged like you isohaven and it didn't work finding out that even he didn't have a copy. The moment I was at the register talking to the guy I received an automated call from gamestop saying the game will be delayed untill further notice. SOOO I bought SOCOM and DEAD SPACE and got a free R2 beta code. I think that will hold me over.

   by CHUCKINGROCKSATSPACESHIPS - 2008-10-17
 » This is retarded!

Other games have reference to religion. I guess I should feel insulted because I don't believe in these idol religions. I think if adults get offended over such words they need to look at reality better. I guess that's what custom soundtracks are for. Sheesh!

   by cristianx8 - 2008-10-18
 » lol !!!

i been have my copy !! i dont know about ya guys lol !!!!!!!! click here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43Iex9tcIxA

   by hama90 - 2008-10-18
 » stupid.........

btw the guy who made all of this go wrong at the first place, i pity his ignorance the song was a qawwali(use wiki)
there was no need to be complaining about anything

   by your_fire - 2008-10-18
 » no

muslims r not angry because the words of allah were put in the game..but because it was the lyrics of a SONG..


   Re: beastlie23 - 2008-10-20
 » still stupid

to get wound up about it they should grow up
   by Shazman1984 - 2008-10-18
 » I Am A Hardcore Gamer.....

.....and a muslim. I dont think I would have been offended by the songs. However, It would have caught me off guard to hear a reliigous scripture remixed in some pop song. Now being a musician myself, I can understand the song composer heard something cool and decided to mix it, unaware of its meaning. Heck, I do that in my compositions too. The gentleman who sent Sony the notice, did not expect Sony to react this way or this quickly. That was 100% Sony's call and I respect them for it. Now Mr. solid_08 is apologizing for causing such a ruckus. That shows compassion. The non-civilized crazy muslim some of picture would not have done that. For those of you with the negative remarks on muslims, please draw your conclusions from your own research rather than the news. Islam is a beautiful religion of 1.2 billion followers. Less than 15% of muslims are actually arabs, you know, the guys the news only shows. I thank all the non-muslims who defeneded Islam.

P.S. I typed this on my Ps3 browser, it took forever.


   Re: ISOHaven - 2008-10-18
 » WTF!?!?!?!?!

"please draw your conclusions from your own research rather than the news."

HA! Fat chance of that! I guess we can dream right? :)

   Re: dragonracer900 - 2008-10-19
 » Re

Yeah I dont think people will do there own research thinking the news is always reliable.

But there are some bigoted, and racist people in this world so any comments reguarding religion, race, orientation, etc wont stop. Just some poor decisions and judgemental problems made on their part..

Yeah if someone has an issue about something, i dont think is bad to say what you think about it. I'm surprised how quick sony is, taking back the copies before release.

Funny, how people are fussing about the release date being pushed back. It's a game, as much as I and others want to play it, have the patience and you get it soon enough. It just makes the hype that much bigger.

Ps. Damn ISOHaven, you suck (lol just kiddin). How's the game. You like it.

   Re: Shazman1984 - 2008-10-19
 » ISOHaven

Dude, I love the trademark subject of yours "WTF!?!?!" cracks me up everytime someone hates on it.

   Re: ISOHaven - 2008-10-20
 » WTF!?!?!?!?!

@dragonracer900 - I love it! It just doesn't get boring. I have to stop playig it on work nights :)

@Shazman1984 - Thanks! It cracks me up to. THE VOICES KEEP TELLING ME TO YELL!!!!
   by the by - 2008-10-19
 » im not

giving 2 *****s to be honest, the wifes getting me this game for my christmas!! i've waited for over a year for this game, so an extra two months aint gonna bother me that much!!

   by ISOHaven - 2008-10-20
 » WTF!?!?!?!?!

For those of you that are interested. Here's the song that caused this mess.

http://tiny.cc/5WqDR

Play the song Tapha Niang

   by DontCryIfYouDie - 2008-10-20
 » ..

went down my local gamestore down the weekend. had the usual chat as the staff know me pretty well. sure enough we got into conversation about LBP. they also have the games ready to sell, aprently had em up on sale on the shelf for couple weeks now ,so ill be sure to pick one copy up this weekend ;)



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