South Park: The Stick of Truth delayed in Germany following ‘unconstitutional symbol’ blunder

South Park: The Stick of Truth delayed in Germany following ‘unconstitutional symbol’ blunder
David Scammell Updated on by

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UPDATE: In a statement provided to VideoGamer.com following this report, Ubisoft confirmed the delay and promised to announce a new release date “shortly”.

“The German and Austrian version of South Park: The Stick of Truth contains a symbol of an unconstitutional organization, whereupon we stopped the distribution of the game and unfortunately will not be able to release it as initially planned on March 6th 2014 on the German and Austrian market,” the statement reads. “This concerns all versions/platforms of the game.

“We are extremely sorry for the additional waiting time this will mean for the fans of the game. A new release date of South Park: The Stick of Truth for the German and Austrian market will be announced shortly. We invite customers who have pre-ordered the game to liaise directly with their retailers, who will keep them updated on the new release date.”

The UK launch is still scheduled to go ahead this Friday, March 7.

ORIGINAL REPORT: South Park: The Stick of Truth has suffered a last-minute setback in Germany and Austria after an “unconstitutional symbol” was discovered in the release build, according to various online reports.

Multiple users on Steam and NeoGAF claim to have received messages stating that Ubisoft is “unable to deliver your pre-ordered version of South Park: The Stick of Truth on March 6th as initially planned.

“The German and Austrian version of South Park: The Stick of Truth contains an unconstitutional symbol which means that we are unfortunately not able to release the game on the German and Austrian market at this time,” the message reads. “This concerns all versions/platforms of the game. There is no need to amend or cancel your pre-order.

“A new release date of South Park: The Stick of Truth for the German and Austrian market will be announced shortly, and we will ensure that your order is delivered to coincide with this new date.

“We are extremely sorry for the additional waiting time, and thank you for your understanding.”

The German Steam release date has also been altered from its previous March 6 date to an ambiguous “March 2014”.

The message’s wording suggests that the build may have accidentally contained symbols of Nazi swastikas, which are outlawed in the German and Austrian markets. Swastikas appear in all other versions of the game.

The German and Austrian releases aren’t the only versions to receive cuts, however. The European console version has had seven scenes removed, including multiple sequences that see “someone actively being [anal] probed” and another “in which the doctor is performing an abortion on the player”. The PC version is the only version available in the UK that remains uncut.

VideoGamer.com has contacted Ubisoft for comment.

Source: steamcommunity.com, neogaf.com