11/16/07 Daily Gaming Refresh – Mass Effect Ban, Unban Edition

While the holiday season has always been a busy time for gamers, 2007 is shaping up to be the best yet. Gamers who own more than one system will have more gaming than they can possibly handle, which certainly isn’t a bad problem to have.

Mass Effect Banned for Lesbian Alien Sex
Upon learning that BioWare’s Mass Effect for the Xbox 360 will allow players with female avatars to engage in rather intimate relations with members of the same sex (but not the same species), Singapore’s censors body has banned the game for sale in the region. “Mass Effect, a futuristic space adventure published by Microsoft Corp., has been banned because of ‘lesbian intimacy,’” said Chetra S., deputy director of the Board of Film Censors, in a statement.

Wait, Mass Effect Unbanned Despite Lesbian Alien Sex
The ban was soon reversed, perhaps after the censor board decided to investigate the material of which they had banned. According to the Straits Times, the game will now be allowed for sale but will bear an “M18” rating.

Street Date Broken on Mass Effect
Those of you down under may be able to get your Alien love on a little earlier than everyone else. According to Kotaku’s resident Australian, a logistics error has made Mass Effect available at several EB Games in the country. Several Kmart stores in the U.S. have also been cited as selling BioWare’s RPG early.

Assassin’s Creed on Xbox 360 vs. PS3
If you have no clue what the supposed “twist” in Assassin’s Creed is, which supposedly occurs in the first five minutes of the game, then be advised that viewing the video will spoil it. If spoilers do not bother you or you simply must know which version is superior, then check out the GameTrailers HD comparison.

Reminder: Download Carcassonne on Xbox Live for Free
As part of Microsoft’s fifth anniversary celebration of its Xbox Live service, it is offering the Xbox Live Arcade game Carcassonne free of charge until the end of November 16. If you haven’t done so yet, log on and get your free game before midnight PDT today.

Vote for Wii, Xbox 360 or PS3 on Amazon.com
Amazon is having another one of its zany vote-for-the-sale, placing the Wii at $79, the 40GB PS3 at $139 and the Xbox 360 Arcade at $99. There’s a catch and much of it is up to chance, but for those who manage to score, it’ll be one sweet deal.