Walmart has reportedly suspended the sale of video games in its stores, just days after removing both violent video game ads and demos from its stores following two incidents of gun violence in the USA.
The retailer seemingly confirmed the decision after news of the move made its way to Twitter.
Mine is not even selling the games anymore (temporarily) and I'm seriously upset. Like where am I supposed to buy a physical copy now? The nearest GameStop is way too far away from me. pic.twitter.com/PRGSgMpEPL
— Erik Tyler Louden (@TylerMayCry) August 9, 2019
“We’ve taken this action out of respect for the incidents of the past week, and it does not reflect a long-term change in our video game assortment,” the retailer told IGN, though the site seems to be unclear whether or not this refers to the removal of violent video game ads or the suspension of sales itself.
“We are focused on assisting our associates and their families, as well as supporting the community, as we continue a thoughtful and thorough review of our policies.”
As we reported last week, Walmart has not altered the way it sells guns in its stores in any way since the recent shootings in El Paso, TX and Gilroy, CA. Organisations like the IGDA and IGDAF have pointed out that research shows no corralation between video games and gun violence.
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