Update: According to an update on SeenIt.co.uk, the gamer who argued for Irish distinction in his Battlefield 1943 profile has been contacted by EA support and was told, "It looks as though the issue you have submitted is more complex than it seemed initially." Irish history, complex? Understatement! Hopefully this means all Irish gamers will be able to fly the colors they desire someday soon.
Original Story: Battlefield 1943 players out of Northern Ireland are surprised -- and angry -- that the game's official site fails to display the country's flag on their profile pages. Profiles for gamers in the North are stamped with the good ol' Union Jack, the national flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and labels North Irish players as located in Great Britain. Some of you may cry, "So what?" Well, it's a pride thing -- and it's a law. "If you live in Northern Ireland EA won't allow you to identify yourself as 'Irish' despite the 1998 Belfast agreement saying otherwise," writes the UK entertainment blog, SeenIt.co.uk.
According to our history books, the Belfast Agreement allows citizens of Northern Ireland to identify themselves as Irish or British, or both. After attempting to change the country associated with the account, EA tech support told SeenIt changing the region was impossible because Ireland is "not listed distinctively" and is included under Great Britain. Seems like a silly thing for Electronic Arts to put its foot down on, unless it's the first step to easily categorizing the world. Step two? All Canadians listed as hailing from "America's Hat."
[Thanks, Martin]
