Russia to produce 'patriotic' games, may ban those that 'distort history'

The Russian government will begin producing "patriotic" video games that present a positive image of the country's armed forces, with the first project headed by the Russian Military History Society, THR reports. The game chronicles the development of Russian flight during World War I, and it's due out in 2014.

"The main thing we expect from the producers of video games is the realistic and historically truthful representation of events," said Arseny Mironov, an aide to Russia's culture minister. Mironov added that it was inadmissible to present a "negative image of the Russian warrior."

This patriotic push is partly a response to foreign games that the culture ministry says "discredit the Russian soldier" and "distort historic facts." The Russian government previously halted sales of Relic Entertainment's Company of Heroes 2, claiming it misrepresented Russian soldiers in World War II. Russia may begin banning games that "distort history," the ministry said.

Russia will also provide grants to developers that produce acceptably patriotic games. This takes a page out of the UK's book – in December, the UK established a tax relief system based on how "cultural" a game or development team was. These breaks are under investigation from the European Union and haven't yet been enacted.