Baby Shaker app taken down from App Store, Apple and Sikalosoft apologize |
Controversy erupted when the Apple App Store put up an app called Baby Shaker, a simple app that requires one to shake a digital baby dead to stop it from crying. After sparking outrage from various parties, the app was immediately taken down from the site, followed by an apology from Apple. The app's developer, Sikalosoft, also issued an apology, if you could call it that.Macworld was able to get in touch with an Apple spokesperson, who issued this statement:
This application was deeply offensive and should not have been approved for distribution on the App Store. When we learned of this mistake, the app was removed immediately. We sincerely apologize for this mistake and thank our customers for bringing this to our attention.
On the other hand, Sikalosoft didn't make such a formal statement. Instead, they put up what appears to be an apology of sorts on their site:
Yes, the Baby Shaker iPhone app was a bad idea. You should never shake a baby! Even on an Apple iPhone Baby Shaking application. In case you are unaware Baby Shaker was an Apple iPhone application that was greatly lacking in taste. It was approved by Apple for download upon the iPhone. However, it was later taken down because it was a baby shaking video game! While GTA is a video game that pushes the limits, it is still yet to have a baby shaking mini game in it.
There are currently over 30000 iPhone applications out there. So, there are many other iPhone applications you could be better spending your time and money on.
Patrick Donohue, founder of the Sarah Jane Brain Foundation, which is dedicated to children suffering from Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury, was so upset that he wrote a letter to Steve Jobs and other Apple execs:
As the father of a three-year-old who was shaken by her baby nurse when she was only five days old, breaking three ribs, both collarbones and causing a severe brain injury, words cannot describe my reaction.
You have no idea the number of children your actions have put at risk by your careless, thoughtless and reckless behavior!
If you're still wondering what the app really does, here's a quick run-down. You have the picture of a sleeping baby, it wakes up, cries, makes a lot of noise. Now to stop the baby from crying, you have to shake your iPhone, and in essence, the baby, until it's dead and unable to cry. While some may argue that it was all in humor, fact remains that Baby Shaker is one very tasteless app.
This is what they're supposed to be bringing to the iPhone:
Via Macworld
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Comments [refresh]
Lol, what a funny app?
No, it is not. Whoever came on this sick idea should be shot.
Killing people is wrong does that mean we should ban games like COD, GTA ?
No!
Patrick Donohue what a prick!
how is this sick? its just a game. woweee a virtual baby died oh my god such travesty. where the hell is human focus directed to anyway? im sorry but complaining about things like this is just uneccessary. its just a damn game nothing gets hurt in reality. it could be "shake the tree till it dies" game then THEN its ok? what the hell whats the difference? its still a game. perhaps in this senseless world people need something senseless to please thenmselves and feel better
All of you sick *****s. I had to go through the trauma of trying to revive my neighbors baby. Because, the mother was *****ing dumb as *****. She shook the baby because it was crying to get it to "Shut up" and killed the poor girl. She only got to live for 7 days.
So, ***** this developer. I know there is games like GTA and Saints Row... but still. This pushes it. Killing a child isn't a game. Its just a sick *****s way of entertainment.
While I personally find this tasteless and wouldn't buy it, in an indirect way, it may have helped reduce this sort of thing from happening IRL by illustrating the consequences.
Something tells me that this is not a app that was packaged with enough careful thought for this to be the end result, but that doesn't mean that they couldn't have re-written it to try and be closer to that end result.
oh, this is hilarious, and f*cked up on many levels.
what madness will man visit next in the name of tasteless humor?
They let apps like this through and they don't let the ones which are awesome go through, ***** Apple.
maybe because shaking a TREE till it dies does not compare to shaking a BABY till it dies. and am sorry, but i don't see how people's need to "please themselves and feel better " in this senseless world could justify trivializing an act as terrible as shaking a defenseless baby to death just to shut it up.
It's so hilarious how stupid people are. It's just a game dummies. :):)
But have you ever played a game where you kill a child/infant?
I thought staff couldn't have opinions?
OMG THAT WAS SO FUN! I SHOOk THAT BABY DEAD! HEY! I GOT AN IDEA! LET ME TRY IT ON A REAL BABY NOW!!!!!
Go read gamespot and ign so you can bring us some more headlines.
Only Apple would release this.
You can attack children in fable