Sony May Remove Flags From GT5 Kart Course Amid Controversy

Sony may have to remove flags representing the 17 districts of the Italian city of Siena from the upcoming Gran Turismo 5, a move that the developer Polyphony Digital said would be "regrettable." The game, due later this year on PlayStation 3, features a kart track set in Tuscany, Italy's Piazza del Campo, where the historic Palio di Siena bareback horse race is held twice a year. That track, which GT5's kart course follows, also displays flags of Siena's districts, and are represented in-game. Last week, CEO of the Consortium for the Protection of the Palio Anna Carli said, "You cannot use images of Contrade, in this case the flags without authorization. Given the relevance of the game with no history and references to our party, in particular with the use of images of flags of the contrade, we would not otherwise authorize the use." Speculation arose that such a controversy could impact the game's long-awaited release. But Gran Turismo lead Kazunori Yamauchi assured in a Twitter post [translation via Kotaku] that if legal issues do arise, "We can remove [the flags] in an instant" if necessary, although "Erasing them is somewhat regrettable." There is no official word on whether the flags will actually be removed from the game. It's not the first time that a Sony-published game received criticism due to virtual depictions of real-world places. In 2007, the Church of England attacked the Insomniac Games PS3 title Resistance: Fall of Man, which featured the Manchester Cathedral as part of the sci-fi battlefield.