Apple “Plucks” Growing Pot Game

If you ever wanted a “green thumb” in growing plants, at least by way of app, one plant has been “weeded out” of Apple.  The game Weed Firm has gone to pot, literally!

Despite being a huge hit, Apple has removed the game Weed Firm from the iTunes App Store.  Marijuana is not a new feature to the iTunes Apple Store, in fact, you can still download a number of apps that can actually help you locate WHERE to legally buy marijuana in states like our “green neighbors to the south,” Colorado.  However, according to a statement  from Manitoba Games, the developer of the Weed Firm game who talked to Adweek, the game was basically pulled because of its popularity.

“This was entirely Apple’s decision, not ours.  We guess the problem was that the game was just too good, and got to number one in ALL categories, since there were certainly a great number of weed based apps still available, as well as games promoting other so-called ‘illegal activities’ such as shooting people, crashing cars and throwing  birds at buildings.”

I guess when you put it that way, the guy does have a point.  I have a game app where you 4-wheel in a Jeep going up and down these incredibly steep mountain roads, and if you flip your Jeep over, and it lands on its top, the little character that’s “driving” the Jeep gets his neck broken, and you can actually hear the “cracking” of its neck, blah!

The iTunes App Store guidelines plainly state that the company reserves the right to reject or remove any app for content or behavior it believes is over the line.  This not only includes adult content that they might consider inappropriate, but also graphic material that they also might  deem “inappropriate.”

Manitoba Games says the game is getting some censored “tweaking,” and plan to have Weed Firm return to the iTunes App Store.  They also said they’ll be “looking very attentively at what we submit  from now on.”

What do you think about an app that has you “growing  virtual pot,” is it any worse than some of the other apps that are available?