Russian Reality Show 'Game2: Winter' to Allow Crimes, Including Rape and Murder: Hoax

Story:

Russian reality show ‘Game2: Winter’ to allow contestants to commit crimes, including Rape, Murder & More.

Analysis:

According to a story shared widely online, also in some news outlets, a Russian reality show by name ‘Game2: Winter’ is going to allow its contestants to commit violent crimes, including Rape, Murder & more. Although a part of the reality show’s advertisements suggested same, as detailed below, the claims as such are not facts.

About the Reality Show Game2: Winter

A number of websites online have reported the outrageous claims associated with the Russian reality television show Game2: Winter, that they allow the contestants to commit violent crimes, including rape and murder. According to Siberian Times website siberiantimes.com, the new TV reality show would be a 9-month survival test stranded in the remote Siberian taiga – boreal forest, which is populated with harmful insects and dangerous wildlife like bears and wolves. The show aims to include 15 men and 15 women contestants who have to survive temperatures ranging from 35C in high summer to minus 40C or lower in the depths of the Siberian winter. The contestants would be allowed to carry knives, but no guns, and they shall be given survival training. The winner of the reality show will get 100 million roubles (around $1.65 million), and if there are more survivors, they will share the prize money. The Russian reality TV show Game2: Winter is the brainchild of Novosibirsk entrepreneur Yevgeny Pyatkovsky and is reported to start on 1 July 2017 for the participants anticipated to survive until 1 April 2018. The online project is also planned to screen 24/7 around the world.

Picture of Siberian Taiga Forest — Siberian Taiga Forest

Picture of Siberian Taiga Wild Forest — Siberian Taiga Wild Forest

Misleading Headlines

As the Deadline Hollywood website deadline.com reports, the organisers of the Game2: Winter reality show have been boasting with advertisements saying “Each contestant gives consent that they could be maimed, even killed. 2000 cameras, 900 hectares and 30 lives,” and that the rules say “Everything is allowed. Fighting, alcohol, murder, rape, smoking, anything.” In an interview, Yevgeny Pyatkovsky has also said that all potential contestants sign waivers, acknowledging that they could be raped or killed. However, the fact of the matter being, the participants are also warned that the police are free to arrest anyone who commits a crime on the show and that they have to obey the laws of the Russian Federation.

So the outrageous headlines are misleading and appear to be more of promotional advertisements for the reality show. Therefore, the claims that the Russian reality show ‘Game2: Winter’ is going to allow its contestants to commit crimes, including rape and murder are hoaxes.