Avatar items are all the rage on the Xbox 360, but starting in 2012 Microsoft plans to ban all guns and related accessories from the marketplace.
The Microsoft Xbox Live marketplace is flooded with gear and accessories that players can customize their avatars with. However, starting in 2012, popular items such as the Gears of War Lancer and Hammerburst will no longer be available for purchase.
According to our source, Microsoft is planning on banning all gun accessories for Xbox Live avatars. While Microsoft hasn’t made the official announcement yet, Epic Games, the studio behind Gears of War, wrote an official blog post stating that the items will be removed from the marketplace next month in compliance with new Microsoft guidelines.
There is no word as to what will happen to the accessories that have already been purchased. It seems unlikely that Microsoft will strip them from players who have already purchased them, but don’t expect to be seeing any more violent accessories any time soon.
These new restrictions are being added to an already extensive list of Xbox Live avatar ‘no-nos’ such as the ban on any accessory that condones alcohol, tobacco or other substance usage, along with any ‘offensive’ Gamertags. Microsoft most likely decided it was time to broaded their restrictions seeing how the console has become much more universal and family friendly, as opposed to being the exclusive hangout for hardcore gamers that it used to be.
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