Iranian government blocks access to Clash of Clans

The Iranian Ministry of Justice has blocked access to Clash of Clans based on a report that warned of the game's potential to instigate tribal conflict.

Iran's deputy attorney general, Dr Abdolsamad Khoramabadi, confirmed that the government was restricting access to Supercell's marquee title in an official statement, translated by the BBC. The move was taken as a result of a report from a government committee, in which psychologists warned that the game's themes and content, "encouraged violence and tribal conflict."

Khoramabadi said that the "vast majority" of the committee supported restrictions on who could play Clash of Clans. The block was put in place on December 27, when the game's Iranian fans took to its official message boards to lament what they saw as just another example of the Iranian government curtailing their ability to use the internet.

Game developers have frequently encountered problems in reaching Iranian gamers. Both World of Warcraft and Arma 3 faced difficulties back in 2012 - Blizzard's game due to trade sanctions imposed by NATO, and Bohemia's title due to its portrayal of Iranian military forces.

More recently, in August last year, the government banned Pokémon Go based on the security problems posed by its location-based design.