PHOENIX -
A new controversial cell phone app is turning domestic violence into a game. The app, called "Boyfriend Trainer," lets users physically abuse a virtual man. We spoke with a domestic violence group about this app.
The description of the game reads "when scolding doesn't work, just zap him, whack him and train him to be your ideal man."
The free app came out December 18th and already, more than 100,000 people have downloaded it.
Boyfriend Trainer starts with instructions saying, "Boyfriend's got a roving eye? Control it, click on him to hit him when he checks out the girls."
When he ogles a girl walking by, his virtual girlfriend smacks him, leaving claw marks on his face.
"It's not teaching you anything other than to hit somebody when they do something you don't like."
The smacking goes on for 3 minutes. This is just the first level -- but the violence gets worse.
The next level, the girl zaps the boyfriend with a Taser when he drops a shirt on the ground. After that, she hits him with a tennis racket when he changes the channel.
On the final level, she strangles him with a leash when he turns the music up in the car. Domestic violence groups say the game is abusive.
Chrysalis offers domestic violence help to both women and men.
"We're not cats, you don't want to train someone how to do something or be in a relationship," says Vaun Trojanek, Associate Director and Therapist of Chrysalis.
She points out, if the roles were reversed, the app would not be available.
"Why is it ok for a woman to do this to a man, when it's not ok for a man to do this to a woman? I think society's views are very skewed on this."
While the app has been download tens of thousands of times, the public comments section of the app are mostly negative.
"So is this how were supposed to treat them?" says Latreese Tools. "It's a lot of violence."
"That's just teaching impressionable young girls to be violent to men," says DJ Wednesday.
Once you've perfected hitting, zapping and strangling the boyfriend the game ends saying "Woohoo, you now have the perfect boyfriend."
"The old saying, an eye for an eye, that's not the solution to the problem. Violence does not solve violence," says Trojanek.
We reached out to the developer of the app, along with Google and Apple, but we haven't received any responses yet.
Online petition: http://noabuse.org/
