New Videogame Legislation

[Professor S]

http://lieberman.senate.gov/newsroom....cfm?id=249371

“I have developed legislation that will empower parents by making sure their kids can’t walk into a store and buy a video game that has graphic, violent and pornographic content,” said Senator Clinton.


Senator Clinton acknowledges that video games are fun and entertaining and does not support any limitations on the production or sale of games to adults. “This is about protecting children,” said Senator Clinton.

Today, on Capitol Hill, the National Institute on Media and the Family released its tenth annual Video and Computer Game scorecard, which revealed that retailers have become even more lenient in their selling policies than they were last year. Boys as young as nine were able to purchase Mature rated video games 42 percent of the time, according to the secret audits.

The main stipulations of the proposed law are as follows:

I. Prohibition on Selling Mature and Adults Only video games to minors

II. Annual Analysis of the Ratings System

III. Authority for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to Investigate Misleading Ratings

IV. Authority to Register Complaints

V. Annual Retailer Audit


It wasn't that long ago that I said that the ESRB needs to regulate itself better, or the government will do it for them. I believe I was almost universally derided for those comments. Then Rockstar allows that idiotic Hot Coffee content to get released thinking that no one would find out. The industry sat idly by while more and more minors were allowed to purchase mature rated games. Morons.

This legislation will pass. Now the government will be regulating the industry for the ESRB and we will have to be dependent on THEIR judgement of what we will all see in videogames in the future.

[Jonbo298]

The weird thing about the pats few years and the ESRB is the fact they are very very very lenient with the M rating anymore. There's been quite a few games that have blatant nudity that have got an M rating and then other games with "just blood" that got the same one too. and the language has gotten alot more severe also and still just an M rating.

AO has been excersized a very few times but I think if the ESRB would stop being so lax about the M rating and used AO more often, develoeprs wouldn't resort to using "boobies" and saying "cuss words" all the time.

[MuGen]

I've noticed a change in ESRB's ratings now.... for example... I dunno if this has been around... but there are games rated E10..

which basically means... EVERYONE... but not really everyone.. LOL...

For ages 10 and up basically......... Why isn't the rating 10+ instead of Everyone 10....

[BreakABone]

Originally Posted by Sony

I've noticed a change in ESRB's ratings now.... for example... I dunno if this has been around... but there are games rated E10..

which basically means... EVERYONE... but not really everyone.. LOL...

For ages 10 and up basically......... Why isn't the rating 10+ instead of Everyone 10....

I just assumed it similar to PG and PG-13.

E-10 games are for everyone but recommended for people over 10 and parents should look at e-10 games for their little kids before buying.

[GameMaster]

We wouldn't have to deal with this if decent parents existed. I know when I was a youngster my mom didn't let me rent the violent games like Mortal Kombat. The idea of a kid going to a retailer by themselves is outrageous in itself. I never went anywhere alone until I was 17.

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by GameMaster

We wouldn't have to deal with this if decent parents existed. I know when I was a youngster my mom didn't let me rent the violent games like Mortal Kombat. The idea of a kid going to a retailer by themselves is outrageous in itself. I never went anywhere alone until I was 17.

I think the reason for this legislation was that Rockstar circumvented parental control by sneaking in pornographic materials. By not making sure that the materials fell under Mature guidelines, the ESRB showed iteself to be ieffectual at giving parents the tools they need to determine what is good or bad for their children.

While I agree that no parent should allow a young kid to even play any of the Grand Theft Auto titles, its up to that parent to decide whats ok for their kids to experience. If a parent want to buy their kid a MA or even a AO game, thats their perogative.

When the ratings system proves to be inaccurate and unenforceable, thats when you get problems and thats why the government has stepped in.

Whenever a new industry emerges, the government will always give that industry the benefit of the doubt and allow it to regulate itself. As boundaries of good taste and explicit materials are pushed, the goverment will step in and make the insustry create a way to regulate itself. When the industry defies its own regulations, the government will regulate it for them.

Thats where we're at right now. This could suck... a lot... and its all the fault of the industry giving a blind eye in the name of increased profits.

[GameMaster]

Well doesn't the new Xbox have parental locks that can be used to ensure gamers can only play what their parents have programmed in as acceptable? The problem is most parents are not informed or they don't know how to do that stuff. Just like the features on TVs where channels can be blocked and DVD players can also restrict movies from being played depending on their rating. It isn't a complete resolution because some parents are unaware of these features and then some parents don't know how to do it. But I think PS3 and Revolution should also add that feature to their systems.

[Teuthida]

Originally Posted by GameMaster

We wouldn't have to deal with this if decent parents existed. I know when I was a youngster my mom didn't let me rent the violent games like Mortal Kombat. The idea of a kid going to a retailer by themselves is outrageous in itself. I never went anywhere alone until I was 17.

Yeah...back then MK was the worst of the bunch. (Was there even a bunch?) I didn't play violent video games then...nor do I really now.

Instead of a new video game legislation the government should work on programs to make kids not so damn impressionable...cut off the problem at the womb drugging mom till her little boy won't grow up to copy a game...hell, release a giant dirty bomb and make the country sterile.

Eventually kids just become desensitized to these sort of things anyway. Probably better to expose em young and teach them it's just a game. Forbidden fruit...something about sweetness...you know the deal.

[Dyne]

I guess you missed the E10 thread, Sony. It was known about a while ago.