Lion And Lamb Project Lambasts Videogames

Thanks to Gamasutra for pointing to the Lion And Lamb Project's new listing of their 'Dirty Dozen for 2004', as the organization, which "works to reduce the marketing of violent toys, games and entertainment to children", singles out Rockstar's Manhunt for its 'Pushing The Envelope' pick, despite the Mature rating, mentioning that "69 percent of underage teenagers were able to buy M-rated games at retail stores." Interestingly, Sony's Teen-rated Jak II is also criticized under the heading 'Deceptive Branding: The Sequel That Isn't', with the comments: "The original game in this series - Jak and Daxter - was rated E for Everyone... parents who feel comfortable with this 'brand' are in for a rude surprise if they purchase the sequel for their young children." However, the project's Top 20 non-violent toys also include videogames, including Dance Dance Revolution and Zoo Tycoon.

Comments

Printing that out as my Christmas list!

[heldlikesound]

Thanks for the tips!

Re:the real problems here

[Skyfire]

The problem with doing that is that a video game rating of M is basically equivalent to a rating of R, and in video stores, R movies are featured in the main parts of video stores, whereas the video equivialent of NC-17 movies which are usually put in the back of video stores a rated AO (Adults Only). My point is that if you put M games in a special section, you have to put R movies in a special section too.

list is of value (to busy/lazy anyway)

[Anonymous Coward]

of course any list like this seems silly, but the listing of JakII as not being in line with the first is a good point. Sure the blame is on the doofus who buys an inappropriate game for his kid, but assuming II is a continuation of I is an easy thing to do.

I think the main targets of these lists is "grandma" who is looking for a gift for the kiddies.

Of course, as a youth I would have much more preferred a "toys/games that aren't totally lame or out of date" list

Of course, the responsibility is shared.

[Sheetrock]

Parents picking up Grand Theft Auto or Doom for their children can't very well claim ignorance about the violence of the content. If they aren't maintaining a healthy level of involvement in the lives of their children they've got no one to blame but themselves.

Having said that, video games today are a virtual "pornography of violence"; characters are maimed or killed without thought to consequences in most titles, which are ultimately marketed to children when they share space among children's titles in gaming magazines or on review websites. It's highly unlikely even grown adults leave a session of intense gaming (or violent movies for that matter) without some imprint, as these games are designed to trigger and reward unhealthy responses.

I've got a certain amount of room for games like BF1942 in my free time, but I also enjoy games like Zork or Myst that are underrepresented in today's lineup on the shelves. Maybe they've got a point?

Re:Address the problem

[tiled_rainbows]

Hey, that's yet another little cultural difference between the US and the UK (I'm making a list).
In my local branch of Blockbusters (in London), all the (softcore) porn is all mixed up with the normal-type films. So you'll get "The erotic witch project" under horror, "The seX Files" under Sci-fi, and so on.
My wife, who isn't so good at spotting the genre of a film from the video box, sometimes says stuff like, "hey, what's "Lesbian Prison Riot' about? Have you seen it? Is it good?"

The other thing that annoys me is the way they don't put all the Hollywood stuff under "World Cinema". I said to the guy in the shop, "hey, 90% of your stock is foreign films! All these American films should really be over there with the arty French stuff.

And then the rest of the shop would be kept free for Four Weddings and a Funeral, and, er, that other film.