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Controversial Manhunt Game Rated 'R' in Ontario
GrimSean writes "Well, it looks like someone in power up here in Ontario finally noticed the level of violence in Rockstar's Manhunt, as the Ontario Film Review Board has given it an R rating, much like a movie. The Toronto Star has an article here and the CBC has also covered the story - according to an article at CJAD, businesses could be fined a minimum of $25,000 Canadian for selling it to minors. It seems like they've completely sidestepped the ESRB's M rating and gone directly to the Restricted to 'control the thing'."
I see no problem with this - now all those whining "save the kids" types can't complain and get the game completely banned.
Good decision, I applaud Ontario.
Seems the only way that they can do this is via a very loose definition of film in the Theaters act.
Off topic: I noticed this section of the Theater Act:
National anthem
21. (1) The national anthem shall be played in every theatre at the commencement of the first or at the conclusion of the last exhibition or performance given each day. R.S.O. 1990, c. T.6, s. 21 (1).
Can our Ontario readers inform me if this is really done?
I hope these people realize that kids will get their hands on the games regardless of what the law says. I mean, if not a licensed copy, then a pirated copy off of bittorrent or something like that. At the end of the day, it's the parents that have to make sure that their kids don't spend their time on the wrong game, not the retailers.
If you read the story carefully, it is the Ontario Film Board that is rating video games. As I watched the CBC TV on this news story, the representative from the Ontario Film Board mentioned that Manhunt has every element that contributes to the R-rating, as in film: excessive foul language, grotesque violence, etc. If we were to rate video games the same way as film, then a lot of other games should have gotten the R-rating as well, yet this is the first video game that has received such a rating. This implies that they are looking for a quick and easy way to regulate the sale of violent game to minors, and the ESRB rating is not as effective as they like.
...I think it's good. I usually think that this whole videogame violence thing is blown out of proportion, and it is, but here, I think they made the right choice. Manhunt is just really disgusting - it's not at all like Grand Theft Auto, where the violence is humorous (a la a grown-up cartoon)...no, the violence here is disturbing...everybody I know who played it felt dirty, like they were some serial killer or something. It's really an uncomfortable game for most people I know. And the gameplay itself isn't that great (mediocre stealth fare), and it just seems like a cash-in on the media attention...yeah, I think Ontario was more than justified.
On a side note, sometimes I think that (in the U.S., don't know much about how it's done in Canada) we should just switch to movie ratings for games. I don't know if it would be a good idea for the same board or whatever to rate them, but it's just that PG and R are more familiar to most people than E or M. And they are kinda on the same "scale" anyway (PG-13 = T, R = M), so it might be a good thing.
Oh, and does anybody else feel that game ratings are a little...big? The dirtiest R-rated movie can get away with a little tiny square on the back of the box, but then videogames have to have a huge, ugly E or T or whatever plastered on the front and a large "descriptor" on the back. It's not that I'm against visability of the ratings, but I just think that videogames and movies should be treated more alike (it's annoying when Target refuses to sell M-rated games to minors, but don't have the same policy for R-rated movies, etc.)
That was quite a rant there...enjoy.
Another interesting thing, in the U.S. ratings are voluntary but in Canada they're decided by the Provincial governments, and (in Ontario at least) they're a bit stricter than the U.S., i.e. a few of the more extreme American R-rated films (Eyes Wide Shut, Hannibal) and all(?) NC-17 films get the 18+ rating in Canada.
Ironically, the 18+ rating is slapped on so many films it's not seen as a big deal. That's why Canada got the uncut version of American Psycho in theatres, while the producers wanted to avoid the NC-17 in the U.S., in Canada it was going to get rated 18+ anyway so there was no point in making cuts. Crash similarly had no problems in getting shown in Canadian theatres.
Maybe we'll get 'Canadian' versions of games with extra nudity and violence, since the 18+ rating is the strictest available there's no reason to hold back.
Dear Ontario Film Review Board,
We, and the stakeholders, thank you for dramatically increasing public interest in our addictively fun game of death, destruction, and mayhem. Slow sales have been a bit of a problem, but now, young adults everywhere are lusting after the (almost) unattainable beauty that is Manhunt for PS2. Coming soon for Xbox and PC.
Sincerely,
Rockstar Games
Here come da fudge!
Too bad in Australia they refuse to give an R rating to games.
We didn't see GTA until they had removed a scene in which you see a car rocking, windows steamed and can then get out and kill the woman and take the money. Other games have suffered a similar fate, like Carmageddon.
This is a strange fate for a country in which 18-24 year olds make up a very large portion of the gaming market - particularly console gaming.
As a gun-fearing UK-type, I'm actually quite astonished that this is new for you guys. It's no wonder Senator Libermann hasn't been locked up yet!
:) These games shouldn't be in the hands of minors, a voluntary ESRB rating simply isn't enough to justify controlling a character who chokes people to death with a plastic bag and then the player is "rewarded" with a pretty cut-scene of it. The fact that I personally find that quite disturbing and morally reprehensible doesn't really bother me, it's been given an 18 certificate and firmly stamped as being for adults. What more can you ask for? Censorship above that which we have in movies now? No thanks.
:)
Ever since Night Trap on the Mega CD, games have been regulated by the Britsh Board of File Classification. They're *video* games, and have been treated as such under the law. The publishers submit their games to be rated voluntarily in the main, but the BBFC would have had no qualms about slamming an 18 certificate on Manhunt, submission or no.
I don't see how people can seriously argue against this. I now fully understand why the whole selling games to minors (was that Washington?) was such a big deal! Here I was thinking that retailers were just disregarding the law
The current problem in the UK in regards to this are the retailers (hence my previous confusion). They're quite happy to sell 18 games to parents who'll then give the game to their children, without even pointing out the certificate in the first place. I always made a point of telling parents that the game was certified 15 or 18, and the response was always the same: "Really? But it's just a game!" I'd then proceed to tell them the actual content of Grand Theft Auto III, and that was the end of that. The game would be put back, and not given into the hands of the child whom the BBFC has decided really shouldn't play it. And that's how it should be.
Not that the blame lies entirely there. Games magazines aimed at minors were shipping with demo discs that contained adult content and had a 15 certificate. I had to refuse selling a magazine to kids because of irresponsible disc compilation.
So yeah, the system in the UK doesn't work, but the idea is there