Parents Ignore Age Ratings?

GamesIndustry.biz has news of a ELSPA-funded research project that indicates that parents do not pay attention to ratings when purchasing games. From the article: "According to Freund, the study found a high awareness of the existence of videogame age ratings both among young gamers and among their parents - but parents tend to 'divorce themselves' from active involvement in deciding what their children play."

Comments

ESA

[VermifugeRT]

Interesting. I was recently reading the 2004 report issued by theESA(Entertainment Software Association) and it claims some 92% of parents are present at the time games are purchased or rented. Additionally, some 87% of children get parental permission before purchasing or renting a video game.

These statistics are compiled from a dozen or so gaming companies such as Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, EA and others. I'm guessing the data could be slightly skewed to paint a more favorable picture. Though I'm more include to believe parents, on average, just don't care what kind of games there children are playing.

In Australia...

[trawg]

... the OFLC (Office of Film and Literature Classification) has just changed the classification markings system for games and movies - they now both use the same markings and have the same rating systems (though video games don't have a 'restricted' rating yet, which means anything harsher than an MA15+ gets refused classification - but that's a whole different kettle of fish).

Part of the reason for doing this was to make it more obvious for parents when buying games for their kids that they might not be suitable. I guess its for those stupid parents that don't actually excercise critical thinking when they pick up a box of Deathstalker V: The Bloodening. Now they can clearly see its got a red sticker on it and will (theoretically) be more inclined to realise that it is Bad For Kids, because they remember that the red sticker is for grown-ups, because they saw it at the movies.

I think its a good idea and hopefully those parents that would otherwise blindly buy their kids unsuitable titles will think about it a little bit more.

The usual senario...

[MagicDude]

Scene: Mother walking through Wal-Mart with 1-3 eight year old brats in tow.

"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "No"
"Mommy, buy me this" "OK!! OK!! Just STFU!!" (Que other shop patrons looking agast at loud use of foul language.)

Checkout Clerk - "Ma'am, do you know that Grand Theft Auto 3 is a mature rated game, more suitable for kids in their mid to late teens?"
Mother - "Whatever, as long as they aren't having sex with hookers and then beating the hookers up, it's fine"
Checkout Clerk - "Well, actually, you..."
Mother (interupting) - "Tyler, put that lamp down this instant" (runs off with merchandise).

My two cents..

[Sagewolf]

As someone who has worked in both game stores(Gamestop & Babbages) and a music store(FYE). Most parents don't read the game boxes, read the rating information, or really know what their child is buying. There are the parents that will flip the box over and read the back of the box or have read about the game beforehand, but those are rare. Most parents hangout near the counter waiting for their child to grab their game or music so that they can pay for it and be on their way. A majority of the time it's just the kid in the store buying the game or music why mom & dad are shopping elsewhere or they've dropped their kids off at the mall and leave.

A few days later you get an angry parent yelling at you and demanding a refund for selling an "inappropriate" game or music to their little angel of a child. Riiight..so now it's my(the retailers) fault. Not your fault for failing to read the box, and not your little angels fault for picking the game up knowing what the games content is. Hell, if mom or dad took a look at the box art it might have helped them get a clue. Take GTA3 : San Andreas http://azz.gouranga.com/images/sa/sa_boxart_big.jp g. I think the guy's leaning out of the car shooting would have been the first big clue as to the game content along with the blonde bending over licking her lips suggestivily, but that's just me.

Parents need to start getting involved with their kids activities. I grew up playing games and I still play them, but when i was younger my mother watched what I bought. If she didn't like I wasn't allowed to buy or play it. When she found my Doom floppies she took a magnet to them, but a year later I was able to play it in her eyes. Just the last week she called me up to ask if my fiance and I are planning on getting an Xbox 360. She's in her 50's and I'm 30 and she's still has a clue about my interests and even recommend a good wireless router.