How the ESRB Rates Games

Ant writes "Joystiq mentioned a short Slate story on how the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) reviews and rates games. (Seen on Blue's News.)"

Comments

How the ESRB Rates Games

[Fr05t]

Not based on content added/unlocked by modders of course!

Re:How the ESRB Rates Games

[krgallagher]

" Not based on content added/unlocked by modders of course!"

You know I do not understand how a game in which you intentionally break the law and murder people is rated "M", but as soon as you add siulated sex between consenting adults it is rated "A". Not to mention that from the clips I've seen it is poory simulated sex at that.

Re:How the ESRB Rates Games

[pete6677]

It's the way the American system of moral values works, as explained in the South Park movie: there's nothing wrong with gratuitous violence just as long as there's no sex.

short guide

[aendeuryu]

No violence, swearing: For all
Violence, no blood, no swearing: 12
Violence with blood & swearing: 15
Extreme violence with blood & swearing: 18
Boobies: OH MY GOD 25 AT LEAST WON'T SOMEBODY THINK OF THE CHILDREN??????

Re:short guide

[FidelCatsro]

You forgot one
Cut out sex scene (available through large hack) : WARNING may bring about the rapture

Re:short guide

[TobyWong]

Can you imagine what kind of society we would live in if people were exposed to naked breasts at a very young age?!?

Re:short guide

[dstewart]

A mammalian one?

Re:short guide

[tomstdenis]

No violence, swearing: For all
Violence, no blood, no swearing: 12
Violence with blood & swearing: 15
Drive a car and possibly kill people: 16
Piss away your life in the military: 17 (with parents permission)
Extreme violence with blood & swearing: 18
Age you can drink at: 21
Boobies: OH MY GOD 25 AT LEAST WON'T SOMEBODY THINK OF THE CHILDREN??????


Am I the only one who thinks it's odd we let them drive at 16 but they're not mature enough to see breasts yet?

Re:short guide

[southpolesammy]

[Note to father: Thanks for subscribing to National Geographic throughout my childhood.]

a witches stew.

[infonography]

A dark Cave. In the middle, a Caldron Boiling.

[Thunder. Enter the three Witches.]

FIRST WITCH.
Thrice the brinded cat hath mew'd.

SECOND WITCH.
Thrice; and once the hedge-pig whin'd.

THIRD WITCH.
Harpier cries:--"tis time, 'tis time.

FIRST WITCH.
Round about the caldron go;
In the poison'd entrails throw.--
Toad, that under cold stone,
Days and nights has thirty-one
Swelter'd venom sleeping got,
Boil thou first i' the charmed pot!

ALL.
Double, double, toil and trouble;
Fire, burn; and caldron, bubble.

And we all agree, rate this one E for Everybody!

Too Busty receiving a higher rating?

[Zoidbergo]

Since when are bigger breasts considered to be offensive? Kids aren't supposed to know that some women have larger breasts than others? Are we really corrupting a kid's mind when he sees a sexy woman (not naked, not scantily clothed, just busty) in a game?

Re:Too Busty receiving a higher rating?

[vjmurphy]

"Except that most busty women in computer games are unnaturally busty, to the point of defying the laws of physics."

Is that before or after the character they are playing has jumped twenty feet in the air, spun around five times, pulled out a glowing sword of pure energy and impaled twelve robots in 3.2 seconds?

Defying physics is what games are all about.

How dutch rate games (and TV)

[jurt1235]

5 moderation levels saying which age is appropriate.
1. Is there sex (S) in it? If yes, 18+
2. Is there excisive violance (V) and S in it, well, 18+, V only no S 12+
3. Is there S,V and bad language (L) in it, 18+, L only is 6+
4. Is it all in another language than dutch (so subtitle bad language only): All ages.
5. Is it done by a famous actor/singer/director, then it must be art, so 12+ whatever happens (for example Spielbergs movie "Schindlers list", rated 12+)

In other words: How fine is the line which is being drawn?
What not mentioned factors in the article will take care that something can be broadcasted at prime time anyway?

Re:How dutch rate games (and TV)

[suzerain]

What I think is interesting about your posting is that apparently, in the Netherlands, sex is also the highest trigger for a high rating. And, as another poster pointed out in a different section of the thread, you can see it in for example Samurai movies (lots of violence no sex), Indian action flicks, and so on.

So, it's clearly not just in America that sex is the 'most adult' thing that ensures your adult rating. Granted, Americans are particularly idiotic about sex, but it seems like a worldwide phenomenon.

So, I ask you....why? Why is blowing a cop's head off not worse than a woman...err...blowing your head off? Personally, some fucking in a video game isn't going to bother me much, and I think kids ought to go through sex education BEFORE they go through puberty, so they're aware of what they're in for...

Perhaps it's just because sex is our strongest biological urge, and if we don't keep a lid on it somehow, we'll never get anything done?

Up tight Americans

[Neil Watson]

I'm not saying that all Americans are uptight. However there is a certain skewed view of sexuality versus violence in America. GTA SA gets a M rating for shooting police officers but some think it should be rated OA because of sex? How can sex be more offensive than violence?

Re:Up tight Americans

[Xaroth]

How can sex be more offensive than violence?

Have you seen the average American?

*shudder*

Re:Up tight Americans

[stlhawkeye]

Because the Conservative and Unreasonable NuTS have taken over our country and they won't give it back.

Like Hillary Clinton? Tipper Gore?

Re: Everyday Low Prices!

[Fr05t]

"Wal-Mart has Low Prices but high Morale standards; they are based out of Arkansas for Sam's sake."

You forgot low business ethics. The employee wages, and tactics against employee rights is far more offensive to me than violence, naughty words, and nudity.

I have a better idea.

[Anonymous Coward]

How about we put the burden of raising children on the parents who chose to had them. How about instead of futilely trying to childproof the world we let people decide for themselves and their own children what's appropriate.

If a kid has $50 bucks to blow on the new hotness their either have their parents permission (ill considered as it may be), too much for an allowance, gainful employment, or an entry level position in a criminal enterprise. None of these is the problem of developers or retailers.

Besides, none of the GTA games come close to the sex and violence of the bible. Babykilling and incest? Check. I want to see Rockstar do a Bible game like GTA, where you can wander around brutally killing and raping anything.

Typical Slashdot reaction. You should know better.

[WidescreenFreak]

Typical. You mention factual statements and you get nailed as flamebait because it goes against the liberal /. groupthink. You should know better than to insult two prominent libs here.

For those mods who clearly don't have a f*cking clue, Hillary (clearly not a conservative) is actively pursuing the current GTA3 situation and Tipper was one of the main activists who was responsible for the Senate hearings regarding language/violence/drugs in music several years back. I also need to remind the mods that the initial politician who raised a stink in order to impress his constituents is a democrat from California. So - karma be damned - will the GP and the idiot mod who nailed the parent with -1 Flamebait kindly get your heads out of your asses and tell me once again where conservatives are causing the problem with the GTA3 issue?

Whereas the republican side of the isle is known for their own bits of censorship, particularly where issues of morality come into play, the current GTA3 rigamarole has not been started and is not currently a molehill being made into a mountain by republicans or conservatives.

Now, if that moron John Ashcroft was still in office, then you liberal, knee-jerk reactionaries might have cause to bitch about conservatives. Ashcroft would have been on top of the sex issue like ... well, perhaps "on top of", "sex", and "Ashcroft" is not the best one-sentence combination to use, considering that he couldn't deal with a nude breast on a freakin' statue.