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Parents 'ignore game age ratings'
Jim Hall writes "With all the fervor recently over the 'Hot Coffee' mod and the upcoming 'Bully' game, I found it interesting that no press time seems to have been given to this little gem from the BBC: Parents 'ignore game age ratings'. I think most of us agree that the games are already rated appropriate to their audience - GTA:SA was previously rated "M" (17 and up) in the US, before public outcry forced the ESRB to move it to "AO" (18 and up). However, as this article points out, parents are more concerned about children spending too many hours playing games, rather than about what type of title they were playing."
They don't normally catch it on their own.
Case in point: A few years ago I worked at a game store. Woman comes in to get a game for her son and after several questions to narrow down which game it was (she forgot, but knew it had cars in it), I got a copy of the latest GTA game for her to purchase.
After asking if she wanted the hint guide to go along with it, and her refusing, she asked if this game was appropriate for her 12-year old.
"No Ma'am. This game is NOT appropriate for a 12-year old. Each game has a rating on the cover (quick explanation of the rating system) and this one is rated M for Mature. It means you should probably be 17 to play it. We don't enforce it, but we do encourage it." I flipped the copy of GTA over and showed her why it had been rated mature.
Needless to say, a parent left a little more educated and her son did not get the game that day. He probably also got a talking to over trying to get one over on mom, but I don't know that for certain.
Atomic batteries to power! Turbines to speed!
In the collective mind of the older generation, video games are always for kids. Any rating system therefore exists inside that box -- In their minds, M isn't for adults, it's for mature children.
I agree completely with this. I worked at a video game retailer for some time while I decided what I wanted out of life after school, and actually had parents basically say "Oh, but Johnny is mature!" when he's really a 12 year old.
Hopefully enough adults in the under 30 catagory don't fall into the believe that video games are just for children. I'm sure I'll still be gaming when I have children, and I'll sure as hell know what games contain that I purchase for them and for myself. (I'm 26, btw, and am planning to start a family in the next few years.)
rm -rf
Well, to a degree, that's true. Mature children should be allowed to play M-rated games. You can't convince me that there's a great difference between a mature 16 year old and an immature 17 or 18 year old. The problem is that parents usually make a bad judgement that way, because they aren't involved in their kids lives. It was a long struggle for me (14 or 15 at the time, I can't recall) to convince my parents that I could "handle" GTA III. In the end, I got it, and they were able to trust that I could handle such entertainment. But, that's not to say that I think everyone at that age could handle it, just like I think it's foolish that you can get a learner's permit at 14 (although it made me quite happy). The root problem is lack of parental involvment.
In Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, I had fun by stealing a police bike (since they are easy to acquire and relatively fast), going to the top of the big skyscraper downtown, gunning the engine and flying into the air.
Did I do this because I was desensitized to the idea of my own death? Of course not! Did I do this because I personally harbor suicidal thoughts? I doubt it.
I did it because it was interesting. It was a game, and I knew I wasn't driving off a skyscraper. I was seeing what was possible in the game engine. (Turns out that if you land the bike just right, you take minimal damage).
In the same light, I drove up and down the big hill in the SanFran clone town. Its possible to get quite some air on the bumps in that hill. Of course, a few unlucky pedestrians did die when I came over a hill too fast. So am I a reckless driver? Or did I realise that the pedestrians were simulated computer people and I have no intentions of doing such an act in real life?
I think the main point is that this was only a game, and I understood it was only a game.