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GTA V Proves a Lot of Parents Still Don't Know or Care About ESRB Ratings
Deathspawner writes "Grand Theft Auto V has shown itself to be potential GOTY material, and has even managed to break a sales record already. But aside from that, the game has also become one of the most adult-oriented games ever released, with torture, drug use and sex prevalent not long after beginning the game. You'd expect this gameplay to deter most parents from picking the game up for their young children — but not so. An anonymous editorial at Kotaku written by a video game store employee says that out of the ~1,000 copies sold in the first week, at least 10% of them went to parents accompanied by a child. Clearly, this could be interpreted as a problem. Techgage adds that this is one of the biggest problems facing gaming today. With one breath, many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids. While ESRB ratings and other warnings about violent games for kids have good reason to exist, many parents still ignore them, aren't aware to them, or simply don't care about their warnings."
Some people still think that video games are only for kids, regardless of the content of the game. Getting past this idea would help a lot.
"With one breath, many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids."
Maybe these are two different groups of parents...
"With one breath, many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids."
How do you know these are the same parents?
No mom, this isn't one of those bad videogames. Trust me.
The cow says "Moo." The dog says "Woof." The Timothy says "Thanks, valued customer. We appreciate your input."
This type of irresponsible behaviour shouldn't be tolerated.
These so-called "parents" should have their parenting licenses revoked, and their children impounded and/or destroyed.
Why does the content matter? Playing a game with offensive / questionable content doesn't impart that behavior onto the player. Those ratings are pointless
I honestly don't think most parents care. I'm young enough to remember playing GTA 3 with my parents when it was released ( I was 13 years old). As a parent now I realize my son is a long way off from playing games as laden with violence and explosions as GTA 3. However; I'm not going to refuse to let him play a M game when he is 11-17 years old.
Some days I just get bored and Troll post all the memes I can think of...
"With one breath, many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids."
Are the same people saying both of these things? Or is it possible that "parents" includes millions of different people who feel differently about many things.
This is the current equivalent of parents dumping their kids in rated R movies.
lose != loose
At least 10 percent of parents would take their kids to see Michelangelo's David given the chance, even though he is in the nude. A masterpiece is a masterpiece, and art often gets past people's filters.
"An anonymous editorial at Kotaku written by a video game store employee says that out of the ~1,000 copies sold in the first week, at least 10% of them went to parents accompanied by a child. Clearly, this could be interpreted as a problem."
Just because you have a kid with you when you buy the game, does not mean the kid will be playing the game. (Or am I missing something because I didn't RTFA)
I'd say parents know about ratings -- in fact, they know not only about their existence but also quality. And, especially, relevance.
In other words, they don't give a f...
If your children hasn't seen enough porn already, I pity both you and your offspring, as this means you keep them in a cage.
The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
The fact that someone bought the game while accompanied by a child does not mean they're buying it for the child. My brother often takes his kids to the game store, and and may buy game for himself or for his kids. Or, frequently, both.
That said, yes, there probably a lot of people too clueless to realize that the one game that is probably the most famous of all games in the world for not being for kids isn't for kids. But trying to estimate the number of people in that category by counting the number of people who happen to buy it while having a child in tow is just as clueless, in quite another way.
What we need is a law forcing parents to raise their kids the way I think they should be raised.
parents aren't a hive mind.
Sheesh.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
While some parents obviously need to educate themselves, the games companies obviously benefit from that same ignorance. When GTA IV came out I remember that my local toy shop was equipped with wall-to-wall displays promoting the game. Things like this obviously add to any ambiguity and confusion that parents may have.
And what percentage of those 100 copies solid were to parents that complain about this stuff? The two are not necessarily the same subset, they could even be entirely disjoint or minuscule in overlap.
Some parents have faith in the maturity of their children. Some are of course just stupid.
i commend all the other parents who want to bring this home so they can supervise play, and put it into context. .. god only knows what goes on over there.
The last thing you want is a kid playing a game like that at the neighbors
"With one breath, many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids."
The mistake with this comment is it implies that "parents" are a single group of the same people. They are not. Some parents are decrying the violence in games. Different parents don't care and buy the games for their kids. The first group of parents blames violent video games as the source of various social ills. What needs to happen is the education of the first group of parents that the problem lies with the second group of parents and divert their attention to greater enforcement and utilization of the rating system. But we will never even start to cross that threshold once we label them all as a single group and then complain about their hypocrisy and schizophrenia.
Allowing parents to decide whether a kid can buy a "mature" game is exactly the right policy, and the summary is completely wrong in implying that the parents who buy the mature games for their children are identical to the people who complain about violent games being played by children. For reference, I watched my first R-rated move with my parents when I was 7, and the rule was I could watch any movie I wanted, but for R-rated movies I had to tell them the title in advance and they may want to watch it with me. My parents never complained about violence on TV, but they sure complained about government censorship.
As people have already pointed out, the parents who complain about violent video games are not the same parents as those buying it. However, when one parent buys it for their kids and another doesn't, it brings about the issue of loaning the game or going over to the other child's house to play it. Unfortunately, it should not be the responsibility of the industry or the government to censor or ban these types of games - it is still the responsibility of the parent wanting to restrict their child from the game to raise them in a manner where they not only avoid purchasing it but instill in their child a willingness to abide by their restrictions. Alas, many parents do not want to go this extra mile and fulfill their duties as a parent. (Yes, I know it is hard - but just as life is not fair, parenting isn't easy.)
I play GTA 5 with my 10 year old daughter, we have a blast. Its funny as hell. I guess I must be a bad parent...Oh tvell!
There's sex and drugs and crime everywhere on the internets.
Don't try to protect your children from all the evil out there. They're going to find it sooner or later. Teach your children judgement. They'll be needing it.
I should use this sig to advertise my book ISBN-13 : 978-1501515132.
"many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids"
Maybe they're not the same parents? Like duh...
Yes, those damn violent computer games are making people violent, which is why there was no violence, torture, mass murder, or war, before computers existed.
What's wrong with shooting a crowd of people every now and again?
That's because the ratings err ridiculously on the safe side. GTA V is probably fine for any kid older than 12 except if you're a religious zealot that's trying to pass you unhealthy sexphobia on to your kids.
GTA probably won't harm much younger kids either; I have carefully tried what the effect of GTA SA was when my 4 y.o. kid watched me playing. He does not identify with the character nor does he relate the more violent parts to the real world; his reaction is more like that on a nature video about lions getting some beef. Nevertheless, I'm playing safe; he won't be allowed to play GTA for many years to come.
Anyway - the overly obnoxiously safe ratings only result in the general population ignoring them entirely since they're way out of sync with reality.
0x or or snor perron?!
Asides from the obvious methodological fault (buying game with child != buying game for child), there is absolutely no problem unless you're a ignorant moral conservative (and before you ask: even though I tolerate them I find all moral conservatives equally ignorant).
Parents that are able to tell how mature are their kids, should have the opportunity to buy a violent game for the kid.
Damn I played Crusader when I was 11 y.o. and remember very well that despite the screams of pain issued by burning enemies that was a game, and while doing it in a game was fine I was mature enough to know that doing it for real was not so nice.
What evidence is there that GTAV poses any threat to children?
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
This story is making the rounds at quite a few outlets. Yet none show any proof whatsoever that the writer is a video store clerk. If you read the letter, there are many telltale signs in prose suggesting it's bogus ("Little Timmy....?" Hmmm)
Just how many employers out there don't mind their bottom line impacted by an employee lecturing adults on their legal purchase (Oh now those cigarettes...you're not buying them for children are you?) I suspect none? How many video store clerks would write a public letter insinuating that something illegal might be going on and authorities should clampdown and thus making life even more miserable for video store clerks? I suspect none?
Let's face it -- without the pseudo-cred of this being an 'insider'; it would simply be another stupid moralist blowing hot smoke out their ass with a stupid laughable rant ("at least 10%..." again the telltale use of bogus stats to bolster a nonsense claim) that languish unread at the bottom of most comment systems.
'Traditional' Media loves running this garbage because the video game industry is way more of a threat to their revenue base than illegal downloading will ever be.
security lock downs. Some kids being exposed to pixelated violence and torture barely registers on society's problem meter.
So the parent went into a store and bought a game, and had a child with them. Some observations :
1) Parents play games. I'm 41 and have been playing games since Pong and Space Invaders. I have two kids, one five one fourteen. I buy games for me. I buy games for the 14 yr old, I buy games for the five year old. They aren't the same games.
2) As a good parent, often my kids are with me. If they are not, they are with my wife or at school. Therefore, kids being with parent doesn't equate to every purchase being made by the parent being for the kid with them.
Frankly, this judgemental attitude that a parent must be a bad parent if they buy an M rated game while their kids are with them is pretty stupid, to put it mildly.
I haven't played the mission where Trevor tortures the guy by pulling teeth, electrocution and waterboarding (but I have seen it on youtube).. yet I've been at the strip club, the girls take off their tops but there's no vaginal nudity. I even went home with the stripper "Saphire" for a little extra action but nothing was shown...
It's weird they would allow the former but not the latter... maybe there is a switch in the settings menu that allows full nudity and images of sex that I haven't seen yet ?
I'll be the judge of whats too "violent". If my kid isn't getting upset over nudity, violence, etc. there is no way I'm going to censor it. When I was a kid is survived real violence and the entertainment I had or has access to (until I was older anyway) certainly was never censored. It is/was in part that censorship which disgusts me. It's one thing if it is a 5-6 year girl who cries when baby dies and never wanted to see the thing in the first place. A totally different thing if my 9 fearless year old boy wants to play GTA.
If people don't want to hear the words fuck, see sex, or know about the violence that exists all around them maybe they aught to live in a sheltered commune. But for heaven sake don't subject me to your overprotective or god fearing ideas.
another story that will give an excuse to the ignorant and childless to give child rearing advise!
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
How long does it take wikipedia to cite an anonymous editorial?
I VNC'd into my home computer from work yesterday afternoon and my son was watching a youtube video of two guys narrating a GTA session, in which the character was walking around shotgunning people begging for their lives. I have told him I can VNC in at any time, although it doesn't show anything on his display when I do. I am not sure whether to do anything about it. He turned 15 recently, so is not a baby. He has the typical preoccupations with survival knives, airsoft, and pellet guns. He also has some behavior problems including fits of violence, and I didn't really like what I saw on the screen. So... not sure what to do, if anything.
Or at least, peoples actions often don't mirror their words.
Moreover, even parents who espouse the belief that games are too violent may not feel that this should make them off limits to their family.
Heck, I think that games are too violent, and I cut my gaming teeth on Mortal Kombat. For whatever reason, I don't find game depictions of violence and bad behavior to be nearly as disturbing as violence on film or TV or in real life. I don't know why, but that is the way it is.
Considering what you can see on the internet and on your TV i can't imagine anyone caring about a game's content. It is just a game.
Show images of violence and death with a very large warning label that takes up no less then 75% of the cover art
There is still a very vocal group of adults who consider animation to be just for kids.
I refuse to buy GTA V for my kids. All the drugs, sex, violence, it's too much. I much rather them sit down and we watch television together. Just last night we watched the 6-o'clock news that had numerous stories about...drugs, sex, and violence. So we switched to something else. We watched the final episode of Dexter.
No... I have a child. I have many games. My child does not play my games.
I go to stores with my child. I bought slippers with my child. Does my child use those slippers? No I bought them for me.
I don't think so. This isn't a problem that gaming can fix; the industry doesn't have the ability to prevent jr from playing inappropriate games. Hell, it's not even their place to say what is or is not inappropriate.
This is a a problem facing PARENTS, and is one that is self-created in that it's parental ignorance and apathy.
The gaming industry has fulfilled their responsibilities; they are clearly marking the games to reflect the content in the games. That's the delineation between the industry and the parent's spheres of responsibility.
Mod me down with all of your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!
This particular problem really irks me. My brother-in-law, who is otherwise a sensible and brilliant guy, let's his seven-year-old play these violent games. My child, also the same age, is not allowed to play them. I have a very hard time explaining to my child why his cousin can play these games, but he can't. I also can't seem to convince them to purchase any milder (and cheaper) games that my son does have so that they can play together.
I have been unable to convince the parents that there was never any need for their child to play these games. But since he's used to them, he now expects it, and suddenly deciding that these games are inappropriate would appear to him as punishment. In fact, he throws a major tantrum if he can't play these games. Despite all this, they still beleive that they're not doing anything wrong.
And the men who hold high places must be the ones who start
To mold a new reality... closer to the heart
If your kid isn't expermeting with sex and recreational drug use by 14, then he is probably the type of kid stuck at home gaming playing GTA... Livining vicariously through video games with the other kids in school are busy wrecking fomer football players houses with a big kegger that your kid wasn't invited to.
...learn valuable hooker-beating skills without games like this?
I think its up to the parents to make informed decisions based on the maturity of their own children. Today's culture is full of drugs, sex, etc. but in forms maybe not as obvious as GTA V. I grew up watching and playing a ton of violent games and movies and I turned out fine. If you know your child will take the game too seriously, don't buy it for them.
I want restrictions on all those OTHER children. My child is special.
At a certain point, a kid is going to play games that his or her peers are playing. Playing one game isn't a monolithic endeavor that you devote your life towards. I mean, there are games that we like, but eventually if we play them too much they lose their value pretty quickly. If it seems like a kid is obsessed about one game, try to subtly find mechanical flaws with it. Once a kid breaks a game mechanically, it'll be less fun in general. Then he or she will think of new ideas, and maybe with enough encouragement becomes a producer rather than a consumer.
Back about 17 years or so ago, I played Doom, and even took it in to school and played it on the LAN in the computer lab with other students with full knowledge of the computer teacher. According to covential wisdom it should have compelled me to shoot up my school as I played a violent video game I should have had no free will of my own. These days I'm sure doing such a thing like playing Doom on the school LAN would be an event worthy of expulsion and involuntary commitment to a mental hospital.
As an adult I have no desire to play that game. However, I recognize there's a market for that and if that's what you want to fill up your time doing knock yourself out.
I let my 3 kids play the GTA series. I even taught them how to fire REAL guns.
Yet they have never committed a violent act against another human being. Because they know video games are entertainment and fantasy. And they know the devastating power of real firearms and their intended purpose. They also know the value of human life and that violence is a desperate last resort.
They also know that if it ever comes to violence.... you need to be able to dish it out effectively and win.
Ya see.... I don't need the ESRB or the government telling me how I should raise my own kids. I'll raise them how I see fit and society can f**k off. I really don't care about the opinion of the masses of panicky, scared, arrogant, pompous mothers with extra cash to throw at lobbyists and "ratings boards". As far as I'm concerned they'd be better off spending all that cash on booze and choking on their own vomit.
They can shelter their kids to the point of being useless, "entitled", drooling retards but the second they try to force their views upon me, we have a problem. Oh... and for the record.... my kids are straight A students with a great interest in the Sciences and History. They also happen to like mowing down prostitutes in GTA for amusement after their homework is finished.
I just don't understand the glamorization of violence. I mean it obviously has its entertainment value (action movies, etc.), but to actually play the part of the horrible criminals depicted in this game just doesn't speak very highly of us. My son brought this game home with one of his friends. I was dismayed at how much they enjoyed this kind of role playing. I banned it from my house and explained how I felt about it to my son, but I have no doubt he plays it at his friends.
I would have a sig but I am too busy updating programs and restarting my computer
Are you trying to tell me that some parents... are not good ... at being parents?!? Or maybe some parents believe different things are ok for their kids than other parents?!?
In related news, Americans hate republicans, but on the other hand some Americans vote for republicans? What can be done to solve this mysterious behavior by Americans? Clearly, this could be interpreted as a problem.
Well.. maybe. Or Maybe not. But Definitely not sort of.
As subject
The Ratings are statist crap
Why don't parents read Grimm's fairy tales to their children the way we used to do?
GOTY = Game of the Year.
Again with the alphabet soup.
Do 6 year olds and 7 year olds really get that deep into the sex and violence parts of these games?
We bought my son an Xbox 360. (for kinect games,) I already had a PS3, and a Gaming PC, and all my gaming equipment. we also later bought him a Cars 2 Racing game. Watching him play Cars 2, I really don't think GTA's base gameplay would really effect him in any way. the violence, the sex, the drugs, are all in the storyline, my son would much rather just drive around, walk around, etc. He's 6, but I don't think the storyline gameplay is what would be fun for him in that game.
heck the Cars 2 game has gratuitous violence in it, with the battle modes. heck he plays the battle mode (basically destroy as many lemons as you can in the time allowed) and he has 0 kills. he grabs rockets machine guns and mines. and when the idiotic ai drives over a mine is the only time he gets a point...
But because a parent buys a game while they have their kid in tow, doesn't mean that the game is for the kid. My GTA IV sits in it's case until the kids are in bed, and I get a chance to play. GTA V will do the same when I get it.
... going to stop voting for wars killing people in foreign countries? I am always amazed at human's ability to compartmentalize their thoughts. A sizable chunk of america complaining about videogames has no problem killing people in foreign countries or voting for people that support doing so, has the GALL to complain about videogames? Get. The. Fuck. Out.
With one breath, many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids.
Summary implies these are the same parents, which seems somewhat unlikely.
Techgage adds that this is one of the biggest problems facing gaming today.
It might be a parenting problem, but what does the gaming industry care? The game's flying off the shelves, and as far as I can tell it's not being improperly marketed to children.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
But good parenting will over come what any video game will give her.
That's like saying that a strong enough man doesn't have to worry about lifting with their back instead of their legs. It's true but pointless, and it suggests that you aren't good/strong enough unless you can overcome self-imposed handicaps born from ignoring sensible precaution.
If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
...that there are two kinds of parents. The ones that blame everything from video games to rock music to whatever else they don't understand for whatever their teenage son or daughter fucks up (because it cannot be their fault, no way) and those parents that understand that they, the parents, and their peers have a lot more influence on their kids development than video games, music, TV or whatever other makebelieve items their kids might fall in love with every could have.
Be honest: What do you think would have more influence on you, your behaviour and our outlook on the world? The schoolyard bully that beats you up or the virtual gangster that sells you a virtual hooker?
And then please answer why you think it should be different for your kids. Why do some parents think their kids are stupid? It's usually the parents where I'm fairly sure their kids are way smarter than their parents think. And most likely smarter than their parents are.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
http://memedad.com/memes/41016.jpg
It's WELL within the parent's rights to ignore ratings, be unaware of them, or simply not to care about the ratings.
Who cares? Mind your own business! It's not your job to police the morality of others, we have plenty of laws to take care of that.
How is it that so many people have nothing to worry about in their own house that they have to start telling me how I should live in mine? I'm getting sick of it!
Encryption: I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend your right to encrypt it...
It keeps the little shits in the basement, playing video games and out of mom and dad's hair. Not buying them the game will result in whining, crying and kids otherwise moping around the house. That's an irritation that must be dealt with at all costs.
Besides, there's less than a 5% chance that these kids will be driven to rob, rape and murder in real life. And so long as they don't involve the parents, what better way to have them dragged out of the basement and put in lifetime state care when they become adults.
Have gnu, will travel.
Just bundle some soft-core porn magazine with any title with an adult rating. It would also help a bit the ailing porn industry.
Some people still think that video games are only for kids, regardless of the content of the game. Getting past this idea would help a lot.
We are well past the point where many parents themselves were once kids listening to music with explicit lyrics and playing violent video games.
Some still play non-casual games. The last stats I saw had two big spikes in the age histogram, one around 15 and the other around 35.
Most notice a lack of ill effects on themselves and their childhood friends. Some recall the hysteria of Al Gore and his wife Tipper regarding music decades ago and take today's hysteria no more seriously than the hysteria of their childhood.
I went into Gamestop last week with a stroller holding a 1.5 year old and a 4 month old. I got gta5, along with a pair of high quality headphones so I can play the game while everybody sleeps :)
While one doesn't lead to another, it doesn't surprise me when young kids who play GTA end up killing people with family members' guns while still young themselves. While almost no parents are perfect, plenty of parents are really, really, dreadfully awful. The parents who buy these games for young kids are often cut from the same fabric that leave loaded weapons laying around the house while unsupervised kids are running around.
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
There's a site called "The Customer is Not Always Right," (it's hilarious by the way, but I digress) which talks about customers doing all sorts of insane things. Well, they have numerous situations that took place in game stores, simply around kids being bought copies of "Grand Theft Auto" (multiple versions) by their parents. Heck, if you search for "Grand Theft Auto" on their site, then you see almost exclusively that.
For your security, this post has been encrypted with ROT-13, twice.
William James and the Society for Psychic Research in both the US and Britain would beg to differ with you. Their book, "Phantasms of the Living" documented thousands of doppleganger incidents. "Ghost Hunters" by Rebecah Blum (http://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Hunters-William-Scientific-ebook/dp/B0024CEZPS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1380054272&sr=8-1&keywords=ghost+hunters+blum), covers this in detail. Also, Elizabeth Lloyd Mayer wrote "Extraordinary Knowing" (http://www.amazon.com/Extraordinary-Knowing-Skepticism-Inexplicable-ebook/dp/B000OI0G16/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1380054515&sr=1-1&keywords=extraordinary+knowing). Your statement that "there has never been any indication that the supernatural exists at all" is patently false and a shining example of materialist psuedo-skepticism.
Here's to hot beer, cold women, and Glaswegian kisses for all.
What people think: Parents are enraged about violent video games corrupting the minds of children!
Reality: Most parents don't give a shit about "violent" video games. They aren't hypocrites, they are just outvoiced by a small vocal minority. They realise that choices make the person, not video games. I can buy a game about cooking, it doesn't make me a chef, nor does a game about being a banker make me rich. Games about violence don't make people violent.
One store reports a non-empirical 10% of ~1000 purchasers had a child with them. I have a four year old. She might be with me when I buy a game, but that doesn't mean she's going to play it. Do many parents ignore ratings? Yes. Should they be mindful of them? Yes. Does this particular report give ammunition to all the people out there who say the problem is overstated? Absolutely - in my opinion.
I got gta 1 when I waz 14 yeers old and I tourned out ok.
Shit and mind your own god damn business. If you dont like it fine dont buy the shit for your kids but dont tell others what the fuck to do. If you like letting them play the silly game instead of being shot up in the hood fine play the damn thing. If you need a rating on a fucking game perhaps you should not buy a console, but then you probably never had one. just get off on telling others what the fuck to do.
...or pressure differentials a couple orders of magnitude greater.
Sure I'm paranoid, but am I paranoid enough?
There used to be a kid's show in the UK called "Rainbow" that did a hilarious version full of innuendo. However my understanding was that it was a spoof version done by the cast and crew and never broadcast. There was also the apocryphal character namess in another kids show called "Captain Pugwash" but this is nothing more than an urban legend since the actual character names were "Master Mate" and "Seaman Baines"...I'll let you figure out what the legend has them as!
That would be in the best interest of protecting children and allowing adults to enjoy the movie without screaming/crying kids in the same auditorium.
Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
Part of the problem with nanny-state culture is that a lot of people start thinking like "If this wasn't perfectly fine for my kid (or others), then it wouldn't be allowed for sale".
We know where leadership by an anti-intellectual "strongman" who scapegoats minorities and likes boisterous rallies goes
I'm 32, played video games all my life and have no idea what ESRB stands for. Maybe we should waste more time in the senate debating Mortal Kombat.
And we born, live and die happy not knowing it.
About a hundred people said "Thanks"
CrazyOldMan
So, if the way we handle video games rating is somewhat analogous to how we handle movies, maybe the proper way to handle a game like this is to rate it A - Adults Only. Maybe it should be as illegal to buy this game for a child as it would be to buy porn for a child. I don't know how graphic the game is, I haven't gotten around to it yet.
While ESRB ratings and other warnings about violent games for kids have good reason to exist, many parents still ignore them, aren't aware to them, or simply don't care about their warnings
"Many parents still ignore them", which is fine, they are warnings not commandments.
"or simply don't care about their warnings", which is fine, they are warnings not commandments.
"aren't aware to them", which is a publicity issue for the ESRB and not the fault of the parents -- assuming for a moment that anything more than a statistically insignificant number of people aren't aware of them.
The ESRB warning are there so that parents can make decisions about their own children themselves. That their decisions differ from yours isn't a failing of the warnings. It's a failure of you for wanting to control other people's lives.
"Grab them by the pussy" -- President of the United States of America
steal cars and give them to poor people. What is all this talk of drugs, sex and killing?.
... parents understand that time and again the supposed link between video game violence and real world violence is dubious at best. What game was hitler playing? Mussolini? Stalin? Vlad the Impaler?
I run: Windows, OS X, Linux, FreeBSD. Just because you have a hammer, doesn't mean everything is a nail.
No, the world should get back to encouraging PARENTS to make decisions on how to raise their children and assume responsibility for such, not encouraging more regulation and passing the responsibility off to some regulatory authority staffed by self important do-gooders who think they are somehow entitled to push their values on others.
I run: Windows, OS X, Linux, FreeBSD. Just because you have a hammer, doesn't mean everything is a nail.
So 10% are sold to parents with kids there. That's a pretty small number, but most of them probably aren't buying for their kids. What do you think parents are going to do with their kids when they go to a video game store? The kid wants to come along, and they might buy kids games too while they're picking up GTA 5. So we may be looking at ~1% of cases where GTA 5 is being purchased for the kid -- and then, what age kid are we talking about? A 7 year old has no business with it but a 17 year old may. Not seeing indication of a significant problem here.
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No, the world should get back to encouraging PARENTS to make decisions on how to raise their children and assume responsibility for such, not encouraging more regulation and passing the responsibility off to some regulatory authority staffed by self important do-gooders who think they are somehow entitled to push their values on others.
Uh, what about the rest of us in the auditorium? Why should we have to put up with the screaming kids when we paid of a ticket to see an adult movie? If you want to screw up your kids by showing an inappropriate film to your kids, create your own country so that I don't have to pay for their therapy or incarceration later on in life. Seriously, parents like that should be charged with child abuse.
Your "freedom" ends when it starts to impinge on the rights of others.
Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
...that says the seller or creator of game has no responsibility for the consequences of playng the adult-only game.
Then no one will be able to complain about kids having access to violent video games.
I don't see what this has to do with anything.
The FACT is that the parents were warned, and indicated that the game was for the child (or made some other excuse)
If the game was for the parent, why wouldn't the parent have just said that?
While it's certainly possible that some of the parents may have been buying the game for themselves, it has not been revealed whether any of them said that - the article is about the parents who were buying the game for the child. While it is likely that the article contains hyperbole, or outright lies, what we're /talking about/ is the parents who are buying the game for their children and ignoring the warnings.
It's a completely different breed for shitty parent who would take a kid to a game store and buy something for themselves by not the kid.
"An anonymous editorial at Kotaku written by a video game store employee says that out of the ~1,000 copies sold in the first week, at least 10% of them went to parents accompanied by a child. Clearly, this could be interpreted as a problem. Techgage adds that this is one of the biggest problems facing gaming today."
Only if ouy're of the opinion of children playing M rated games under any circumstances is a problem. What people forget is that the ratings system aren't based on any sort of science or reality. It's just a way to consumers what the game is about in broad strokes. If you care about about managing Timmy's media consumption, but don't want to do any research you can fall back on the rating system to make a decision.
"With one breath, many parents criticize video games for being so violent, and with the next, they're saying 'thanks' at the counter after picking up these very games for their kids."
Parents who are truly concerned should either do their homework or at least learn about the rating system, and I feel most do. Nothing is so disingenuous as a concerned parent who isn't concerned enough to actually do any work and wants society to cater to them so they never have to. And it could always be that, "Timmy is mature for his age so he can handle it, it's just everyone else's kids who need to be kept safe." Everyone is an exception to the rule when confronted with a rule they might not like personally but think is necessary for everyone else.
"While ESRB ratings and other warnings about violent games for kids have good reason to exist, many parents still ignore them, aren't aware to them, or simply don't care about their warnings."
I think we make a mistake in calling them warnings. They're ratings. They're guidelines. They're not science. They're not sacred. The ESRB is not a body focused on child development. The ratings exist to guide parents who want guidance, not control parents or the development of children absolutely. Parents relying on their own judgement and not the ESRB's is not a failing on the part of the ESRB or the parent. Your opinion may be that parents who let children play GTA are bad parents. But it is just an opinion. And I feel a lot of people take that position in arguing because it gives the something to throw under the bus in order to appear reasonable and moderate on the issue they're actually liberal about. You may legitimately think the are bad parents. But opinions are not necessarily facts.
So, if the parent had a child with them when they purchased the game, it must have been FOR the child. I guess if you buy beer at the supermarket with the kid in tow, it's for them too.
We have a lot of PS3 games that our kids are not allowed to play (and that the adults aren't allowed to play until after the kids go to bed).
Like the contents of the liquor cabinet and the gun safe, they know it's there, and that they're not allowed to use it (and, more importantly, WHY). Every household with children contains things that are not for children. A big part of parenting is teaching your kids to recognize and avoid the things that can hurt them (without turning them into the forbidden fruit).
Why is it that the proponents of "one nation under God" are so eager to get rid of "liberty and justice for all"?
About the only video games that have actually harmed children were perhaps the old Nintendo game cartridges with their hard plastic cases, and pointy edges.
You could really whiff one of those at a friend, brother, or sister and they would know it if at the receiving end.
People who would want to blame video games for violent behavior are really saying that bad parenting is the cause of unacceptable behavior.
Buying inappropriate things for your children would certainly fall into that category. The excuse that your brat really really wanted it, and you eventually capitulated to the whining and screaming is exactly that.