2008 Woodie Awards
Industry not at fault
Britton Peele
Issue date: 1/24/08 Section: Opinions
The scene involves you, a human - who is either male or female - engaging in what is no doubt sexual intercourse with an alien female, though human-like and blue. Many things have been said of this scene. Some call it "porn." Others, like columnist Kevin McCullough, have gone as far as to call it "virtual orgasmic rape."
No, quite honestly.
Don't get me wrong, it's definitely not something suitable for children, but it's also not the worst thing to grace television screens by any stretch of the imagination. You'll see far worse in R-rated movies and even much of today's TV.
Which brings me to the next point: "Mass Effect" is rated "M for Mature" by the Entertainment Software Rating Board. This means no one under the age of 17 should be able to purchase it. It's most commonly compared to the "R" rating used by the MPAA for movies. Yet it appears most people in the media right now just don't get that.
News site Cybercast said, "There are cultural implications for feeding porn to kids in this way," and "When you do this, you're teaching them a distorted lesson about human sexuality and human dignity." Now my question is this: Who the heck said anything about feeding this game to kids?
The mass media it seems, still doesn't realize that video games aren't just for kids anymore. They haven't been for a long, long time. I know, it's apparently quite shocking, but adults may actually find enjoyment in virtual worlds.
Whether it's joining Tom Clancy's counter-terrorism unit in "Rainbow Six," playing some football in "Madden," or enjoying an epic like "Mass Effect," a great many adults play games frequently, and as such, there are a lot of games out there that simply aren't made for kids.
This isn't some new, mysterious phenomenon, though. Game ratings from the ESRB have been around for quite some time and clearly are displayed on the front of every game box - something even DVDs can't lay claim to.
In fact, in a recent study done by the Federal Trade Commission, the video game industry has been making "significant progress" in limiting the sale of M-rated games to minors. It seems it now would be easier for a minor to walk out of a store with an R-rated - or even Unrated - DVD or a CD with explicit lyrics than it would be for them to walk out with an M-rated video game.
The job falls, as always, on parents to regulate what their children are watching, playing and/or listening to, and not all parents are idiots. According to the same FTC study, of parents surveyed, 87 percent knew about the ESRB ratings, 70 percent used them and three-quarters of them understand and use the content descriptors on the back of game boxes.
So, if a parent or someone on the media wants to complain about children playing games like "Mass Effect" or even something like "Grand Theft Auto," they shouldn't blame the developers of the game, the game industry or even the government for not regulating the industry, because the gaming industry is self-regulated just like the movie industry.
They should blame the parents for not keeping a closer eye on the kids or the kids themselves for being clever enough to slip under their parents' radar. And trust me, a lot of kids are, in fact, that clever. But it's not the game industry's fault.
No, quite honestly.
Don't get me wrong, it's definitely not something suitable for children, but it's also not the worst thing to grace television screens by any stretch of the imagination. You'll see far worse in R-rated movies and even much of today's TV.
Which brings me to the next point: "Mass Effect" is rated "M for Mature" by the Entertainment Software Rating Board. This means no one under the age of 17 should be able to purchase it. It's most commonly compared to the "R" rating used by the MPAA for movies. Yet it appears most people in the media right now just don't get that.
News site Cybercast said, "There are cultural implications for feeding porn to kids in this way," and "When you do this, you're teaching them a distorted lesson about human sexuality and human dignity." Now my question is this: Who the heck said anything about feeding this game to kids?
The mass media it seems, still doesn't realize that video games aren't just for kids anymore. They haven't been for a long, long time. I know, it's apparently quite shocking, but adults may actually find enjoyment in virtual worlds.
Whether it's joining Tom Clancy's counter-terrorism unit in "Rainbow Six," playing some football in "Madden," or enjoying an epic like "Mass Effect," a great many adults play games frequently, and as such, there are a lot of games out there that simply aren't made for kids.
This isn't some new, mysterious phenomenon, though. Game ratings from the ESRB have been around for quite some time and clearly are displayed on the front of every game box - something even DVDs can't lay claim to.
In fact, in a recent study done by the Federal Trade Commission, the video game industry has been making "significant progress" in limiting the sale of M-rated games to minors. It seems it now would be easier for a minor to walk out of a store with an R-rated - or even Unrated - DVD or a CD with explicit lyrics than it would be for them to walk out with an M-rated video game.
The job falls, as always, on parents to regulate what their children are watching, playing and/or listening to, and not all parents are idiots. According to the same FTC study, of parents surveyed, 87 percent knew about the ESRB ratings, 70 percent used them and three-quarters of them understand and use the content descriptors on the back of game boxes.
So, if a parent or someone on the media wants to complain about children playing games like "Mass Effect" or even something like "Grand Theft Auto," they shouldn't blame the developers of the game, the game industry or even the government for not regulating the industry, because the gaming industry is self-regulated just like the movie industry.
They should blame the parents for not keeping a closer eye on the kids or the kids themselves for being clever enough to slip under their parents' radar. And trust me, a lot of kids are, in fact, that clever. But it's not the game industry's fault.
Disclaimer:
Opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of The Daily Toreador, the department of Student Media or Texas Tech University. Student editors have the authority to make all online content decisions without censorship or advance approval and are solely responsible for the content of this Web site. None of the opinions expressed on this page are previewed by any university official. Any postings, SPAM or otherwise, considered by the editorial staff to be campaign endorsements for political candidates other than opinions of users attached to articles pertaining to election issues will be deleted immediately.
View the online policy here.
To report questionable content, send an email to dtonlineeditor@gmail.com
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 36
Dean
posted 1/25/08 @ 1:32 AM CST
Your mom.
Amy M
posted 1/25/08 @ 3:31 AM CST
Stop trying to justify the video game industry's portrayal of abuse and degradation of womyn by saying that it "happens elsewhere." There is nothing acceptable about beating prostitutes and calling womyn 'bitches, sluts and whores. (Continued…)
Rio Kikaru
posted 1/25/08 @ 8:55 AM CST
Amy M: And where, might I ask, did the author justify these things? He is not supporting the fact that it is in the game, and he tells parents to control what their kids watch/play/listen to. (Continued…)
mark.williamson
Mark Williamson
posted 1/25/08 @ 10:39 AM CST
I agree with Amy, in a way. I also agree with the author, though. Where I disagree with Amy is in that their content should not be regulated by the government. (Continued…)
Amy M
posted 1/26/08 @ 5:14 AM CST
So, my firefox spell checker utility is trained to leave 'womyn' alone, but not 'humyn.' My error! Damn patriarchal browser utilities. I'm no sexist! lol. (Continued…)
George Gant
posted 1/27/08 @ 9:32 AM CST
FCC can charge ABC millions for showing...OMG..part of a woman's buttocks and exposed side as she enters the shower (what a disgrace to family values), but do nothing with respect to violent and degenerate video games that teach kids through simulated practice, how to engage in horrific and barbaric acts. (Continued…)
George Gant
posted 1/28/08 @ 1:31 AM CST
Courtesy of Mark....
"As usual, the ideas you promote about the Bible and Christianity describe a community of which I am not a part, which I would not respect, and which none of the Christians I have met personally met subscribe. (Continued…)
Mike
posted 1/28/08 @ 8:29 AM CST
It amuses me that, somehow, George Gant believes the sexual activity going on in a back alley in Grand Theft Auto stems from that evil book of mythological tales known as the Bible. (Continued…)
TommyT
posted 1/28/08 @ 11:16 AM CST
Two words: Double Standards.
As far as the Fox News issue is concerned, the lady ( who's name allude me at the moment but was considered an 'expert' ) has apologized for her remarks because she was basing her 'expert' statements based on the information someone had told her. (Continued…)
TommyT
posted 1/28/08 @ 12:28 PM CST
I suppose I should have added (or better should have limited the statement with) 'evil' with regards to teaching/inhibiting evil. As that statement was in reference to the videogames being evil and there were comments with regards to religion/The Bible. (Continued…)
Post a Comment