Minors playing M rated games. How do you feel?

[WhiteSkyMage]

Guys let me tell you, my sister is 15, she played GTA San Andreas at about age of 8 and now Tomb Raider is her favorite game. I know the game is for 18, my dad knows, yet we actually HELP her rather than telling her that this is not a game she should play. Oh and let me mention that she does NOT like to see blood....and for some reason she has no damn problems with any of the blood & gore games, since she is able to make a very good distinction of what is game and real. 

 

I started playing COD at about 10, when Chivalry came out, it was my favorite game (until of course I didn't play M&B Warbrand, even though i was still under 18.

 

In conclusion: The age rating have no meaning for me. If I have a child, id gladly buy him any game he likes, depending on if I think he is mature enough to handle it. It is really a thing that parents need to judge and not based on the age rating. 

[Ithanul]

30 minutes ago, Brooksie359 said:

I believe there was a law trying to get passed in the US that required it but idk if it got passed. I know for me I couldn't buy it myself at the stores near me because they all required to id to buy rated M games as a company policy.

Yes, there was a bill pushed through Congress.

https://www.cnet.com/news/new-bill-no-id-no-mature-video-games-for-you/

 

This is the link to the bill:  https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/287

 

Well, if they IDing video games then they may as well ID for movies, music, books, etc.

 

Hint:  The theater can only remove the child and refund the ticket if a child manages to get a ticket to a M rated movie.

http://blogs.findlaw.com/law_and_life/2015/05/are-movie-ratings-legally-enforceable.html

[Donut417]

10 hours ago, LAwLz said:

ESRB ratings are not a law. Their only purpose is to aid buyers in determining what a game contains. A developer can choose to not have their game rated by the ESRB if they don't want (although, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have it in their contracts that if you want to release things for their game consoles you need to get a rating first).

Your right, its not the law. The ESRB has really no authority to force ratings. Why do the developers choose to have them rated? Because the US Congress in 1993 told them to make a standardized rating system or the Federal Government was going to rate them. If a developer choose not to have their title rated I doubt retailers would carry the game. Because most retailers wont sell AO rated games. Plus there is the back lash from Consumers. 

 

The ESRB may not have much authority but they do have a lot of power to dictate what can be put in games. Thats the reason the Hot coffee mod issue happened with Rockstar. Because that content was in the game. But Rockstar feared that the ESRB would have given them an AO rating. Which would have been a death sentence for their game. Which is why they choose to turn off the code. Which was a piss poor move. The PC master race is a bunch of smart cookies. LOL. 

 

6 minutes ago, Ithanul said:

Well, if they IDing video games then they may as well ID for movies, music, books, etc.

In some cases this was already happening. When I worked at Sam's Club as a Cashier some movies and games would have age verification needed. I know for a fact Meijer asks for ID because when I went and bought Metal Gear Solid 3 when it came out many years ago, my mom had to give the OK as I wasnt of age. Honestly Im kinda OK with the practice because it makes parents have to be parents. Too many parents dont put the time or effort in to their parenting and end up rasing little bastard ass children who have no respect for any one. 

[Teemo4Life]

who cares...10 year olds play cod

[Axeonelite]

9 hours ago, Teemo4Life said:

who cares...10 year olds play cod

Thank you for the helpful contribution.

 

Also I don't approve of the Devil Worship that is your name. 

[Donut417]

15 hours ago, Teemo4Life said:

who cares...10 year olds play cod

And thats why I dont. Because I dont need these bastard kids ruing the experience. 

[darealsoulless]

Honestly, it doesn't matter. Kids are gonna be exposed to violence, drugs, alcohol, and the like in video games regardless. Heck, they may be exposed to some of these things in real life. I think it's pretty dumb that games are "rated" as most GameStop employees or any other video game outlet's workers are gonna sell a game to a 5 year old because they most likely hate their job and don't care enough to think "oh, this kid shouldn't be seeing a fictional character smoking an equally fictional joint", instead they think "I want this guy gone as smoothly as possible. Don't wanna deal with any kind of conflict, just want him gone and that money in the cash register"

[Donut417]

1 hour ago, GR1MES said:

Honestly, it doesn't matter. Kids are gonna be exposed to violence, drugs, alcohol, and the like in video games regardless. Heck, they may be exposed to some of these things in real life. I think it's pretty dumb that games are "rated" as most GameStop employees or any other video game outlet's workers are gonna sell a game to a 5 year old because they most likely hate their job and don't care enough to think "oh, this kid shouldn't be seeing a fictional character smoking an equally fictional joint", instead they think "I want this guy gone as smoothly as possible. Don't wanna deal with any kind of conflict, just want him gone and that money in the cash register"

Games are rated because the Government gave the industry to choice of Self regulation vs Government regulation. Going by what you said, they should show XXX porn on TV. Because yes TV, Movies and Games should be treated the same. Its a proven fact that Kids are heavily affected by advertisements. So wouldn't have mean they could be influenced by a fictional character smoking a joint? I dont feel its out of line to have some regulation on the sale of video games. Force the parents to be involved. Because yes, some kids are more mature than some adults, sadly. For those kids, the parents can get the game for them.