Violent video games same risk as smoking cigarettes

[CptStern]

I'll still be able to get M games, there are still retailers that will sell to minors. Im only 16 but I look 19/20ish, so it will be no problem.

they risk a $1000 fine everytime

 

[gh0st]

thats a whole different issue... a hidden mod that rockstar didnt bother telling the ESRB about? no parent would have known, and frankly even if she is a senile 85 year old she has a right to be upset that the game isnt as advertised.

 

[CptStern]

thats a whole different issue... a hidden mod that rockstar didnt bother telling the ESRB about? no parent would have known, and frankly even if she is a senile 85 year old she has a right to be upset that the game isnt as advertised.

Mature: Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content, and/or strong language.


yet murdering bystanders/police is ok? sex taboo, execution style murders drive by shootings and vehicular manslaughter is ok? (fun though ..but I'm not a minor)

 

[madog]

Hehe kids will always get what they want whether they do it legally or illegally

 

[gh0st]

Mature: Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content, and/or strong language.

ADULTS ONLY
Titles rated AO (Adults Only) have content that should only be played by persons 18 years and older. Titles in this category may include prolonged scenes of intense violence and/or graphic sexual content and nudity

you and i both know that "sexual content" is not the same as "prolonged scenes of intense graphic sexual content and nudity". exactly the reason the ESRB RE-RATED it.

 

[Stigmata]

Funny how EB, and most other retailers up here in Ontario, have (to m knowledge) had this policy in effect for quite some time, yet all the kids still "somehow" obtain San Andreas.

Three cheers for fear-mongering and scapegoating?

[edit]

you and i both know that "sexual content" is not the same as "prolonged scenes of intense graphic sexual content and nudity". exactly the reason the ESRB RE-RATED it.

I highly doubt that everyone, in the year between the ages of 17 and 18, will magically develop the "ability" to discern between real-life and a videogame, and to tell right from wrong.

Umm... That's what I learned when I was four.

Besides, a taboo on sex, which is pretty much the one thing that everyone can enjoy equally, is a terribly unhealthy thing to have in any society.

 

[ktimekiller]

zomg i play black and white 2! im gonig to act like a animal god, and crush people with my mighty fist of dooomm!!!!! I R GODDDDD!!!!!!!!!

I don't see it happening....

 

[gh0st]

I highly doubt that everyone, in the year between the ages of 17 and 18, will magically develop the "ability" to discern between real-life and a videogame, and to tell right from wrong.

just like not everyone develops responsibility between 20 and 21. but there has to be some cut off point, if not, where would ANYTHING be limited?

 

[TheSomeone]

You guys remember when Mario came out and there was a surge in plumber's degrees?



Yeah...

 

[Stigmata]

just like not everyone develops responsibility between 20 and 21. but there has to be some cut off point, if not, where would ANYTHING be limited?

As inefficient as this would be, the cutoff point really should be determined on an individual basis.

 

[CptStern]

you and i both know that "sexual content" is not the same as "prolonged scenes of intense graphic sexual content and nudity". exactly the reason the ESRB RE-RATED it.

have you actually seen the mod? there's no penetration, there's no labia. The console version has even less "sexual content"

 

[TheSomeone]

As inefficient as this would be, the cutoff point really should be determined on an individual basis.

Hence parents.

 

[madog]

im more responsible than some adults i know so i wouldnt say all adolescents are irresponsible

 

[Teta_Bonita]

hulk smash.

I concurr whole-heartedly.

 

[giant384]

how will this all of the sudden involve parents in what their kids are playing



doesnt seem like she was even remotely aware of what the game was about

wow how stupid even if u didnt look at the rating wouldnt u figure it would be bad by the name "grand theft auto"

 

[JellyWorld]

They restrict the sale of video games and they complain about piracy? It's really funny how movies are far more strictly regulated here than in the US, yet games aren't regulated at all.

 

[JellyWorld]

I have still to hear an explanation on how violence or nudity will turn someone into a rampaging, gun-toting sex maniac, an effect from which one magically gains immunity when s/he turns 17.

 

[Jintor]

So... hmmmm.

So gaming, that has something along the lines of... i'm guessing less than 100 deaths per year world-wide (possibly falsely) attributed to it... is just as bad as something that quite definitely kills around 10 million per year?

Hmm... priorities, huh?

 

[Beerdude26]

They restrict the sale of video games and they complain about piracy? It's really funny how movies are far more strictly regulated here than in the US, yet games aren't regulated at all.

Exactly.
If my mum would say I wasn't allowed to play these games, I probably would go to bed very early and play all night. I'd get them illegally. I'd have a waterproof protection method and a backup system. It would take longer to play the game, leaving me exposed longer. But I'd still be playing the game, no matter what or who tries to stop me.

 

[Alig]

Well, i smoke, and i play games, so thats good to know

 

[CptStern]

while loading the next bf2 map I often go out for a cigarette break

 

[OCybrManO]

Does it count if my DoD:S guy is a smoker? I mean, he can only sprint for a couple dozen yards before he's breathing heavily. He's either a couch potato or a smoker.

 

[gh0st]

Does it count if my DoD:S guy is a smoker? I mean, he can only sprint for a couple dozen yards before he's breathing heavily. He's either a couch potato or a smoker.

maybe he's just lazy

 

[Stigmata]

Does it count if my DoD:S guy is a smoker? I mean, he can only sprint for a couple dozen yards before he's breathing heavily. He's either a couch potato or a smoker.

Maybe he has cystic fibrosis?

"OMG GAMES GIVE CHILDREN CYSTIC FIBROSIS!!! BAN EVERYTHING!"

Honestly, with the way things are going, that can't be too far off.

 

[icebox21]

Yeah, that's legal jargon for you... blame Angry Lawyer!

amen to that:cheers:

 

[Reaktor4]

"“Studies prove that playing these violent video games are bad for kids mental and physical health,” said Jim Steyer, “The health threat involved with kids playing such games is equivalent to smoking cigarettes.”

will this anti-game madness ever end.....

 

[Vigilante]

lol...california sucks

 

[Absinthe]

Awesome. So when I smoke and play games it's like I'm getting one badass nicotine overdose. I'm going to go on a Marlboro binge while playing WoW and my neighbors will see if I survived the morning after. Rockin'.

 

[WaterMelon34]

I hate the way my parents react to me playing games. I grew up on playing outside all day and then coming home when it's dark to play some Playstation or N64. I used to watch my brother play Resident Evil when I was 5, yes it gave me nightmares, and yes I always looked in that damn corridor to see if some corpse was walking towards me before I turned off the lights, but what it also gave me was an imagination. Because of games, I know a lot more about what World War 2 was like than I ever would if I just asked my grandpa. If I didn't play games, I'd be some naive kid who didn't know who Stalin was, and yeah I asked my some classmates if they knew who he was and they had no ****ing clue he was one of the guys that killed millions of people. Games did not make me any more violent than I was before, but they did give me confidence to stand up for myself. Because of Zelda and Half-Life and all those great games that came out I developed a love for art and now I draw, paint, and model all the time. And, if anything, games helped me with my eyesight, reflexes, and grammar skills.

Now, this is the way my parents see games: We are eating dinner and my mom decides to tell me what Arney did this week, and this sparked an arguement between us. My parents think all game companies have ties with the government and their only goal is to suck us into games which would deprive us of an education, which would make us forget about any issues because we wouldn't be educated enough to care about them anyways. Very plausible, if it weren't for the fact that I see how these game company workers actually have a passion for what they are doing, and that I also have a passion for creating games. Next, my parents tell me games make people violent. Not true, infact stats show that youth crime rates (14-17) have gone DRASTICALLY down since 1993, you can check this on fbi.gov, and I wouldn't hurt a fly :rolling:. My parents actually told me that games make me STUPID, yeah, they told a guy who was on the Honorals last year for academic achievement that he is STUPID. Then, when I try to defend myself with actual proof they tell me they aren't listening to me, a la "Talk to the hand cuz the face don't wanna hear it!". Makes me sick.

BTW Who the hell am I ranting to?

 

[Qwert93]

So... will you die if you play too much violent games, or get lung cancer or something? 'Cause I'm 12 and playing Diablo 2.

 

[Kyorisu]

you dont buy rated m games until your 17
DAMN those californians for enforcing a law :\.

I've been playing violent games since doom and quake. It hasn't effected me in any obvious way, except I'm far less screamish than I used to be.

Many of these alledged "Killings" revolve around the childs upbringing ie bullying. Bullying is a far bigger concern to me, as I am still picked on by morons bigger than I am.

 

[JellyWorld]

According to Steven Lewitt the drop in crime over the past few years was due to the legalization of abortion, since most abortions are conducted on single, poor teenage mothers (who are most likely to have kids who grow up to be criminals), therefore there is a smaller pool of potential criminals since the rest were all aborted.

 

[sinkoman]

you dont sell alcohol to 20 year olds
you dont get a drivers license until youre experienced or 18
you dont get cigarettes until youre 18
you dont buy rated r movies until youre 17
you dont buy rated m games until your 17

DAMN those californians for enforcing a law :\.

I'm still amazed that they still haven't done anything like this for R rated movies. Movies like "Taking Lives" have real sex scense in them, but pixilated block sex in a video game (sex that was taken out might I add) is the equivelant to smoking cigs?

This seems ****ing bandwagonish to me.

 

[clarky003]

its simply become a witchhunt over a few incident's that make up a small percentage of the actual crime rate, what a waste of resources and time to try to enforce silly laws like this.

 

[Sulkdodds]

I am not Frederic Wertham

Oh dear. D:

 

[Raziaar]

will this anti-game madness ever end.....

Well, its easy to see how playing games affects some individuals mental help.... :upstare: :upstare: :upstare:


But the rest of us are fine :E


I jest, I jest.

 

[Sulkdodds]

STFU RAZIAAR OR I WILL BE FORCED TO KILL YOU, PISS ON YOUR BODY AND THEN STEAL A COP CAR AND ESCAPE OVER THE HILLS IN A PLANE WITH NO WINGS!

 

[Raziaar]

STFU RAZIAAR OR I WILL BE FORCED TO KILL YOU, PISS ON YOUR BODY AND THEN STEAL A COP CAR AND ESCAPE OVER THE HILLS IN A PLANE WITH NO WINGS!

Ohh, I wasn't insinuating you, I was insinuating Rektor. hehe :cheers:

 

[who]

BEWARE!

PLAYING COMPUTER GAMES WILL CAUSE CANCERS!
BAD THROAT, IMMENSE AMMOUNTS OF COUGHING, AND A NICOTENE ADDICTION.

ive never heard so much bull in all my life, u know the guy wrote that report because as a child everyone beat him at games.

 

[Ol'Master]

It's just a precaution to allow parents to see what their kids are playing so they can make educated descisions as to whether or not they get to play it. Parents should have the freedom to bring up their kids how they please, at least to a certain extent. The comparison to cigarettes was incredibly stupid, but there have been some cases of direct links of video games to violence, and if a few less people get killed/hurt then I'm all for the law. Besides, it's no fair how Britain gets it and they don't, dammit.