Read and Respond

[Oddball]

Study: Teen-rated games feature mature content


Medical journal article finds unlisted profanity, ***, and violence prevalent in T-rated games.

Besides containing articles on predictors of new-onset kidney disease and antibiotic use in relation to the risk of breast cancer, this month's Journal of the American Medical Association touched on a surprising subject--games.

In their article "Content and Ratings of Teen-Rated Video Games," researchers Kevin Haninger and Dr. Kimberly M. Thompson surveyed 396 commonly available video games rated "T" by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board. Of those, 94 percent carried warning labels for violence, 15 percent for ***ual themes and/or content, 14 percent for profanity, and 2 percent for tobacco, alcohol, and/or other intoxicating agents.

When Haninger and Thompson played a random sample of 81 games from the group, they found different results: 98 percent of games contained violence (42 percent featuring blood), 27 percent had ***ual themes, 27 percent had profanity, and 15 percent had "use of substances."

However, of those games observed, only 20 percent of games with ***ual themes, 17 percent of games with profanity, and 1 percent with substance use had front-cover descriptors of their potentially offensive content.

While she conceded the ESRB system "worked," Thompson told the Associated Press it "is not providing complete information to parents... In many games there's content we think parents would care about." As founder of Harvard University's Kids Risk Project, Thompson has made it her career to alert the public to dangers to children's health. (Haninger is a doctoral student at the Cambridge, Massachusetts, university.) The study's results and methodology can be seen on the Kids Risk Web site.

For its part, ESRB spokesman Matthew Kagan told Reuters that more independent research has yielded different results. He cited an October 2003 study conducted in which 400 American parents watched footage from 80 games. Of those parents surveyed, over 75 percent agreed with the game's ESRB rating.

[Forsaken]

WAT THE **** ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO?

what wrap the children up in bubble wrap and pull the wool over there eyes and pretend drugs and *** don't exist? well excuse me but they do, if the kids see wats happening to these characters it might change make them curious, but please u can only take so many precautions, to all u parents who are interested in your kids welfare, DO NOT pull the wool over their eyes and pretend it will go away, or that it's no there, EDUCATE THEM with life lessons, don't push your ideals, give them the information, and let them make their own opinions

[Nick Hyral]

Good God.. Protecting children's health my arse!!!! I love how they do this.. they think a game containing profanity is bad. Yet its okay for a father to get drunk and the wife greet him when he gets home at 2 am with "Where the Hell were you damn it?!" and the little boy is in his room listening to this.. or how about school where it is PROVEN that most profanity is heard. It comes from the house, it comes from the parents. They need to stop dancing around the true problem and stop pointing fingers! Its those god damn religious fanatics! Its those unfit parents! Its those bullies in school! Its your society!!! Its been proven that in one week testing that a bad neighborhood here in Ohio was given an arcade with free games and such after school hours. In that one week Crime dropped 42% in just ONE WEEK. Drug abuse dropped 22% gang related violence dropped drastically at 62% after the arcade was taken those numbers not only touched the original marks but jumped higher!!! games are what saves us from the mistakes our parents and piss poor role models set, not make them worse.

[Surreal]

I agree with you both, i mean geez, we can see more on TV in commercials then we'll ever see on these games unless its specifically a *** game, i think they are taking these way to far, and you know its just that. A GAME. I think peopl need to stop worrying about what their kids are getting from games and worry about what their kids are learnign from THEM.

[Gimpy]

****ing bull****. O well I hoep this ****ign doesn't affect Canada....

[Omega]

when I have children, I will let them do play thes games a little earlier than it says. I will explain the stuff, the words not to say, and that may keep them less perverted. I'm serious. I mean, I want Resident Evil 4 when it comes out (my friend has other RE games, ive played them) and I only think there will be blood. HOW THE F*** WILL IT BE RATED M JUST FOR BLOOD?!?

[Half-White]

Well..... everyone before me pretty much covered all the bases, so all I can say is that I agree with every one of you, and that I think these researchers need to do more research.

[Oddball]

I Agree with all of u, its the parent's responsiblity for kids ending up that way. Not games. It overprotective and irresposible parents saying such crap. And the reason why we have ratings is Joe Leberman. That guy complained in 1993 about Mortal Kombat. He said ohh it was too voilent and such games should be taken off the earth. Luckly that didnt happen so in September of 1994 the ratings took place. ESRB was born. I think Esrb is enough for rating games. I dont think rating should be any stricter, if not it should be more flexable. Look at SSBM, its rated teen for violence. Mario brothers has as much violence and its rated E. And Halo, it has violence and blood and its rated M. Blood comes out of a human, and beside in that game its alien blood. Who cares man. America is supose to be the land of the free and there are so many Fu**ing regulations.

[Shadowfax]

And especially since ESRB is rating them all wrong. I think I once saw a barney game rated E, but with comic mischief?

Anyways, the researchers DO need mroe research. They need to see if kids actually GET affected by the games. Just because it is violence, does not mean that we get affected.

[Half-White]

Of course, really little kids would probably be truamatized by Resident Evil, but then again, my little cousin was truamatized by Toy Story 2 and Finding Nemo:rolledeye

But this goes for everything that's dark and scary-looking. Movies, the news, and things on the streets could scare a little kid way more than a game. Besides, little kids aren't good at mature-rated games enough to see much of anything in those games. They wouldn't get far at all.

[cHilli]

Originally posted by X-Dark Assassin-X
when I have children, I will let them do play thes games a little earlier than it says. I will explain the stuff, the words not to say, and that may keep them less perverted. I'm serious. I mean, I want Resident Evil 4 when it comes out (my friend has other RE games, ive played them) and I only think there will be blood. HOW THE F*** WILL IT BE RATED M JUST FOR BLOOD?!?


Why does the blood come?
People hacking each other to bits.

a 9 year old playing games like RE, Silent Hill and the other horror games will be scared sh!tless, and then they associate the dark corridoor with zombies, and other things designed to scare you, so they will be scared of the dark, because they are not old enough to know better.

[Nick Hyral]

I know the solution to why games are the blame.. Here is the scoop from my point of view.. Our Society loves to point fingers and blame everything else but the cause.. Children Services are meant to protect kids from abuse.. Like the Columbine shooting the two shooters were in fact abused and neglected Children. Instead of the government blaming themselves with something like "Whoops we made a mistake.. can't save em all though.. we have billions of kids left, maybe next time" That makes our lives seem a gamble. Now what if they were to blame the parents for being the piss poor role models and provideres that they are? What does that lose? Publicity and votes on the next election. Think from your parents point of view. Would you rather be imperfect and wrong to some government official? Or would you rather be known as perfect since they aren't riding your arse? Of course you want to be perfect.. so you keep that politician in office.. If he bad mouths you there is always next election to remove him for the next big arse kisser to say "Its not the parents fault, this moron before me was wrong!" So they cover all their bases... Religious groups claimed Pokemon were evil.. When things started going wrong in Columbine what was the governments reasoning? Video games, TV, Music. Yet what thing did they not point out? The number 1 issue here in the U.S. Illegal search and seizure in school. The state claims that why you are in school the staff is like your parents. They are to watch over you. And that supposedly gives them the right to search you if they suspect you have something on you. Yet their dumb arses can't come out and prevent a boy being picked on. I had a teacher who told two guys not to fight in his classroom and they went out in the hallway and brawled it out. Once again, a mistake the state will not take blame for. Instead, "Music and video games did that!!!" The government and society have gone mediocre.. The society thinks that its perfect and that they are far better than their neighbors, or even other countries. While our crooked government plays people for votes so they can continue to recieve bribes, so they can continue to hold power and for us to make their lives easier when they are doing the one thing they will pay for... Those kids whom they seek to rob their games from will be able to vote someday.. and we will remember their name on that ballot for congressmen or president.. And they won't hold that office for long.. The sooner our country realizes its mediocrity, the sooner we can stop this "games are the root of all evil crap." and get on with our lives and better ourselves.

[DayleJ]

Amen to that Nick.

[Oddball]

Originally posted by Nick_Hyral
I know the solution to why games are the blame.. Here is the scoop from my point of view.. Our Society loves to point fingers and blame everything else but the cause.. Children Services are meant to protect kids from abuse.. Like the Columbine shooting the two shooters were in fact abused and neglected Children. Instead of the government blaming themselves with something like "Whoops we made a mistake.. can't save em all though.. we have billions of kids left, maybe next time" That makes our lives seem a gamble. Now what if they were to blame the parents for being the piss poor role models and provideres that they are? What does that lose? Publicity and votes on the next election. Think from your parents point of view. Would you rather be imperfect and wrong to some government official? Or would you rather be known as perfect since they aren't riding your arse? Of course you want to be perfect.. so you keep that politician in office.. If he bad mouths you there is always next election to remove him for the next big arse kisser to say "Its not the parents fault, this moron before me was wrong!" So they cover all their bases... Religious groups claimed Pokemon were evil.. When things started going wrong in Columbine what was the governments reasoning? Video games, TV, Music. Yet what thing did they not point out? The number 1 issue here in the U.S. Illegal search and seizure in school. The state claims that why you are in school the staff is like your parents. They are to watch over you. And that supposedly gives them the right to search you if they suspect you have something on you. Yet their dumb arses can't come out and prevent a boy being picked on. I had a teacher who told two guys not to fight in his classroom and they went out in the hallway and brawled it out. Once again, a mistake the state will not take blame for. Instead, "Music and video games did that!!!" The government and society have gone mediocre.. The society thinks that its perfect and that they are far better than their neighbors, or even other countries. While our crooked government plays people for votes so they can continue to recieve bribes, so they can continue to hold power and for us to make their lives easier when they are doing the one thing they will pay for... Those kids whom they seek to rob their games from will be able to vote someday.. and we will remember their name on that ballot for congressmen or president.. And they won't hold that office for long.. The sooner our country realizes its mediocrity, the sooner we can stop this "games are the root of all evil crap." and get on with our lives and better ourselves.

I talked to me History Teacher last Friday about that, he said the exact same thing. Socity is always look for someone to blame for societys downfalls.

[Half-White]

Wow... Nick is a genius:)

[Nick Hyral]

Indeed.. I'm so tired of our society not living with their imperfections.. Its like their lives are a circle... a perfect where if you don't agree with them, it changes that perfect circle into something else completely pissing em off in the process... Mankind can't continue through life unless they accept their own short comings and going on with life.. That is exactly why the U.S. is looked down upon by other countries.. we blame everyone and everything else for our mistakes instead of taking the responsibilities ourselves.

[Half-White]

You're gonna be a powerful person someday, Nick. Unless society still doesn't realize the truth when you reveal it to them..

[Nick Hyral]

They will.. you have to know where to hit them.. and how to hit them.. at the same time making sure you hit them hard enough to leave them lying on their backs.. I can't live in a disillusioned society where we have to fake perfection.. enough is enough.. I would rather be recognized as modest assholes instead of deluded assholes? Wouldn't you? Even if we are still frowned upon by other countries and people.. at least we accept who and what we are for it.. No need to pretend any longer in my opinion.

[Omega]

look at me. I am fine. I know every curse word, every thing of *** and so forth. my parents do not know about that stuff.

[SSXtricky]

Some teachers, parents, politicians, JUST-DON'T-CARE.
It's like what Nick said,people who cause all this stuff blame the good things in life to get away with it. And none of this would be going on if adults weren't so f***ing PARANOYED about blood and gore and stuff. What's a bit of blood and gore, anyway? It's not like we're half blood and guts ourselves, or aren't we? And the ***, well, like Forsaken said, if you hide the stuff from children, it won't go away. The sooner you wait, the worse it gets, right? So the people saying "oooh, that's not good, it has blood and/or gore" or "oooh, that's not good, mature/***ual themes" can shove it up their ass and get on with life.

[Half-White]

Yep, that's right. And the funny thing is that sometimes the films and games not meant for all ages are some of the best.

[Stryker82]

Originally posted by Nick_Hyral
Good God.. Protecting children's health my arse!!!! I love how they do this.. they think a game containing profanity is bad. Yet its okay for a father to get drunk and the wife greet him when he gets home at 2 am with "Where the Hell were you damn it?!" and the little boy is in his room listening to this.. or how about school where it is PROVEN that most profanity is heard. It comes from the house, it comes from the parents. They need to stop dancing around the true problem and stop pointing fingers! Its those god damn religious fanatics! Its those unfit parents! Its those bullies in school! Its your society!!! Its been proven that in one week testing that a bad neighborhood here in Ohio was given an arcade with free games and such after school hours. In that one week Crime dropped 42% in just ONE WEEK. Drug abuse dropped 22% gang related violence dropped drastically at 62% after the arcade was taken those numbers not only touched the original marks but jumped higher!!! games are what saves us from the mistakes our parents and piss poor role models set, not make them worse.

Could not have said it better:tup:

Jeez look at me.. I was watching South Park WITH my dad when i was in grade 3... I turned out fine :D

[Half-White]

Heh... a girl said once last year that she does the same thing with her dad nowadays.

And you know, my mom won't get cable because of channels like MTV. Who likes that channel anyway? I've seen horrible things on the internet that she couldn't imagine. Who does she think she is, not getting cable because of $h!tty channels? All I want to watch is Spike TV, music videos on MTV and VH1 (on the rare occasion there is something on those channels), and watch cartoons. :ganja: She thinks she's protecting me and my bro by not getting cable. Protect us my @$$...

[Stryker82]

The internet is far worse than any Video Game/TV Show/Whatever else theu blame their bullsh!t on...

Soon the internet will be illegal if this keeps up...

[Oddball]

Well Stryker its not much of ur problem becuase u dont live in everyone points fingers America. Its worse for those who do. BTW in Detroit, Michigan and St Louis, Missouri its illeagal for people to sell M-rated games to minors. Its sad really, and pretty soon the whole United States might be forced into that at this rate.

[[N]eto]

The internet can be good and bad, it depends on how you use it. Same with anything else.

[SSXtricky]

Originally posted by Half-White
Yep, that's right. And the funny thing is that sometimes the films and games not meant for all ages are some of the best.

Ya like Halo is M and it's one of the best games on the face of the earth!(Notice I said the FACE of the earth never mentioned the core)

[Half-White]

Definitely... and it's not very gory either. I think Halo should've been rated T instead of M, and either way, I don't think even preteens would have a problem with the blood.

[Omega]

its rated M because of curse words. I have to play w/ headphones when I play Legendary. You know how many times I have heard F**K when I do this? if i dont, my parents will take the game away from me.

[Half-White]

Oh yeah... I forgot about the cursing... but I never heard the f-word...

BTW, I find it sad that some people would call a great game, a great piece of work that the developers worked on for years, trash because of violence... they just don't appreciate hard work..

[Nick Hyral]

Once again.. its a scape goat... families try to sugar coat life for their children and when their children have experienced it in other ways than games its a perfect way for them to blow off the concept of their own failure. Lets face it.. games like that show life and death.. it even shows the atrocities of war like in Medal of Honor. Game makers worked hard on those types of games to show you how realistic life can be during war, even in a time of peace.

[Omega]

really sux @$$... *shakes head* very sad....

[SSXtricky]

Originally posted by Half-White
Oh yeah... I forgot about the cursing... but I never heard the f-word...

BTW, I find it sad that some people would call a great game, a great piece of work that the developers worked on for years, trash because of violence... they just don't appreciate hard work..

Who cares about the cursing? In a school I visited once for a project, kindergartens and Gr.1's were cursing, even with the F word... Ya, the people don't respect the people who make video games. They don't know how much time it takes to make a video game. I'd like to see THEM try to make a good video game without using violence, let alone see them make a game at all.

[Half-White]

It's possible to make a good game without violence. An example would be Animal Crossing....:crazy:

[Oddball]

I must have cursed in school like 90,000 times. Well anyway Animal Crossing is a great game, any blood no. I cant get Grand Theft Auto(Not allowed to) That doesnt mean its the end of the world. There are other good games out there ya know.

[chris999444]

Ive heard people say that video games mess with our minds. But i think some games actually expand our imagination.
Yeah... i dont know, ill just shut up now.

[Half-White]

In truth, the people who mess with our minds are the ones in power who manipulate the truth and tell us what to believe. Apparently, it is worst for us Americans...

[chris999444]

You cant manipulate the truth. You can only lie and hide things.

[[N]eto]

Your parents are right about many things. People who have parents that don't care about what they do usually end up suiciding themselves. So be happy that you have caring parents who even buy video games for you. They don't have to. Be appreciate of what you have now, as you may not always have it.

[chris999444]

I feel like that was said right at me.

[[N]eto]

Aimed at everyone who has been complaining. I'm being a hypocrite because I give my parents a hard time with certain things, but I know they are right. I'm glad that they care, I'm glad they are there for me, I'm glad for what they don't and do give me, and I love them.

[Oddball]

Well said.

[chris999444]

and true, but still people are gonna disagree about some things.
like some peoples opinions on games.

[[N]eto]

If people agreed to everything this world of ours would be awfully boring. But kids need to understand what games are for them and which ones aren't. If your parents wont buy the game for you, then buy it yourself [I usually have to do so].