Sep
8
Rated M for Mature
Filed Under Uncategorized
The Entertainment Software Rating Board, abbreviated to ESRB, came around in 1994. The popular, but violent Mortal Kombat was a game being played in households around America. Many parents noticed the strong violence in the game and decided it was not suitable for their children. Other parents, decided to complain about it to various entertainment companies.
The Interactive Digital Software Association (now known as the Entertainment Software Association) decided to make a rating system. They put games into categories depending on what age group the game is suitable for, very similar to the movie rating system. They look at 4 different areas of a game: violence, language, drug use, and nudity. A video game does not have to include all 4 of these to get a high rating. For example, Halo games have no nudity, not drug use, and very little language. The reason all of the Halo games recieved a “M” rating is because of it’s high amount of violence.
Even though the ESRB has tried very hard t rate game appropriately, some still feel like they are being to leanient on unsuitable games. Many believe that the entire Grand Theft Auto series is too low of a rating and should be considered as an “AO” raiting (Adults Only). Also, some of the early Zelda games were rated as an “E”, but most parents think it should have been rated a “T” because of its high amount of viloence.
The rating system is not required, but is used by the majority of video game companies today. The video game companies also choose how the rating appears on their box.
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4 Responses to “Rated M for Mature”
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I think it’s a good idea to have ratings on video games, but from there, it should be a parent’s decision. If there’s mild violence in a particular game, a mother or father will have to decide if the game would be a bad choice or not for their child.
I think the rating system is efficient but also think that it could use some adjusting. I did not know what the Grand Theft Auto games were rated but I agree they should be an “AO” rating.
I think the whole rating system is a good idea. This will allow parents to see what there kids should and should not be seeing. Sometimes kids see stuff they really shouldn’t be seeing.
It really comes down to the parents. They need to be responsible(if they even care) for what their children play. kids can live just fine without video games but it seems most parents like to get them to play so they dont have to actually “parent.”