Level 51

Flickr Mosiaic

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:44:48 GMT

Just a fun little meme.

You type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr search.

Then, using only the first page, pick an image.

Then, copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into this mosaic maker.

1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. Favorite drink?
7. Dream vacation?
8. Favorite dessert?
9. What you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. One Word to describe you.
12. Your flickr name.

More gaming industry fun!

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 14:38:20 GMT

First, I have to say that I love the Onion.

Wii Video Games Blamed For Rise In Effeminate Violence

WASHINGTON—Concerned parents are again blasting the Nintendo Wii for an incident of effeminate violence following a 13-year-old boy's limp-wristed attack on three of his classmates at a Cleveland-area middle school Tuesday.

The incident—the sixth of its kind in as many months—has left parents searching for answers and struggling to comprehend the dainty assault, which left the necks of two sweaters severely stretched out and countless fingers stubbed.

In other news, Britain's government finally wises up. Their ratings board, the BBFC, had previously refused to rate Manhunt 2, a notably violent game, due to the incorrect linkage between the original title and a murder several years ago. By not rating the game, it was effectively banned from the UK.

Yes, this kept the game out of the hands of children. However, it also kept the game out of the hands of everyone else. Not a fair compromise for the large number of mature, adult gamers

In comes the UK government's Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

"The classification of Manhunt 2 is a matter for the BBFC and the Video Appeals Committee," said a spokesperson, after today's news that the VAC had reaffirmed its decision to back Rockstar in an appeal over the BBFC's refusal to certify the game.

"It is important to note that there is no conclusive evidence of any link between playing computer games and violent behaviour in real life," the spokesperson continued. "Our concern is to make sure that inappropriate material is kept away from children."

We don't want kids to have these games either, but allowing NOBODY to have them is excessive.

In similar news, Minnesota's "games as porn" bill was defeated again, in appeal.

The 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals today upheld a ruling from 2006 stopping a Minnesota bill which attemped to fine minors $25 for trying to buy M- or AO-rated games. The Star Tribune reports a three-judge panel concluded that violent video games fall under First Amendment free speech protections and therefore the law can only hold if it is proven as "necessary to serve a compelling state interest and ... is narrowly tailored to achieve that end." The state introduced evidence, but could not prove a causal relationship between violent video games and aggressive behavior in children. Massachusetts politicians should probably take note, as they drive eyes wide open into a similar legal wall.

In a statement sent to Joystiq, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) stated it is both "pleased and encouraged" by today's ruling. The organization believes a combination of parental choice and oversight is the "only legal, sensible, and most importantly, effective way to empower parents." Expect a bill for the court fees soon enough, Minnesota.

The problem with these bills is that they're putting games in the same classification as pornography, not R rated movies and Parental Advisory music where they currently sit and belong. Its a good thing that high profile politicians like Elliot Spitzer support legislation like this.

The gaming industry currently uses a rating system that is similar to the voluntary peer rating system used by the MPAA and the RIAA. Yes, these are all voluntary, peer rating systems. They can not be legally enforced, as they have no government oversight. The ESRB's rating system is, in my opinion, better than any of the others. It has a 7 level rating system that clearly states who the game should be marketed to, and what age ranges. (E for everyone, as well as a E 10+ for games that are more mature than a 2 year old should see, but not so mature that a 10 year old can't). It displays these ratings clearly on the game box, and all ads for the game, as well as a list of every determining factor that caused the rating to be what it is. Some examples:

# Alcohol Reference - Reference to and/or images of alcoholic beverages
# Animated Blood - Discolored and/or unrealistic depictions of blood
# Blood - Depictions of blood
# Blood and Gore - Depictions of blood or the mutilation of body parts
# Cartoon Violence - Violent actions involving cartoon-like situations and characters. May include violence where a character is unharmed after the action has been inflicted
# Comic Mischief - Depictions or dialogue involving slapstick or suggestive humor
# Crude Humor - Depictions or dialogue involving vulgar antics, including “bathroom” humor

The ECA's Hal Halpin agrees (from Gamepolitics):

Many of the industry’s greatest critics can (usually) agree on one thing: The [ESRB] is the best rating system for entertainment products…

Hal writes that the ESRB system blows away that of the RIAA, which simply slaps “Parental Advisory” stickers on music, with no explanation. And while he finds the MPAA’s system for movies to be better, its content descriptors can’t compare to those of the ESRB.

So, why is this a perfectly accepted method of preventing minors access to movies and music, but not games? Why do games have to be classified as obscene, next to pornography, in order to protect children from them?

Jack: Show cause or STFU

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:24:21 GMT

I love it.

I've always wondered how a lawyer could get away with brazenly attacking the supreme court, and the bar association in the state he's licensed. Jack Thompson, mentioned numerous times above, does just that. A lot.

Quote:

02/19/2008 ORDER-SHOW CAUSE TO: JOHN BRUCE THOMPSON It appears to the Court that you have abused the legal system by submitting numerous frivolous and inappropriate filings in this Court.

Therefore, it is ordered that you shall show cause on or before March 5, 2008, why this Court should not find that you have abused the legal system process and impose upon you a sanction for abusing the legal system, including, but not limited to directing the Clerk of this Court to reject for filing any future pleadings, petitions, motions, letters, documents, or other filings submitted to this Court by you unless signed by a member of The Florida Bar other than yourself.

His response?

To the news media:

Quote:

This is the single greatest gift that any court has ever given me in my 31 years of practicing law. I shall now, through a new federal lawsuit, deconstruct The Florida Bar…

Thank you, Supremes! You have given me the weapons I need.

Thats right, DECONSTRUCT the Florida Bar. Good luck with that.

To the Supreme Court Themselves:

Quote:

This court’s panicked threat against Thompson… has wonderfully proven not just that Thompson has no “adequate state remedy” but that he has no state remedy at all. This court threatens Thompson if he even files this pleading.

This is a brazen attempt by this court to repeal the absolute right of every citizen, under the First Amendment, to “petition the government for a redress” of grievances…

The [Florida] Bar threatens a whistleblower with retribution because he dares to keep blowing the whistle? This court has threatened Thompson. He does not threaten back. He hereby informs this court that he will see it in federal court. This court has just thrown Brer Rabbit into the briar patch.

Norm Kent, who consistently finds his clients on the defensive from Thompson has this to say:

Quote:

This is game, set, match for Mr. Thompson. The Supreme Court gave him a warning last April. Now he is going to be barred from even arguing or pleading his own case. And once the Supreme Court does this, other jurisdictions will follow suit. Looks like his only venue will be Fox News and gaming site blogs…

In related news, the 2008 Game Developer's Conference in SF is going on right now. One of the more interesting panels was from Lawrence G. Walters of law firm Weston, Garrou, Walters and Mooney, cautioning about
"Junk Science" and how it affects the industry.

Quote:

The concept of protecting children from inappropriate material always gets some traction. Look at the list of legislation at the federal level — the number of bills that have the word ‘children’ or ‘protect’ in them is staggering…

In the court cases, the government keeps looking for evidence… to show that video games harm kids, but they have not been successful so far.

The morality and media types are forced to take a step back recently, and figure out what they’re going to do and regroup a bit and maybe come up with another line of attack…

This is what you’re up against. You have people who will accept anything that the junk scientists try to present as fact, and try to create legislation upon it…

The video game industry needs to clearly and overwhelmingly debunk these theories with its own extensive research… To the extent that the industry can develop a research bank… it should do so before it needs it and not at the 11th hour.

Jack is back, and bashing on the games... AGAIN.

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 18:44:54 GMT

Oh Jack. How predictable.

Jack Thompson on Fox news talking about how the NIU shooter "trained on murder simulators". Note, in the video, that this is before the press conference that gives any detail about what happened during the shooting, or the shooter.

Gamepolitics gave the initial report:

Quote:

Although we didn’t catch the segment, Thompson e-mailed his comments to GamePolitics, attaching a screen shot from the Fox interview:

Quote:

I was on the Fox News Channel this morning because of the possible violent video game connection to this latest massacre at Northern Illinois University.

In the e-mail, the embattled attorney related his violent video game crusade to his ongoing struggle with the Florida Bar:

Quote:

I am certain that the past and future survivors of these incidents will not fully understand why The Florida Bar is seeking to destroy a latter-day Paul Revere… for his telling the truth about companies and lawyers that are spawning, for money, these types of events.

GP: The facts are not yet in on the NIU rampage, of course, but that has never stopped Thompson from rushing to blame video games in the past. GamePolitics readers will certainly recall Thompson blaming the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre on games even while police were still securing the campus.

Among the few details known so far is that the shooter, Stephen Kazmierczak, had a stellar academic record. Press reports describe him as a 27-year-old graduate student, so he was well past the age where any type of video game content restriction would come into play.

Yes. Thats correct. He called himself a "latter-day Paul Revere". All this before any details had come out. Then the details started coming. This guy was unstable, and he had stopped taking his medication. Now, the logical connection is that when someone is taking medication for a psychological disorder, and then stops said medication, that might be explanation for erratic behavior. Nope. We continue to blame the video games.

GP reports on the NY post's article:

Quote:

College Killer Crazy for Violent Vid Game

The article, written by a pair of Post reporters, claims that NIU rampage killer, 27-year-old Stephen Kazmierczak, was “obsessed” with Counter-Strike, which the paper describes as “an ultra-violent video game.”

The Post quoted a former dorm mate of Kazmierczak’s, Ben Woloszyn:

Quote:

He played a lot of video games, especially Counter-Strike, really loud.

The Post article appears to draw a linkage between the player’s actions in the game and Kazmierczak’s shooting spree:

Quote:

In the game, players use imaginary money to buy shotguns, pistols and other equipment they need to move around an imaginary world in which they’re constantly under threat of being killed by roving terrorists.

In real life, Kazmierczak - who had become “erratic” recently after shunning medication for an undisclosed illness - purchased weapons like those used in Counter-Strike, including a Glock handgun and a pump-action Remington shotgun…

Down near the bottom of the article, the Post also mentions the killer’s very short-lived stints in the Army and as a corrections officer. These episodes appear to suggest an unstable nature.

GP: While the Post article seems to confirm other reports indicating that Kazmierczak had significant mental health issues, exactly why the paper chose to focus on his past video game play is not clear. Personally, I’m far more concerned about a disturbed person with a gun than I am about a disturbed person with a video game.

We should note that the New York Post is owned by Rupert Murdoch, who also owns Fox News, which, as GamePolitics readers well know, frequently uses sensationalized reporting to smear video games.

Is there a connection?

Hey, as they say on Fox, we report. You decide.

I’d be remiss not to point out that game violence critic Jack Thompson alerted me to the Post report via several e-mails, one of which arrived under the subject line:

Screw Dennis McCauley and Hal Halpin and the ECA Donkey They Rode In On…

I kid you not.

Sure, going off your meds is waaaay less interesting than playing video games. During all this, Gaming Steve had a timely article Entitled "What Constitutes A True "Murder Simulator"?"

GP Summarizes:

Quote:

Author Robert Gauss begins by describing his expertise:

I’ve been working with simulator programs for the US Army for about six years now, which I believe makes me an expert on exactly what a simulator is, what a simulation does, and what the goals of these simulators [are]…

Gauss specifically addresses the Grand Theft Auto series, but his points apply to aspects of other controversial games as well:

“Simulators” are devices used to mimic the actions and functions of a real thing, a real situation, or both… and usually involves some sort of realistic motion…

How well does GTA simulate murder? Just even a cursory look can see how GTA fails this test: Everything is presented via a 3rd person view… weapons auto-load and auto-aim… computer people mostly walk and drive around aimlessly and helplessly… computer people don’t… act in a realistic manner when attacked… bodies disappear and respawn — hardly like murder if they keep coming back to life

Our “gang games” mentioned above do not even represent murder, but rather a cartoony environment… It’s not just unfair to call Grand Theft Auto a “murder simulator,” it is laughably incorrect…

GP follows up with another article entitled "NIU Shooting: Why Are Games Even Under Discussion?"

Quote:

With his Friday appearance on Fox News, Miami attorney Jack Thompson has managed to once again introduce the video game violence issue into the aftermath of a tragedy.

In the past, some observers have referred to Thompson’s media tactics as massacre chasing. Frankly, it’s hard to disagree. Beyond that, one has to ask - given that NIU shooter, Stephen Kazmierczak, was 27-years-old - why are video games an issue at all?

Even if you buy into the notion that violent video games lead to real-world violence (and there is zero scientific proof to support that), the NIU shooter was far closer to 30 than 15. Short of an outright societal banning, how would Counter-strike - or any of the far bloodier games on the market - been kept away from Kazmierczak?

The bottom line at NIU, as at Virginia Tech, is that the shooter was a heavily-armed, deranged, homicidal adult. No video game rating system, no amount of retail enforcement of same, could have kept him from playing Counter-strike. No video game law - even if it were somehow constitutional - would have blocked him from buying Counter-strike or any other M-rated game. That’s because such legislation typically seeks to prevent under-18’s from purchasing violent games.

Moreover, Thompson has said in the past that the goal of his anti-game violence crusade is to keep mature game content out of the hands of kids. Stephen Kazmierczak was no kid. So, what’s Thompson’s point?

TV face time, perhaps?

UPDATE: Thompson e-mailed this to me in response:

Quote:

Do you think the NIU shooter started playing these murder simulation games last week? You do know how long ago Doom came out, right? His friends say he was into this crap for years.

A follow-up question elicited this from Thompson:

Quote:

He started on them years ago. They retarded him. Are you retarded too? apparently

Oh. It gets better.

From the Chicago Daily Herald

Quote:

SPRINGFIELD -- A DeKalb-area state lawmaker is urging colleagues not to rush "knee-jerk" gun control legislation in response to the horrific shootings at NIU, saying the incident is symptomatic of far greater societal problems.

"That (gun control) doesn't seem to impact the kind of gun violence that goes on," said state Rep. Robert Pritchard, a Hinkley Republican whose district includes the Northern Illinois University campus.

"I think we need to broaden the discussion to include what other factors are weighing on these kind of deranged individuals," Pritchard said. "I think video games is a part of the problem, television, movies. Just a whole culture of violence."

Guns aren't the problem you morons! Its the fault of video games!

But wait, you say. Can there be even MORE?

Yep.

Jack Thompson, Seeking Killer’s Video Game History, Threatens NIU with Lawsuit Yes, thats right. Thompson is threatening NIU with a lawsuit if they don't fork over details about the killer to him.

Quote:

The Northern Illinois University campus is still reeling from Thursday’s rampage shooting by an apparently deranged 27-year-old man.

But that hasn’t stopped anti-game violence activist Jack Thompson from threatening NIU with a lawsuit. Over video games.

Thompson e-mailed GamePolitics a copy of a letter that he faxed this morning to the university’s public safety department in Dekalb:

Quote:

Pursuant to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request production of copies of all documents that reveal Steven Kazmierczak’s play of violent video games, including but not limited to the use of his computer to play Counter-Strike, which he apparently, according to the New York Post, used to rehearse for his Valentine’s Day Massacre at NIU.

The killers in the two worst school massacres in history—in Erfurt, Germanay, and at Virginia Tech University—similarly trained on Counter-Strike to rehearse for their killing sprees.

If I am not provided with this information, I shall bring a civil action to secure these documents.

GP: Frankly, I had difficulty believing that anyone would waste the time of busy investigators and intrude into the NIU community’s period of mourning over something as trivial as the video game habits of a grown man. For that reason, I asked Thompson to verify that he had actually sent the fax to the university. His response:

Quote:

Of course I sent it to them, you idiot.

The NIU investigators have already responded, professionally, and told me they will get me this information in due time. This is how you do this, which you wouldn’t know.

I can’t vouch for Thompson’s version of the NIU staff’s response.

Is Thompson the only nutjob riding the crazy train to anti-video game nirvana? Nope. Equally nutty nutjob Lyndon Larouche thinks so too. In an article (really, I can't make up stuff this good) "International Fascism: Microsoft Will Kill More Youth than Hitler"

Quote:

February 17, 2008 (LPAC)--For anyone who had doubts on the strategic analysis put forward by Lyndon LaRouche and his associates in the mass distribution pamphlet, "Is the Devil In Your Laptop?", reread it and think again. According to yesterday's New York Post, another young killer, Stephen Kazmierczak, who killed five people and wounded 16 others at Northern Illinois University, was allegedly addicted to Microsoft's Counterstrike killer video-game. "He played a lot of video games, especially Counter-Strike, really loud," said one of his dorm mates.

The Post stated, "Kazmierczak - who had become "erratic" recently after shunning medication for an undisclosed illness - purchased weapons like those used in Counter-Strike, including a Glock handgun and a pump-action Remington shotgun, which he bought legally on Feb. 9. [See Virginia Tech Article] "At around 3 p.m. Thursday [Feb. 14], Kazmierczak shot up a class containing between 70 and 100 students before killing himself. "He had a blank look on his face. He was there to kill," said a witness. 'Anyone that could walk into a room and just start shooting has no emotions.'"

The intended effect, to foster an environment of mass suicide terrorism in the U.S.A., is a by-product of the 'Revolution in Military Affairs' policy [See Expose], organized by Felix Rohatyn and George P. Shultz; the same individuals, who not only helped to install the fascist Pinochet into the Chilean government, but are the prime backers of a fascist Bloomberg Presidency.

Note: Microsoft doesn't have anything to do with Counterstrike. At all. I don't know where they made the connection, outside of the fact that you CAN play it on Xbox or Windows. Then again, you can play it on Linux too, so does that make Linus Torvalds Stalin to Bill Gates' Hitler?

You really can't beat that.... can you? Please lord, say it isn't so...

MSNBC Rips Thompson Over NIU Claims, But He’s Busy Arguing with Fake Actor

Quote:

Writing for MSNBC, contributor Winda Benedetti casts a critical eye toward Miami attorney Jack Thompson’s claims that the NIU rampage was sparked by a grown man’s video game play. From Benedetti’s piece:

Quote:

The attorney-turned-anti-video-game crusader has what can only be described as a breathtaking genius for transforming ghastly national tragedies into shining moments of self promotion.

On Friday, police were still struggling to figure out why… But Thompson had it all figured out. Faster than you can say wild speculation and reckless sensationalism, he leapt in front of Fox News cameras and suggested that video games were to blame.

Meanwhile, Thompson obsequiously responded to a parody article, posted in style of Samuel L. Jackson, apparently believing it to be the real thing:

Quote:

Mr. Jackson, I enjoyed your post about NIU and about me. Unfortunately, you could fit what you know about school shootings and their causes in a sleeve of Titleist golf balls. I’m a six handicap, and would love to play you a match anywhere anytime.

More importantly, Mr. Jackson, I saw you and the Jack Thompson spoof at the Spike TV Video Game Awards Show. Very funny, really.

Here’s a proposal: Why don’t you debate me on this issue… Saw you in Black Snake Moan this weekend. I thought you deserved an Oscar for your performance. Brilliant.

Thompson later posted a follow-up indicating that he understood the Samuel L. Jackson post was a fake, but not before he circulated his original response to GamePolitics and Kotaku.

UPDATE: Thompson claims that he has been libeled by the MSNBC article and plans to sue.

Benedetti’s piece is actually really good. She points out the thing that I've been amazed nobody is harping on like mad:

Quote:

While the video game connection remains tenuous at best, what seems far more pertinent are initial reports that Kazmierczak previously had been placed in a psychiatric treatment center and had recently stopped taking antidepressant medication.

This is not the first time Thompson has put his mug in front of every camera possible immediately after a mentally disturbed gunman has opened fire on innocent people. When last we spoke with the controversial Florida attorney, he was blaming video games for the massacre of 32 students and faculty at Virginia Tech last April.

Not-so-funnily enough, while Thompson's misinfomation-laced pronouncements claim that the shooter — Seung-Hui Cho — had a passion for violent video games, a governor-ordered review of that horrific incident found no connection whatsoever with games. Instead, what the review panel found was a young man with a long history of psychiatric illness and a student who fell through the cracks of a deeply flawed mental health system. In fact, according to the the extensive 260-page report, it's unclear if Cho — who was passionate about books (gasp!) and not video games — ever played anything more aggressive than the kid-friendly "Sonic the Hedgehog."

Oh the drama.

Stop blaming video games for bad parenting

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:50:35 GMT

I've cross posted this here and here, but I feel like its more of a blog post. So its going here as well.

Please, just stop. For the love of God, Yahweh, the FSM or whatever diety you choose to believe kills kittens when someone does something wrong. Today I came across a video, which I'll talk about later in this post, which really rubbed me the wrong way. It was so blatantly misinformed that it really made me angry. So, hopefully I can incite change in at least a few people.

If nothing else, I'll ask one thing. Stop swallowing the propaganda thats being fed to you. Video games are not training your kid to become a mass murderer, sociopath or felon. Its gotten to the point where people are regurgitating this nonsense with no factual basis, simply because they've heard so many other people say it. Its untrue, and frankly, idiotic.

I'm a senior designer for EA's online games division, the largest game developer in the world. I work on Massively Multiplayer Online games (MMOs). They're called Massive for a reason. It is estimated that over 200 million people play these games worldwide. Like anything with such a wide distribution of population, there are extremes. Not everyone who drinks is an Alcoholic, not everyone who gambles is an addict, and not everyone who plays MMOs does so to these extremes. Demonizing the genre due to a few examples is as wrong as demonizing all people who gamble or drink.

Many people like to say that there is evidence proving video games are harmful. Sadly those reports do exist. However, they're from disreputable, biased and anti-gaming activists. The people pushing this agenda have done no scientific study or research to give any reputable proof to these claims. In fact, most of the major players in the modern anti-video game activism are the same exact people who attacked the TV, Movie and Music industries for their content. Jack Thompson, the most vocal of the activists and a Florida Lawyer, is currently in the midst of disbarment hearings by the Florida Bar. He even had the balls to try to sue the Florida Bar for investigating his frivolous lawsuits against the gaming industry, most of which he was soundly defeated. He's the same lawyer who gave attorney general Janet Reno a letter at a campaign event requesting that she check a box to indicate whether she was homosexual, bisexual, or heterosexual, and then attacked her publicly for her alleged homosexuality. He is also the same lawyer who attacked 2 Live Crew for obscenity. The list goes on.

Regardless of the completely baseless claims from these raving lunatics, Senators Joe Lieberman, Sam Brownback, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Rick Santorum pushed the Children Media Research and Advancement (CAMRA) Act through committee last year, which they first introduced in May 2004.

CAMRA will enable the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which will work in coordination with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to research "the effects of viewing and using electronic media, including television, computers, video games and the Internet on children's cognitive, social, physical, and psychological development."

Sadly, those who are in favor of the bill are the most heavily anti-gaming lobbyists and senators, who are more concerned with their personal beliefs than scientific evidence. Prior to this, funding has been blocked from many organizations friendly to the gaming industry that wanted to publish studies showing that the effects are not nearly as harmful as they've been claimed to be, so our industry has little faith that the study will be as neutral as we can hope.

However, there have been several studies in Korea and Japan, where gaming is a much more prominent activity than the US. In Korea a large majority of the population, yes MAJORITY, play online games. Games such as Starcraft are even televised several channels. Their Gaming champions are treated roughly akin to professional sports players in the states, and payed about as well. Scientists there have been dealing with a much heavier dose of gaming, and thus have done extensive studies on the subject. They've found that effects can come about from long term game exposure in certain conditions. Children under the age of 12 who have had extensive exposure to violent video games have shown diminished beta brainwave patterns and a suppressed limbic system, which is the area of the brain that regulates impulse control. However, because of the rapid decrease in omega 3 fatty acids in the diets of parents and children over the last 40 years which can also do this, the exact cause is hard to pin down to a singular cause. Short term exposure in scientific study was shown to have short term effects, but no lasting effects in anyone above the age of 12. Yet, all subjects studied developed significantly improved reflexes, motor skills, problem solving skills, and reaction times. Studies of patients with traumatic brain injury also showed significant brain development that rivaled that of ROT exercises. Exposure to video games in elderly drivers has also been shown to improve motor function, peripheral vision, and reaction time, thus making them better and safer drivers.

Yet, things like this still happen. In the clip, Fox News attacks Pandemic/Bioware's new mega hit Mass Effect for containing "full digital nudity and sex'. The problem... it doesn't. Not even close. Geoff Keighley, who works for G4 TV and finds himself defending the completely insane accusations of people lobbying against the gaming industry tries to interject this. The people attacking the game flat out admit they've never even played it, and the "newscaster" admits her only knowledge of the game is from a cursory glance at the website right before the interview.

There is so much misinformation in this clip, its hard to know where to start. What happened to research in journalism?

As Geoff points out, there is no full digital nudity or sex. There's one 30 second scene in 30 hours of gameplay that shows a side shot of an alien breast. You get more nudity an average R rated movie, and at least those breasts aren't blue and scaly (yes, the breast you see in the game is blue and scaly). The fact that one of the "panel" calls this "Luke Skywalker meets Debbie Does Dallas" is astounding, and demonstrates that they have absolutely no idea what they're talking about.

The scene has to be actively sought out in the "choose your adventure" style game, by falling in love. If you decide to hack and slash your way through the game instead of playing the good guy, you'll never see it. The Misogynistic angle they try to take by saying that the game is taken completely from the perspective of a man, as Geoff points out, is also false. You can play the main character as a woman OR a man. Your choice.

Then, there's the "expert". She doesn't get two sentences in to her uninformed blathering before she spouts this gem. "If you look at the statistics, who's playing video games but adolescent males."

OK. I'll bite. Lets look at the statistics.

These are taken from the ESA, the Entertainment Software Association. This is somewhat of an overseeing body in the gaming industry, much like the MPAA or the RIAA. I would love to quote the entire article, though everyone should read it, but its too long. I'll just pull out the relevant parts.

ESA wrote:

For Computer Gamers...

* Thirty percent of most frequent game players are under eighteen years old.
* Twenty-six percent of most frequent game players are between 18 and 35 years old.
* Forty-four percent of most frequent game players are over 35 years old.

For Console Gamers...

* Forty percent of most frequent game players are under eighteen years old.
* Thirty-five percent of most frequent game players are between 18 and 35 years old.
* Twenty-five percent of most frequent game players are over 35 years old.

What about Women Gamers?

* Thirty-eight percent of game players are women.
* Women age 18 or older represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (30%) than boys age 17 or younger (23%)

These numbers are probably not what you expected. In fact, they show completely contrary information to what most people believe, that adolescent males are the majority of gamers. In fact, the majority of gamers are in the 18-49 year old range with a staggering 24.2% of gamers being 50 years or older.

Sorry Miss Expert, looks like YOU should look at the statistics.

What really kills me about these people, is the way they speak about children. They speak of them like wild animals, who do whatever they want without any control from the parents. I just simply don't understand this. Video games carry an ESRB rating, similar to the MPAA rating on movies. Here's a quick guide to the rating system, though its pretty self explanatory:

Quote:

How do you tell what a game is rated?
Nearly every video game published in the United States will have the ESRB rating located somewhere on the outside of the packaging. This is normally on the back in the lower left corner of the box. The rating will be one of the categories described below.

There are 7 categories in the video game rating system:

1. EARLY CHILDHOOD:
Titles rated EC - Early Childhood have content that may be suitable for ages 3 and older.
Contains no material that parents would find inappropriate.

2. EVERYONE:
Titles rated E (Everyone) have content that may be suitable for ages 6 and older. Titles in this category may contain minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and/or infrequent use of mild language.

Note: Roughly 54 percent of games fall into this category.

3. EVERYONE 10+:
Titles rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) have content that may be suitable for ages 10 and older. Titles in this category may contain more cartoon, fantasy or mild violence, mild language, and/or minimal suggestive themes.

4. TEEN:
Titles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older. Titles in this category may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood and/or infrequent use of strong language.

Note: Roughly 30.5 percent of games fall into this category.

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

Note: Roughly 11.9 percent of games fall into this category.

6. ADULTS ONLY:
Titles rated AO (Adults Only) have content suitable only for adults. Titles in this category may include graphic depictions of sex and/or violence. Adults Only products are not intended for persons under the age of 18.

7. RATING PENDING:
Titles listed as RP (Rating Pending) - have been submitted to the ESRB and are awaiting final rating. (This symbol appears only in advertising prior to a game's release.)

The easiest way to prevent children from seeing what you do not want them to see in video games is to look at the ESRB rating. It will tell you what, if anything, a game contains, and the appropriate age range as described above. If it has something that you don't want your kids to see, don't allow it in your house. In addition, game companies and console game system makers have gone to great lengths to add parental controls that can help you monitor and regulate game usage. Bypassing all the safeguards in place to prevent adult games from reaching children's hands is like bypassing safeguards in place to prevent children from seeing porn. I'll never understand a parent who willingly buys a game that is clearly labeled AO (ADULTS ONLY) for their adolescent child, then complains about the content. Its akin to buying your child porn and then complaining to the publisher for their content.

Another thing to note, is the grossly misrepresented number of violent and mature games. As the ESRB article above states, roughly 11.9 percent of games fall into this category. The media likes to bill the industry as a production house for violent and abhorrent content. However, they fail to mention that over half the games produced carry no objectionable material whatsoever, and another 30% on top of that are the equivalent of a PG-13 movie. However, games like "The Sims" (Which happens to be the best selling video game of all time) "Viva Pinata" and "Animal Crossing" don't seem to make the news much. Instead, you see "Grand Theft Auto". Just like many other aspects of the news media, violence and sensationalism sells. Thankfully, thats not true for the gaming industry, regardless of how its billed.

Hooray for privacy.

Wed, 21 Jun 2006 18:23:30 GMT

Well, my journal is now friends only, for various reasons. What a pain in the ass that livejournal doesn't have batch processing. I had to edit each entry to friends only, one by one. It was interesting to read some of my stuff from 2001 though, oh how I've grown.

If you'd like to read it, let me know. I think most of the people who read it are on my list anyway.