p2pnet - rss feed: Kids as young as 7 get M-rated games
p2pnet news | Games:- The main complaint about brutal and sexually explicit video games such as Manunt 2, banned in Britain, and Narc, centering on the illicit drug trade, is: youngsters as young as seven can get hold of them, even if they’re marked M for Mature or even Adults Only.
During a two-month undercover survey of more than 60 stores countywide, “46 percent sold video games rated M for ‘Mature’ to teens younger than 18, says Shontey Hambrick, adult adviser to the East County Youth Coalition (ECYC), quoted in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
“The coalition conducted the survey with the National Institute on Media and Family and other youth organizations in the county,” it says.
Meanwhile, in October a bill banning the sale of violent video games to minors was signed into law, says the ECYC public health and safety team, going on:
“Taking effect on January 1, 2006, AB1179 should have required the following:
Manufacturers of the most violent games must mark the packaging of these games with ADULT ONLY on them. This indicates that merchants may not sell these games to customers under age 18.
Stores that sell or rent such games to those under age 18 can be fined $1000.
Good, but not good enough, says the group on its web site, because missing from legislature is any restriction on video games with drug-related content.
And it singles out NARC, rated M17 +, for special mention.
The rating means it shouldn’t be sold to anyone unaccompanied by an adult unless they’re 17 years of age or older, says the
ECYC, going on:
When first looking at the image on the cover a parent or caretaker might think that the game is a typical ‘cops and robbers’ story. There are cops in this story, but it’s not long before they go ‘bad,’ beginning to take the drugs that they have seized from drug dealers. As the character moves through the game, the player must select drugs such as marijuana, ecstasy, speed, LSD or crack. Depending on which drug is used, the character’s skills and abilities may improve. The pace of the game also changes, speeding up, slowing down or providing other visual effects.
…
Available on Play Station, Nintendo and Xbox this game is available at family-friendly and gaming stores. Since details of the game are not listed on the product’s packaging, parents or caretakers may believe it to be harmless. Unaware of its true nature, they may purchase the game and allow their kids to play without ever knowing what’s really going on. But if they examine the instruction sheet on the inside of the game, they would most likely be shocked to find out what their kids are being trained to do. To see for yourself click on the link ‘Directions for Selling and Taking Drugs.’ You will also want to see the drugs listed in the game for player selection, by clicking on ‘Drug List’.
Recent studies have found, “boys as young as 7 years old could buy mature-rated video games as much as 50% of the time, according to the National Institute on Media and the Family,” says the coalition.
“NARC is a 1988 arcade game designed by Eugene Jarvis for Williams Electronics,” says the Wikipedia.
“It was one of the first ultra-violent video games and a frequent target of parental criticism of the arcade game industry. The object is to arrest and kill drug offenders, confiscate their money and drugs, and defeat Mr. Big. It was ported, not long after, to the NES and several home computer systems in 1990. In 2005, it was also updated into a brand new game for the Xbox and PS2.”
Also See:
San Diego Union-Tribune - Violent, pro-drug games reportedly sold to minors , November 21, 2007
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November 22nd, 2007 at 12:21 pm
So parents and store owners aren’t doing their share of the responsibility, and video game companies get blamed for it. Nice.
November 22nd, 2007 at 3:16 pm
What’s the point of all this censorship? Children are already exposed to these elements of society and have been for thousands of years. I hate this atmosphere of telling everyone what they can and can’t do. Here is a revolutionary idea; How about we just let them decide for themselves?
November 22nd, 2007 at 3:53 pm
Ok
Parents read the label and ask what the ratings mean.
and for shit sakes don’t use the TV Set as a parental unit ya lazy bums.
November 23rd, 2007 at 8:13 am
These watchdog groups need to quit giving game developers shit and put pressure on the stores. It’s not the developer’s fault that the stores sell M-rated games to kids.
November 24th, 2007 at 12:17 pm
Doesn’t anyone realize that AO is the only rating where you have to be a certain age to purchase the game? The M17+ rating is a recommendation to parents about how old the child should be to play the game. I’m not accounting for the fact of children obtaining the games without their parent’s permission or knowledge, but all these groups are freaking out over such a trivial matter, pointing fingers to avoid the thought that “maybe it’s our responsibility to make sure we know what kind of violence our own children are ingesting from entertainment.”