QUOTE
Calif. Violent Game Bill Passes
The state approves a ban on selling violent games to minors.
by David Adams
September 9, 2005 - A long-contested California bill which would ban the sale of violent videogames to minors passed State Assembly late on Thursday, though the legislation awaits the signature of Gov. Schwarzenegger in order to become law. The legislation passed Assembly by a bipartisan 65-7 vote.
Assembly Bill 1179 makes game retailers liable for up to $1000 in fines for selling mature-themed games to minors, and requires that violent games be clearly labeled as such. The bill was authored by California Assemblyman Leland Yee, who has championed similar legislation for years now.
"Unlike movies where you passively watch violence, in a video game, you are the active participant and making decisions on who to stab, maim, burn or kill," said Yee in an official statement. "As a result, these games serve as learning tools that have a dramatic impact on our children."
Opposing the bill are representatives of the game industry, who believe that existing measures, such as the ESRB rating system, are already sufficient in keeping mature-themed games from young players.
Gov. Schwarzenegger now has 30 days to either sign or veto the bill.
The state approves a ban on selling violent games to minors.
by David Adams
September 9, 2005 - A long-contested California bill which would ban the sale of violent videogames to minors passed State Assembly late on Thursday, though the legislation awaits the signature of Gov. Schwarzenegger in order to become law. The legislation passed Assembly by a bipartisan 65-7 vote.
Assembly Bill 1179 makes game retailers liable for up to $1000 in fines for selling mature-themed games to minors, and requires that violent games be clearly labeled as such. The bill was authored by California Assemblyman Leland Yee, who has championed similar legislation for years now.
"Unlike movies where you passively watch violence, in a video game, you are the active participant and making decisions on who to stab, maim, burn or kill," said Yee in an official statement. "As a result, these games serve as learning tools that have a dramatic impact on our children."
Opposing the bill are representatives of the game industry, who believe that existing measures, such as the ESRB rating system, are already sufficient in keeping mature-themed games from young players.
Gov. Schwarzenegger now has 30 days to either sign or veto the bill.
And now on with the ESRB:
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ESRB Lays Down the Law
Publishers must re-inspect all games released in the past year.
by Tom McNamara
September 13, 2005 - In the wake of GTA San Andreas being re-rated to AO following the exposure of content not intended to be accessible, the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has sent out an email to all major publishers that they must perform internal audits of their products to determine if their titles contain similar elements, dating back to September 1, 2004. Disclosure of hidden content is regular practice, if it is deemed to be eventually accessible by the user through conventional means (the controversial content in GTA:SA was exposed through an unauthorized, third-party hack). A complicating factor is that many games have content cut out but not removed from the programming code, for one reason or another. Additionally, the ESRB mandates that this industry-wide, internal audit must be finished by January 6th, 2006.
According to industry publication Gamasutra, the email further states: ""If you fail to notify us of previously undisclosed, non-playable, pertinent content by January 9, and such content becomes playable through a subsequent authorized or unauthorized release of code to unlock it, rendering the original rating assignment inaccurate, punitive in addition to corrective actions may result."
Lastly, the ESRB also addresses third-party modifications (of which Counter-Strike, BF1942: Desert Combat, and GTA: Multi-Theft Auto are a few examples), with specific attention to violent and/or sexual content. The email continues, "ESRB remains concerned about third party modifications that undermine the accuracy of the original rating, and we are exploring ways to maintain the credibility of the rating system with consumers in light of modifications of this nature."
We'll have more as the story develops.
Publishers must re-inspect all games released in the past year.
by Tom McNamara
September 13, 2005 - In the wake of GTA San Andreas being re-rated to AO following the exposure of content not intended to be accessible, the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has sent out an email to all major publishers that they must perform internal audits of their products to determine if their titles contain similar elements, dating back to September 1, 2004. Disclosure of hidden content is regular practice, if it is deemed to be eventually accessible by the user through conventional means (the controversial content in GTA:SA was exposed through an unauthorized, third-party hack). A complicating factor is that many games have content cut out but not removed from the programming code, for one reason or another. Additionally, the ESRB mandates that this industry-wide, internal audit must be finished by January 6th, 2006.
According to industry publication Gamasutra, the email further states: ""If you fail to notify us of previously undisclosed, non-playable, pertinent content by January 9, and such content becomes playable through a subsequent authorized or unauthorized release of code to unlock it, rendering the original rating assignment inaccurate, punitive in addition to corrective actions may result."
Lastly, the ESRB also addresses third-party modifications (of which Counter-Strike, BF1942: Desert Combat, and GTA: Multi-Theft Auto are a few examples), with specific attention to violent and/or sexual content. The email continues, "ESRB remains concerned about third party modifications that undermine the accuracy of the original rating, and we are exploring ways to maintain the credibility of the rating system with consumers in light of modifications of this nature."
We'll have more as the story develops.
This keeps getting worse and worse. Pretty soon, we'll have government-subsidized games that are not entertaining at all. Seriously - this may seem a bit childish, but I wouldn't shed a tear of remorse if someone were to blow up the ESRB. They just won't stop.
I mean, honestly. They don't rate books, do they? Aren't videogames entitled to freedeom of expression? AND WHY SHOULD GAMES BE RATED BASED ON ILLEGAL CHANGES TO THE SOURCE CODE?!?!
