my mom HATES violent video games

[MurderousToaster]

Unlucky. It seems like you're mother is stuck tight on the issue. I guess you'll have to wait until you're the right age to buy stuff, then. Or wait until your mother considers you mature enough.

As a side note, congratulations on your first Escapist post.

 

[snow]

I think I understand what's going on here.

MW2 got bad media hype with the "terrorist mission," and the way I see it from reading your explanation it sounds like your mom doesn't want you playing the game for this mission. Because of the way she acts without knowing what the game is, she doesn't seem to have any other logical reason to keep you from playing, especially since she said she would buy the game until she found out what game it is. Simply explain that the terrorist mission is completely voluntary, has a point, and was overplayed by the media like many video game issues are in a civilized way.

Also: so what he's 13? If he can understand the content in a mature way he should be able to play it. I don't see anyone going out of their way to target the 13 year old people playing Halo games, which are rated M also (Halo Wars doesn't count).

Halo is more acceptable as a game for the younger crowd because... I mean just look at it. That and just about every 13 year old has congregated there.

It's an unrealistic shooter with guns that sparkle and shoot multi-colored laser lights.. Compared to CoD's realistic war tactics featuring realistic people with guns used in real life?

That doesn't matter though... His mother laid down the law in her house, and the fact that he's here asking for help on how to bend this in his favor shows he's not mature enough to get what he wants..

 

[xenos60]

Show her this

[http://img192.imageshack.us/i/liesj.jpg/]

 

[Treblaine]

You're 13. You shouldn't be playing M-rated games. What she did was right as a parent.

Wait until you're 17, then you can play.

The little experiment he did was pretty mature IMO. And "M" stands for mature, not 17.

http://www.esrb.org/ratings/ratings_guide.jsp

ESRB says it does stand for 17 years old.

FYI the American rating system SUCKS BALLS, especially how a layman must visit a website to figure out what the cryptic ratings actually mean. I think the main reason for their uselessness is down to how the ESRB is not a government run body but effectively a trade body for self-regulation, they have very little to no legal powers and are not controlled by any democratically elected representatives.

Here in the UK we have clearly marked ratings where the laws are clear and universal (though not always agreeable, but I'm an adult now so yah boo sucks ya kids).

(U) = Universally suitable for all
(12) = not for people under 12
(15) = not for people under 15
(18) = not for people under 18

It couldn't be clearer and the even 3 year spacing between each rating bracket can accommodate for how some games/movies are more explicit than just a (12) (T for teen) rating but not explicit enough to earn an (18) (M for Mature) such as Uncharted 2.

 

[Treblaine]

Show her this

[http://img192.imageshack.us/i/liesj.jpg/]

that right

Hey kids, who needs cause and effect when you can just show correlation!

I stand by the opinion that video game have neither a cause OR effect, positive OR negative but that they are almost completely irrelevant to the issue of violent crime.

Poverty, drugs, gangs and dysfunctional education systems are bigger factors in precipitating violent offences.

I say parents should be happy their kids are playing video games... because people on serious drugs don't have clear enough minds or the hand-eye co-ordination to play, their skill in games is like a canary down a mine shaft showing that everything is functioning well up-stairs. I tell you so much petty crime and vandalism is caused by bored teenagers who don't have anything better to do, I hear old conservatives ***** all the time about yobish teens hanging around yet it's the they same old complaining gits who vote against youth leisure facilities when it comes to town planning.

Idle hands are the devil's play things, put a controller in then an they're too busy "pwning noobs" to join a gang or do dumb shit like set stuff on fire and get convicted of arson.

 

[OmegaCheese]

Here in Australia we have (for games)

G-General
PG-Parental Guidance Recommended (WTF)
M-Mature Audiences
MA 15+- Mature Audiences (Restricted 15+)
BUT NO R-18!!!!!
IF YOU LIVE IN ADELAIDE VOTE AGAINST AKTINSON!!!! (Winner of Zero Punctuations Most Refusal To Die Award)This man is evil!!!!![/IMG][/URL]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_sbr07vVCXe0/SwD-MurqvcI/AAAAAAAAGzg/Tmml4qjsesY/s400/michael-atkinson-mugshot.jpg[/IMG][/URL] JUST LOOK AT HIM!!!!!!!!

 

[Gxas]

You're 13. You shouldn't be playing M-rated games. What she did was right as a parent.

Wait until you're 17, then you can play.

The little experiment he did was pretty mature IMO. And "M" stands for mature, not 17.

If you actually read the box, M stands for 17+ at least here in America, I know that it is 15 in other countries. That said, maturity must be proven. I'm sure that the ESRB does not have time to interview every single person purchasing every single game. They had to put an age on the box representing what they thought was a "mature" age. 17 (15) was just what it turned out to be.

Sure, the OP may be mature. Hell, he might even be more mature than I am. But that means nothing. If his mother doesn't see him as mature and goes by the guidelines on the box, so be it. Its her house, her rules.

 

[Smudge91]

Your a minor, until you turn 18 or 21 you are a dependant of your parents ergo what they say goes. Your mum was being a responsible parent and following rating guidelines.

 

[The_Blue_Rider]

I feel sorry for ya mate, im 13 too but my parents never had a problem with me playing violent videogames, i finished GTA 3 when i was 9. Also to add to the fact that videogames dont make you stupid im in the top class at my high school

 

[Killerbunny001]

You`re mum loves you and the info in the media she follows tells here that M rated stuff is bad for you. You can fish games in the same category as MW2 but with a lower rating if you like that sort of stuff. Most developers are trying to get their games off the big M and you can find the same stuff rated Teen but minus the blood and the missing body parts.

PS: Please stop writing blocks of text like that. Got crited for 9000!!11!!1

 

[Deleted]

Parents don't listen to logic from their kids dude, have another adult prove her wrong.

 

[Callate]

Look, I know you're probably right on your central point: that you're mature enough to handle the violence from a game like MW2 without it having a negative effect on you emotionally or psychologically.

You can take pride in that fact. Yes, you're right. Yes, you have the maturity.

AND- this is absolutely, positively, NOT going to cause you to win this argument with your mother.

One thing most adults learn eventually, and even 13-year-olds with 134 IQs don't tend to know (sorry), is this: some fights aren't worth the cost of "winning".

I don't know when your father died, but what it sounds like is this: your mother wants to protect you. She loves you, and this is how she's expressing it. You're trying to win a "logical" argument, and you won't, because she's not having a "logical" argument, she's having an emotional one. And your attempts to win the "logical" argument may even feel like rejections of her desire to love and protect you.

In two years, I can all but guarantee you you will no longer care about Modern Warfare 2. But you may still regret it if you allowed this argument to raise barriers between the two of you.

My honest suggestion is this: as much as it hurts, as much as it feels "unfair", try to respect your mom's decision. Let her know that you understand that she's trying to protect you, but let her know, respectfully, that you're frustrated at not being able to play a game your peers do. But that you will respect and abide by her decision. And ask her for some guidelines as to what she finds offensive on the grounds that you don't want to risk such conflicts with her in the future; apparently, it isn't simply a matter of an "M" rating to her. Be reasonable, don't attack her decision, and you may be able to come to an accord on future gaming.

 

[fenrizz]

You're thirteen, act like it. Next time she threatens to take the PS3 away, turn red, run over to where-ever it is, unplug it all from the TV, and throw it forcefully at her feet.

Start crying and say:

"Dad wouldn't have made me done this!" If she freaks out, start freaking out harder, if she screams, scream back. The women so much has proven that she doesn't care about logic or argument, she probably doing what Dr.Phil tells her to do.

Start wearing black and let your gardes suffer, and when they ask you why, say:

"Because my mom started confiscating my property." Then cut yourself with a knife on the top of your arm.

That is brilliant.

If she can not come up with a proper argument, or even give you a reason, then give her hell.
You have no idea how hard and miserable you can make her with a little effort.

Oh, and be sure to tell her it is all because she refused to give you a proper argument and/or reason for taking your game away.
"Because I say so/it's my rules in my house" is a terrible excuse for lousy and lazy parenting!

 

[Dudemeister]

Edit: Also, there's no way you have an IQ of 134 if your posts look like that. Not unless the scale has shifted since last I took an IQ test. Or maybe they give out extra-credit on those now. You know, No Child Left Behind and all.

Didn't you know? Everyone on this site has an IQ of 140+. This guy's an idiot compared to everyone else. According to the IQ threads, this is the home to the world's intellectuals.
I mean, they couldn't be lying about their IQ to seem smart to strangers, could they?

 

[fenrizz]

Edit: Also, there's no way you have an IQ of 134 if your posts look like that. Not unless the scale has shifted since last I took an IQ test. Or maybe they give out extra-credit on those now. You know, No Child Left Behind and all.

Didn't you know? Everyone on this site has an IQ of 140+. This guy's an idiot compared to everyone else. According to the IQ threads, this is the home to the world's intellectuals.
I mean, they couldn't be lying about their IQ to seem smart to strangers, could they?

High IQ does not mean one is clever.

One can train for the specific kind's puzzles that are in IQ tests, thereby "cheating".
IQ score is a worthless stat. It tells very little about a person's actual intellect and ability.

 

[Chechosaurus]

I distinctly remember playing the first GTA on a demo disc (ah... The days of demo discs) my friend had when I was about 9 or 10 and my mum wasn't that bothered. She has always let me play violent video games but I don't think that's bad parenting. It has put me in a responsible position from an early age meaning that I am fully aware of why running over school children in the bus I just jacked from them is not appropriate behaviour. I think that if I had shown any negative effects then she would have stepped in.

I can only sympathise but at 13, I am not surprised that your mum is concerned. It's not uncommon for parents to be afraid of what their kids might do after playing MW2 but I blame the media. It wasn't such an issue in my day.

 

[Magnalian]

If your mom won't let you play, she'll never listen to you. Parents tend to think "I know better than my child just because I do" so good luck

You're 13. You shouldn't be playing M-rated games. What she did was right as a parent.

Wait until you're 17, then you can play.

M is for Mature, not adult. If he can tell its not real and won't try to reinact the game in real life then he should be able to play. I've played M games since I was 6, yet I'm one of the least violent people I know

Maybe you just know really violent people?

 

[TotallyFake]

I feel sorry for ya mate, im 13 too but my parents never had a problem with me playing violent videogames, i finished GTA 3 when i was 9. Also to add to the fact that videogames dont make you stupid im in the top class at my high school

High school means nothing, and your logic is flawed. Maybe you'd be at the top by a higher margin if you didn't play. Maybe it only effects certain people.

As to the OP, you are a child, you do what your parents say. You shouldn't even HAVE the game.

 

[Squaseghost]

You're 13. You shouldn't be playing M-rated games. What she did was right as a parent.

Wait until you're 17, then you can play.

for the most part, this. She probably knows you better than you'd like to admit.

 

[Lost In The Void]

Hi guys I have a problem. My mom completely hates violent video games, especially if they are rated M. I'll explain; when my mom got me a ps3 for Christmas I bought Modern Warfare 2,two days later (buying it with my own money I might add) and she was fine with that. The next day she shows up while I'm playing and requests to see the game. I then proceed to show her and not even after watching for 5 seconds she says no and tells me to take the game out. I have to give the game to her and she goes and returns the game. The next day when I ask her why she did that she says she doesn't want to talk about it and threatens to take the PS3 away entirely if I ask again.

About two weeks later I spent some time thinking of a few things I could try to use to justify me being allowed to get the game (by this time she has allowed me to get uncharted 2 which has amazing single player and very good mp but it's just not MW2). I go to her and we have a good 2 hour long conversation on why the game is violent. At the end of it she says she will look into it and research the game. I ask her about it 4 days later and she's shut tight about it, again threatening to take away the ps3. By this point I had already disproved her claims that the game would make me violent or desensitized. I ask her why she doesn't approve of this game, but she just says you know why.

That night I compiled some videos off youtube one showing some clips one from a teen rated first person shooter, Battlefield: Bad Company and one from a Multiplayer match in Modern Warfare 2. I didn't tell her which game was which and after watching she said she would buy me the video that showed the Modern Warfare 2 match, but not Bad Company. After I told her what the next two clips were and picked two very similar clips to the first two; the only difference being that she now knew which game was which. Not even 20 seconds into the Modern Warfare clips (which at this point the only thing that has happened is the person walked around a bit shot a bit and missed then got killed), she says it's too horrifying to watch. I've also tried getting her with the cliche "It's ruining my social life because everyone has it and I don't" thing but it didn't work either. Any suggestions guys?

Info on me:
13 years old, IQ :134 extremely mature for my age, father has died, report card usually consists of all A's and possibly one to two B's maximum. I am not violent at all, very compassionate and understanding, who follows rules, has never had more then one detention in a school year (usually from my cellphone being on in class or a teacher that just plain trying to find ways to get me in trouble.)

Wow that took a while to fix, but now at least I can read it. Alright first of all I'm going to agree with most people here and say that you are too young for a game like Modern Warfare 2. The game, while not completely realistic, has many graphical and artistic choices that do depict humans shooting humans in a realistic environment. Couple this with its look at modern issues such as Nuclear War, Terrorism and other such things, you wind up with a game that isn't suited for minors. You will get to the age where you can play a Mature game like this soon, though it doesn't need to be exactly 17. The part that confuses me, is your age; how can a boy, age 13 claim he is more mature than the norm. Most children do think this and this is what makes them immature.

Though I agree your methods of testing her were quite cunning, it doesn't detract from the fact that she is your mother, and ultimately controls whether you get to keep that game at all. She can be, despite your belief, a better judge of your character than even you are so it is important to look at this experience and figure out how to make yourself more mature in your mother's eyes.