Retailers Turn Away 80% of Kids Trying to Buy M Rated Games

[PedroSteckecilo]

This might be a little bit on the cynical side, but I honestly believe that a lot of these parents didn't give a damn when they bought the game and now that they see what's actually involved, they're blaming everyone else for their own imcompetence.

It is a little cynical, but it's also a little bit correct. Unfortunately the gaming industry is losing this argument in the courts of the United States, which will likely refuse to place the blame on the parents for being ignorant.

Unfortunately if the gaming industry wants to win this fight, they are going to need to bend over backwards. Retailers could start arranging titles by rating, since parents are obviously very concerned about such things, the ESRB could also start color coding its ratings. Yes this is catering to the ignorant, but I don't know if you noticed, America is the land of the ignorant masses and in order to prevent said land from castrating our favorite hobby, we need to cater to those self same ignorant masses.

 

[TehIrishSoap]

It's Easier For Us Europeans, IMO
We Have 12, 16, And 18
I'm 14, And Growing A Beard, Which Makes It 10X Easier!!!

 

[PrinceofPersia]

Parents buying the games for their kids is no excuse. If the parents don't understand the ESRB ratings, they are too stupid to be having kids. End of story. The ESRB ratings are so simple, the kids themselves can understand them.

EXACTLY! I mean really color coding the ESRB? Are adults so stupid that they cannot read small print or goto the ESRB website for clarification of the ratings system that use BIG BOLD LETTERS? I'm done with this, as far as I am concerned parents need to stop blaming others for their childs behavior, start looking in the mirror, and then look at their kids as well. Blame the parents and the kids for being irresponsible, the only freedom you have to give up.

 

[Flying-Emu]

It's Easier For Us Europeans, IMO
We Have 12, 16, And 18
I'm 14, And Growing A Beard, Which Makes It 10X Easier!!!

Fourteen and growing a beard? Damn, there must be a lot of growth hormones in European food.

@Topic

This is why I have absolutely no problem with the California law banning the sale of violent vidjamagames to minors: For all intents and purposes, the law is already in place.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Proof that that stupid Californian law isn't necessary.

 

[Flamma Man]

This research makes me happy...

 

[UnravThreads]

any parents that some idea on how to raise a decent human being would never buy a m rated game for a kid.

BS. That's a generalisation and a huge assumption.

Any parent with any idea on how to raise a decent kid would never buy an M rated game for a child who is not "ready" for it. My dad shooed me away when he played GTA1 (Perhaps 98/99), but come 2002 (Roughly, when I was 12) he didn't mind too much. I was 13/14 when I got Halo and Halo 2, yet they're M rated too.

If a parent buys GTA for a 9 year old, yes, that's going to be borderline bad parenting, but if the kid is 11 or 12? No, not really. If the parent buys Halo for a 11/12 year old, that's not bad parenting either because they're just a little violent.

But if you go to games at the high end of the M scale, like The Witcher, then yes, that's terrible parenting.

 

[Something Amyss]

And they said the industry wasn't doing anything to keep children from playing violent video games...

And they will continue to say it because the facts don't fit the narrative.

 

[PrinceofPersia]

Fake statistics are fake.

I'll be over there with the 83% of people that owned a blue car.

Which statistic(s) is fake? The one from ESA, CSM, or both? And you know it is fake how?

 

[Kukakkau]

TBH, 80% is WAY to little. 20% can get games they shouldnt be able to? Thats shocking.

It is, however, no argument for the banning of violent games. The violent games arent the problem, its the salesmen. When a shop sells an underage dude beer, its the shop that gets the law on its nuts. Should be the same thing here.

While that's true it is understandable since there are kids who look older than then are and working in a game shop you really don't want to have to check every customers age day in and day out.

Also the figures in the OP are making me suspicious... they are all multiples of 5. Either they are massively rounding or they didn't test thoroughly enough

 

[Bloodstain]

I do think that the ESRB needs to implement a Color Coding System similar to the PEGI ratings in Europe.

PEGI is all-black, no colours. In Germany, there are actually three systems used: PEGI, FSK for movies (Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle der Filmwirtschaft, meaning "Voluntary Self Regulation of the Movie Industry") and USK for games (Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle, meaning "Self-Monitoring of Entertainment Software"). Unfortunately, all game retailers orientate themselves using the USK, although it means "SELF monitoring". And those ratings are usually harsher than the PEGI ratings.

PEGI ftw, but noone cares about it here.

 

[PedroSteckecilo]

@Topic

This is why I have absolutely no problem with the California law banning the sale of violent vidjamagames to minors: For all intents and purposes, the law is already in place.

I think you misunderstand the thinking of the Anti-Game crusader, you see to the Jack Thompsons of the world, like the Frederic Werthams of the past (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredric_Wertham) VIDEOGAMES ARE FOR CHILDREN, CONSENTING ADULTS DO NOT PLAY VIDEOGAMES. Hence M-Rated Games are not being produced for consenting adults, they are vile products aimed at corrupting the youth and should be stopped altogether from being produced. We're looking at something very similar to the comic-book debacle of the 1950's here and if the worst should happen we'll be in for 30 years of cheesy mainstream games producing nothing but "safe" content and requiring approval from some shadowy government appointed approval board before any game can be sold as anything but, for lack of a better word, pornography.

 

[Cain_Zeros]

However it's the other 20% who's parents are the most vocal.

 

[JeanLuc761]

Lot of shit; game retailers don't care who they sell games to, as long as they get the money they carry.

As someone who works at a game retailer, I can say that you are 100% wrong. Anyone who gets caught selling an M-rated game to a minor gets fired instantly. No questions, fired.

All companies care about profit, but guess what? If they're so greedy, why do they have an enforced policy to NOT sell games to minors?

 

[PrinceofPersia]

any parents that some idea on how to raise a decent human being would never buy a m rated game for a kid.

BS. That's a generalisation and a huge assumption.

Any parent with any idea on how to raise a decent kid would never buy an M rated game for a child who is not "ready" for it. My dad shooed me away when he played GTA1 (Perhaps 98/99), but come 2002 (Roughly, when I was 12) he didn't mind too much. I was 13/14 when I got Halo and Halo 2, yet they're M rated too.

If a parent buys GTA for a 9 year old, yes, that's going to be borderline bad parenting, but if the kid is 11 or 12? No, not really. If the parent buys Halo for a 11/12 year old, that's not bad parenting either because they're just a little violent.

But if you go to games at the high end of the M scale, like The Witcher, then yes, that's terrible parenting.

First of all Coldalarm mad props to your father for actually being a good parent and paying attention to his kids the world needs more folks like him. Second dex-dex I was a bit confused by your sentence, you might wanna add the word 'had' between 'that' and 'some' makes it much easier to read. And third Coldalarm is absolutely correct, it is about making sure the child is ready for the game, its called educating and teaching about reality.

 

[MetalGenocide]

Take that 72 percent fake pool, we made a 80 percent one, owned!