Rockstar: Only "Terrible Parents" Buy Our Games for Their Kids

[mega48man]

THANK YOU ROCKSTAR!!! when i did my mock debate in gov class, my topic was 'do video games have a bad influence on kids?' and i got the 'no they're not side' so the underdog. but not only did the other team hardly prepare at ALL (i mean, seriously, it was pathetic, and i was dying for an argument) but i overprepared so i could rip into anyone. i even beat my gov teacher at his question, and it's impossible to do that to mr. macleod.

so anyway, my driving point was how parents who buy these "bad games" always blame the game and not themselves for buying it. PLUS, if you can't stop your child from becoming a violent and mean kid in general, you are a HORRIBLE parent. also, BE RESPONSIBLE AND READ THE RATINGS, THEY'RE THERE FOR A REASON.

 

[FloodOne]

I'm a father of a six year old and I won't play any of my mature rated titles in front of her. It's called responsibility, more parents should exercise it.

 

[CUnk]

Lazlow has had his own real radio shows here and there. Some on terrestrial, some on XM. He's entertaining but not quite as entertaining as GTA Lazlow (I guess it helps to have scripts and talented actors playing your callers).

edit: Sorry, this is in response to the people that weren't aware that Lazlow was real.

 

[Aeshi]

THANK YOU!!Somebody with some brains in their head!

 

[Echo136]

I dont wanna say my parents were terrible, but they did get me GTA 3 when I was 15. Im 23 now, and I fully agree with Rockstar. Parents need to pay attention a little more to their kids. Parents arent taking enough responsibility and would rather place blame on other people for their own parenting problems.

 

[P.Tsunami]

I remember Family Guy doing something like this in an episode after the series was rebooted where they chided bad parents for letting their kids watch the smut the show put on the air. It was the last time I had any shred of respect for the pile of bile the show had become.

Kudos to Rockstar for swinging its brassy pair.

Wait, you dissed the show for doing this, but commend the game company? I am lost

If I read Izzil correctly, they mean they had respect for Family Guy over that single instance, but dislikes the show normally. Feel free to correct me if that's wrong.

As for the OP... I'm a little mixed. On one hand, small children should not grow up playing GTA. Besides, this gives Rockstar some much-needed ammo in the next case where some Jack Thompson wannabe starts firing off about "the children". On the other hand, I played Doom 2 and Mortal Kombat in my mid-teens without taking the least bit of damage from it. Sense of perspective is important here, and insisting that any parent is bad for letting any of their children play Rockstar games seems to be stretching it.

 

[HT_Black]

Here's to you, Mr. Jones. Congratulations for standing up and speaking your mind, even at the price of sales. It is all too rare an occasion in this day and age to find a public figure who puts morals and sensibility before the almighty dollar. Doubtlessly, you are an example to us all, and you speak the truth indeed. Many children can be esaily influenced, regardless of what we may all want to believe, and you are a man of honor and courage for daring to say so. To be sure it is a shame that so many of the youth today are oblivious to the depth and meaning of your works, and see but a chaotic playground. Until they can see otherwise, I am in full support of this man's statement.

ALSO: I've got a fiver that says Jack Thompson will **** bricks when he reads this.

 

[Sinisterair]

Im assuming that this is only directed towards the parents that buy it and sue them for the violence........those people be stupiiiiddddd

 

[Xanadu84]

Ballsy. My respect for Rockstar also just went up a bunch. However, I think that, like most excellent sound bites, there is some bad over generalizations in here. Mainly that a parent who is involved with their children, and makes an informed choice about adult video games matching their child's maturity level, is free to let there child play a Rockstar game. But of course, that sentiment might fall flat, seeing how I have no doubt that countless parents think that there little baby can handle an adult game, right up until their systematic negligence leads to behavioral problems where video games act as scapegoat. So perhaps it's not perfectly accurate, but it is a rather brash criticism that acts as a much needed wake up call.

 

[cptn ricardo]

I agree with Rockstar. I came home today to discover my mum had bought my eleven year old brother GTA 4. I wasn't happy. I don't want him playing stuff like that. He's a kid.

 

[Cliff_m85]

Wait, didn't Rockstar make a Ping Pong game once?

Calumon: I only play Digimon and Jack won't let me play much else, besides LittleBIGPlanet.

Do you know how dirty it sounds to say that Calumon only plays Digimon?

 

[Sexual Harassment Panda]

Ballsy. My respect for Rockstar also just went up a bunch. However, I think that, like most excellent sound bites, there is some bad over generalizations in here. Mainly that a parent who is involved with their children, and makes an informed choice about adult video games matching their child's maturity level, is free to let there child play a Rockstar game. But of course, that sentiment might fall flat, seeing how I have no doubt that countless parents think that there little baby can handle an adult game, right up until their systematic negligence leads to behavioral problems where video games act as scapegoat. So perhaps it's not perfectly accurate, but it is a rather brash criticism that acts as a much needed wake up call.

Basically what I wanted to say, I didn't appreciate the absolute terms being used because my parents let me play these games, but they knew me well enough to know I could differentiate between fiction and reality...I suppose you don't grab anyones attention by making carefully considered statements.

 

[Jack and Calumon]

Wait, didn't Rockstar make a Ping Pong game once?

Calumon: I only play Digimon and Jack won't let me play much else, besides LittleBIGPlanet.

Do you know how dirty it sounds to say that Calumon only plays Digimon?

Do you know the thoughts going across my mind concerning you are for that comment?

Calumon: I only got Dirty when I played with Terriermon that one time.

 

[Banana Phone Man]

I really should thank my parents for not letting me start on GTA3. Most of my friends played that game and I used to look at them in envy, but noww I look at how they turned out today and the sights are not pretty. I'm not saying that the game was the cause but it probably helped that because I didn't play it I never turned uot like a violence loving zombie.

 

[groundedcrow]

LOL It's about damn time a vide game company said something like this. It's like the kids that shoot thier brothers or something with thier parents pistol: DON'T LEAVE A LOADED GUN ON THE F***ING COFFEE TABLE!!!

 

[Trebort]

It's a wonderfully true statement . They should put it in the opening titles of their games from now on....

I love it!

 

[Mirrored Jigsaw]

Not sure if this is any better than ignoring the parents who buy GTA for the kids. Realistically, there are a lot of people under the age of 17 who are mature enough to play M games. I'm not saying that the mom that buys here 12-year-old Manhunt when they're walking through the store (because he just won't shut up) is a good parent, but my parents certainly aren't terrible for letting me buy GTA IV when I was 15, after I had demonstrated a level of maturity.

 

[Theron Julius]

It's the truth.