ESRB and age-based ratings in video games - and other media rating systems

[Dysnomia]

Didn't the whole original .hack series get some sexual content warning for one line said by Natsume that was just a double entendre she was totally unaware of because she's a ditz anyway?

When asked about a reward for the dungeon Natsume replies something to the tune of "you can have me". She means as a party member. God it was a stupid.

Never mind that you can look up Gardenia's skirt if you angle the camera right. I used to do it all the time for the lulz because the censors never caught it. Just that dumb line by Natsume that isn't even her preostituting herself. She just wants to join Kite's party.

 

[The Valeyard]

I remember having to import a copy of Mortal Kombat (2011) when the game was banned in Australia as the violence exceeded what was allowed under the MA15 rating.

It eventually saw a local release two years later as Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition after an R18 category was added for games.

Which isn't the death sentence that receiving an AO from the ESRB is, as big box stores will stock games with an R18 rating.

 

[The Last Stand]

I remember having to import a copy of Mortal Kombat (2011) when the game was banned in Australia as the violence exceeded what was allowed under the MA15 rating.

It eventually saw a local release two years later as Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition after an R18 category was added for games.

Which isn't the death sentence that receiving an AO from the ESRB is, as big box stores will stock games with an R18 rating.

Say a game gets re-rated in Australia, does the original game get patched or you have to get the updated version?

South Park: The Stick of Truth had two scenes omitted in the Australian release and South Park berated them. That may be the only time where the censored version may have some value.

If a game is intended for mature audiences, why cut stuff out?

 

[Punished “Venom” pH]

If a game is intended for mature audiences, why cut stuff out?

The Nanny State always thinks it knows best.

 

[The Last Stand]

I wish the ESRB wasn't taking Take Two money and turning a blind eye to microtransactions and gambling tactics in video games.

 

[Marissa Moira]

I wish the ESRB wasn't taking Take Two money and turning a blind eye to microtransactions and gambling tactics in video games.

Cero is run by Sega. It's the same all over the world.

 

[The Last Stand]

Cero is run by Sega. It's the same all over the world.

Why use letters like you're grading a paper, Japan? It doesn't make sense.

 

[Secret Asshole]

The ESRB was actually founded because of Mortal Combat. This was in the middle of the late 1990s, "THINK OF THE CHILDREN" hysteria, where you had Mr. Rogers and heavy metal artists testifying before congress.

Its formation was extremely rushed and hasty to avoid any sort of governmental oversight that the industry was afraid that might come to it. It really didn't have anything to do with morality, or social consciousness or anything like that. Software companies got together and were like "Ok, we gotta move quick. Lets just throw this fucking shit together as fast as we can."

I remember when it was first introduced, there would be pamphlets in blockbuster slowly explaining the rating systems to parents. If it seems arbitrary and inconsistent, it is. It is because it was a rushed endeavor due to the fear of Congressional regulation. They looked toward the movie industry and saw how it avoided regulation by the government and followed the same steps.

Its really as simple as that. A reactionary maneuver that is inconsistent because it was hastily put together in order to avoid government interference. Other countries simply followed the example and were far more strict about their ratings, because they were put together slowly. We should probably be thankful the ESRB was a hastily made piece of shit with tons of holes.

So, it was a reaction by a moral crusade in the government at the time by the cunt Tipper Gore in order to avoid getting regulated. The game companies didn't give a shit. They just didn't want the shitty hand of government fucking with them.

 

[Marissa Moira]

The ESRB was actually founded because of Mortal Combat. This was in the middle of the late 1990s, "THINK OF THE CHILDREN" hysteria, where you had Mr. Rogers and heavy metal artists testifying before congress.

Way to boomer it up, I bet you don't even own a compete collection of ESRB rated NES games.

 

[Secret Asshole]

Way to boomer it up, I bet you don't even own a compete collection of ESRB rated NES games.

God fucking damn it.

 

[The Last Stand]

I still don't understand why Arkham Knight's rated M when it's no worse than all the dark shit that happened in Arkham City.

This is an action-adventure game in which players primarily assume the role of Batman as he battles several villains spreading chaos across Gotham City. Players traverse a variety of locations around Gotham while battling thugs, examining crime scenes, and occasionally rescuing hostages. Players engage in melee-style combat using punches, kicks, and gadgets (e.g., batarangs, explosives). Enemies cry out in pain when struck, and some takedowns are highlighted by brief slow-motion effects and loud impact sounds. Some sequences allow players to use tank-like vehicles with machine gun turrets and rockets to shoot enemies; a vehicle's wheels are also used to torture an enemy in one sequence. Cutscenes depict characters getting shot (on and off camera) while restrained or unarmed. Large bloodstains/pools of blood appear in crime scenes and in the aftermath of violent acts; one room depicts a person torturing a character on a bloody operating table.

Batman won't kill, but he will sure torture.

Batman VR is M rated too. And that is just LA Noire, not even no combat apparently.

Way to boomer it up, I bet you don't even own a compete collection of ESRB rated NES games.

I remember when Sega would self rate their games on their consoles. Then Mortal Kombat happened.

Get it right, @Secret Asshole.

 

[Marissa Moira]

The thing that bothers me most about ESRB/PEGI/CERO game letter ratings is that they're always one letter off from forming a swear word. They're like 3/4ths of the way there and nobody decides that we need a "U" to be a rating or an "I".

 

[The Cunting Death]

I've always wondered why Wonderful 101 got a Teen Rating despite coming out 8 years after the E10+ rating first came out

 

[The Last Stand]

MW2 has "Drug Reference" because of a multiplayer emblem depicting a cannabis leaf. But Online Interactions Not Rated By The ESRB.

In the remastered version, the "Drug Reference" is gone, but "Language" is replaced with "Strong Language." The script is the same as it was 10+ years ago.

 

[MysticMisty]

I wish the ESRB wasn't taking Take Two money and turning a blind eye to microtransactions and gambling tactics in video games.

And yet the Game Corner in the Pokemon games is no long acceptable, except for the early games on the Virtual Console.

I remember when it was first introduced, there would be pamphlets in blockbuster slowly explaining the rating systems to parents.

I remember when the same thing happened with TV ratings just a few years later. Every channel was spelling out to parents which letters were okay for kids to watch and which ones weren't.

 

[Secret Asshole]

And yet the Game Corner in the Pokemon games is no long acceptable, except for the early games on the Virtual Console.


I remember when the same thing happened with TV ratings just a few years later. Every channel was spelling out to parents which letters were okay for kids to watch and which ones weren't.

The TV ratings were more of a formality, because the airwaves are regulated by the FCC, since they dictate content. The ESRB was precisely formed to avoid a regulatory entity like the FCC.

But yeah, you had all these ratings and now you have ratings locks on shows and shit.

 

[Punished “Venom” pH]

The ESRB was actually founded because of Mortal Combat. This was in the middle of the late 1990s, "THINK OF THE CHILDREN" hysteria, where you had Mr. Rogers and heavy metal artists testifying before congress.

Its formation was extremely rushed and hasty to avoid any sort of governmental oversight that the industry was afraid that might come to it. It really didn't have anything to do with morality, or social consciousness or anything like that. Software companies got together and were like "Ok, we gotta move quick. Lets just throw this fucking shit together as fast as we can."

I remember when it was first introduced, there would be pamphlets in blockbuster slowly explaining the rating systems to parents. If it seems arbitrary and inconsistent, it is. It is because it was a rushed endeavor due to the fear of Congressional regulation. They looked toward the movie industry and saw how it avoided regulation by the government and followed the same steps.

Its really as simple as that. A reactionary maneuver that is inconsistent because it was hastily put together in order to avoid government interference. Other countries simply followed the example and were far more strict about their ratings, because they were put together slowly. We should probably be thankful the ESRB was a hastily made piece of shit with tons of holes.

So, it was a reaction by a moral crusade in the government at the time by the cunt Tipper Gore in order to avoid getting regulated. The game companies didn't give a shit. They just didn't want the shitty hand of government fucking with them.

Not just Mortal Kombat, Joseph Lieberman and Hillary Clinton were also clutching their pearls over Night Trap and light guns.

 

[Mnutu]

I prefer the simpler PEGI ratings over. ESRB using age and not letters. It’s simpler.

 

[KingofNothing]

I've always wondered why Wonderful 101 got a Teen Rating despite coming out 8 years after the E10+ rating first came out

Straight from the ESRB website https://www.esrb.org/ratings/33022/The+Wonderful+101/

This is an action game in which players lead a group of small superheroes to battle an invading alien force. From a 3/4-overhead perspective, players punch, kick, and use a variety of "cartoony" weapons (e.g., swords, whips, giant claws) to defeat enemy robots and alien creatures. Combat is sometimes accompanied by large explosions, cries of pain, and purple/green splashes to indicate damage to enemies. In some sequences, players engage in one-on-one fist fights against giant enemy robots and other heroes. During the course of the game, some female characters are depicted in revealing outfits as the camera pans across their bodies. Dialogue also references suggestive material (e.g., “Did you just call me a cougar?” and “Such a haplessly big sword . . . are we compensating for something, baby blue?”). Alcohol is sometimes referenced and depicted: a hero (referred to as “Wonder-Beer”) is depicted with a frothy beer mug helmet, with text reading “Tries to get the enemies to too drunk to fight . . . he's found sleeping it off in an alley with passed-out invaders.”

The bolded material is a bit too crude for a E10 rating especially when Pink and Vijounne get into it or I'm just becoming a bit of a prude myself as I get older.

 

[Dysnomia]

The Nanny State always thinks it knows best.

Little Tommy may play the game and see some blood or boobs. Imagine the horror!

Also, morons buy M rated games for their kids all the time despite being warned at Gamestop that it isn't for kids. I've read a few stories about this. Your kid likes the cover art and you don't feel like dealing with a tantrum ten minutes before closing. So you buy an inappropriate game you are warned about. Then you are appalled when said game isn't for children. It's a game right? A toy!

It's no different than when you buy your kid a DVD with an R rating then have a fit because people are naked and being murdered.

We have to think of the children.