Yet more fuel for the argument that parents need to be responsible for their children has surfaced recently, with a new poll from MyVoucherCodes revealing that 39% of parents let their kids play games beyond their age level.
Surprisingly, a further 25% of parents played the game with their child. The UK site also revealed that 53% of parents polled let their kids watch 18+ movies such as Borat or Saw, while 66% of parents are fine with their snotlings playing explicit music from such wonderful suburban poets as Eminem and Jay Z.
This is fine of course. If a parent believes their child is mature and intelligent enough to handle more adult-themed content, that should be their choice. However, I would hope that any parent allowing this would be held to account if their little brat stabs someone in the eye, and doesn't rush to blame the videogames that they themselves allowed in the house.
Seems to me that most parents are absolutely fine with violent videogames ... until they need a scapegoat.
39% of parents let kids play unsuitable computer games [Network World]
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Contest:
5:00 PM on 01.04.2010
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That last point especially.
First music was villified: 66% of parents are cool with explicit music.
Then film was villified: 53% of parents are cool with explicit films.
Then videogames are villified: 39% of parents are cool with explicit videogames.
@X
Hit the nail on the head.
@Xzyliac
Yeah, technology sure is scary.
jeez, no more psp comments.
I am pretty sick of parents and politicians instantly blaming video games instead of their inability to control their children.
This is fine of course. If a parent believes their child is mature and intelligent enough to handle more adult-themed content, that should be their choice. However, I would hope that any parent allowing this would be held to account if their little brat stabs someone in the eye, and doesn't rush to blame the videogames that they themselves allowed in the house.
Pretty much this. I played MGS when I was about 9 or 10 and one of my aunts bought me GTA2 one Christmas when I was 11 (I had asked for Colin McRae rally 2 but the shop assistant had bullshitted her and said it was pretty much the same but I certainly wasn't going to exchange it) and have played violent games ever since then and it never affected me negatively. It's mainly that people don't want to accept responsibility for their actions so when their child turns out to be a violent little arsehole they blame anything but themselves and the violent games that they used as a babysitter comes to the top of the list.
I grew up just fine. Never been to prison, never committed a crime of any kind. The only time I ever showed any violence of any kind were when my brother and I would watch football games, then we'd run outside and tackle the shit out of each other.
Exactly. Everything is fine and dandy till shit starts rolling downhill.
Hey, my folks let me watch Faces of Death and other smut videos, and look how I turned out!
What I was going for was that controversy blows over but technology is scary. You've seem Terminator right?
However they are a bit more leniant with my younger brother, though he still can't play 18 rated games. He's 12 and completed AC2 in the space of about 3 days.
cuz l4d2 in aussie is crap.
I've never heard of people linking violent video games to violence here, in the land of Aus.
Not to claim I know more about your country than you do but if that's the case why do they feel the need to ban everything? Or perhaps because they ban everything there's no panel of discussion on the subject?
Honest question. Why would they ban something they consider non-influential?
I think that honestly, since there isn't much of a focus on videogames in the media, most non hardcore gamers don't even realize there is no R rating. Most games used to just get rated M-A but because recently (as in this current generation) they have begun to look too real for that to slide, the government has a couple of times actually tried to update the system to include an R-18 rating, but each time attorney general Atkinson blocks it, and only Atkinson. It really is one man imposing his will on the populace (now keep in mind this guy is ancient, may have never played a game in his life, and is also which is the whole problem. See, they aren't banned so much, theres just no rating for them. its truly ridiculous.
so the most accurate comparison I can think of is some old churchie from america's deep south, finding himself in a position to singlehandedly stop the sick filth that is videogames from having an R rating. Leaving the ratings board unable to give a rating to anything that should fall into the R18+ category, leaving those games in limbo, or slotted into the M-A15+ category in most cases.
I can understand the confusion, its stupid.
but yeah, not a peep about it in the media. they also didn't care about no russian, or sex in mass effect (both of those got through fine). or anything like that. the only one who cares it seems, is atkinson.
I guess that makes some sense.
It genuinely depressed me. People shouldn't be like this, this shouldn't happen. It just shouldn't.
I was referring to how (some) people are afraid of gamings realism. Thus said controversies.
That is messed up. I agree that it shouldn't happen. Guess this is one of the cases where you could say "like father, like son"...
I was playing GTA when I was about 9 years old, watching 18+ rated movies as young as 6. (Probably younger, can't remember exactly)
Same with my cousins, my boyfriend and a few other people I know.
And we all grew up just fine. =)
Now if it was 39% and the kids are all aged between 6 and 8 or something crazy then that's f***ed up right there.
1) Don't realise there are adult games - just bad, nasty games for naughty kids.
2) Aren't smart enough to use a website beyond facebook, and BBC news, let alone one that will save them money online - these guys are strict high-street window lickers, therefore wouldn't be part of this poll.
Have this poll on facebook and I'm sure we'd get a much different result.
Hopefully that's the case rather than 'FUCK YAAAARRRR VIOLENCE - I'M SUCH A FUCKIN' COOL PARENT'.
...hopefully.
Same thing with internet porn. It isn't bad because kids will see naked people, its bad because they won't need to be resourceful to see naked people. They're going to grow up soft.