Video Game Retailers = Scapegoats

I usually pass up the slew of asinine articles proclaiming video game retailers as the plight of all morally upstanding parents.  After all, we already know that if retailers would only do their part in looking after everyone else’s kid’s well-being, the world would be a crime-free utopia where all kids under the age of 17 got good grades, would stay far away from drugs and alcohol, would never beat up on the “freak kid” to the point where they’d snap & bring their father’s gun to school, and we would never, ever have any teen pregnancy issues.  Right?

I recently came across some religious site’s report about retailers selling M-rated games to minors.  In the report, one woman confronted a store manager about a 12-year old kid buying an M-rated game, and I couldn’t help but wonder, what kind of a parent lets their 12-year old kid go buy a video game all by themselves?  I mean, wouldn’t they be more concerned about their kid being snatched up by some perv on the way to or from the store (because, you know – the perv played Leisure Suit Larry or Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball, I’m sure)?  And what the heck is a 12-year old doing with $60.00 in his or her pocket in the first place – isn’t that just asking for trouble?  Good thing the 12-year old didn’t wander into a strip club – to play that Galaga video game machine of course…

Here’s the deal: I don’t care if you want to stand on a soapbox and preach the evils of video games.  I don’t care if you think you’re the epitome of righteousness.  I don’t even care if you claim to have proof from some right-wing nutbag religious fanatic website that video games are satan’s tools designed to drag the world into another Sodom and Gomorrah.  If you want any credibility whatsoever with the video gaming public, you’re going to have to first prove you’re a parent that has the ability to look at themselves before throwing rocks at others.  Otherwise, the only people you’re actually getting through to are people in your own flock who want to believe exactly what you do.

When it comes to minors, the problem isn’t video game retailers, but parents who don’t take control over what their kids play.  Don’t give the lame excuse that you weren’t aware of the ESRB, or the excuse that you have no control over what your kid plays over at his or her friend’s house: do some research, call your kid’s friend’s parents.  There is no excuse for parental apathy.

It’s called responsibility.

GTA IV: Rated M, duh.

I’ve put in about 20 hours with Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA IV) on my Xbox 360, and while it’s definitely not meant for younger gamers, it’s a game that can be appreciated for it’s comical adult material and storyline, and I’m loving every minute of it!  Sales numbers are off the charts: in the U.K. alone, a record 609,000 copies were sold on it’s release day, and there’s every indication that GTA IV will easily outsell Halo 3’s record once the numbers come in for the U.S.

So what does this tell you?  To me, it says that video games geared toward an adult target audience are not only exactly what the video game market needs, but it’s what we as adults want.  Playing games that are enjoyable by all ages is fine (there are plenty good ones out there), but it’s also nice to throw in something that has adult-oriented topics and sarcasm we can recognize & appreciate.  It’s no different than being able to unwind infront of the TV with a good “R” rated movie. 

While Jack Thompson would have you believe it’s handed out to children like crack on a playground and Rockstar Games & Take-Two Interactive peddle the game to minors like that guy in a dark alley, there’s very little mention in any of the online publications that talks about the ESRB’s rating of GTA IV, and how stores are actually asking for I.D. before they hand over the game (my wife bought my copy & she was carded at Target).  It’s absurd for anyone to suggest that these games are being pushed on minors; I’m sure there are minors who got their hands on a copy – and some probably from a store, but I think that’s a rare case considering all the hype about GTA IV and the publicity it will most certainly get.  Most likely, any minor who is currently playing the game got it from their parents – either through ignorance (a very lame argument for any adult), or because the parent has decided their kid is able to determine the difference between real life and a friggin’ video game.  The ESRB puts a huge label on every game, and by now there shouldn’t be a human alive with a gaming child who isn’t aware of what it is and what it means (another lame argument; if a parent doesn’t have the inclination to learn what those big letters mean, they’re an idiot – but let’s not go off on too much of a tangent). 

   The ESRB gives the game an M rating – for:

• Intense Violence, Blood,
• Strong Language,
• Strong Sexual Content,
• Partial Nudity,
• Use of Drugs and Alcohol 

The ESRB has 88 other games for the Xbox 360 that are rated M (meant for Mature – 17+ in age), and yet I don’t hear Jack Thompson complaining about any of them.  From all the past sensationalism Jack Thompson has tried to snatch, it’s obvious that he has a particular beef with Rockstar and Take-Two Interactive exclusively, and a simple google search will bring up a slew of incidents between the two, and his latest publicity stunt of writing a public letter to the Take-Two Interactive chairman’s mother goes to show just how low he is willing to go with his personal vendetta.

Obvious Full Disclosure: I think Jack Thompson is an ass-pimple.  In my opinion, he is a zealot with no morals, and is the epitome of bad lawyer jokes.  His overzealous attempt to be viewed as a “savior” to ignorant parents and tight-assed religious fanatics is appalling.  The only thing he’s good at is making himself look like a moronic tool who would be happier living in an ‘ignorance is bliss’ world where people like him control any and all content to be consumed by the masses (read: censorship).  That being said,  The one flaw in Jack Thompson’s grand scheme of suppression is that everytime he opens his mouth… the OPPOSITE EFFECT takes place!

Case in point: Wacko Jacko has suggested GTA IV is some sort of “cop-killing training tool” for kids; first of all – you’re a moron if you believe this.  Second – if it were anywhere near the truth, wouldn’t our streets be filled with video game playing killers right now, since he basically said the same thing about GTA III?  Jack, you need to get a grip on reality.

The truth of the matter is, GTA IV is a video game – nothing more, nothing less.  It’s a form of entertainment, met for an adult audience.  Anyone who suddenly ‘clicks’ over and becomes a killer had issues way before the game, and to blame any problem on a video game is overlooking reality.

Video Games Made Me Do It!

There are countless reports that claim video games cause youth violence or are a detriment to society – a simple google search will bring about a slew of them.  While there is some truth that video games may enhance an already ill-tempered or irrational person’s inability to control violent urges, to blame video games as the sole reason is asenine; this could only be the case if the person in question had absolutely no interaction with the world around them and had no knowledge of anything but video games.  Instead, where scientists, politicians, churches and lawmakers should be focusing their attention on is the state of our society, and how it got to where it is in the first place.  Video games are the wrong target here.

We apparently live in a society where science of any kind is twisted or flat out pushed aside for political or personal point of view.  It’s all about an agenda, only people either don’t care or are too stupid to see through the bullshit.  And people who are pushing their agenda know it.  When it’s suggested that playing a video game can be a sin, people really have to take a step back and analyze the big picture, because it’s getting to the point of absurdity.

When it comes to video game violence being the sole instigator for actual, physical violence – it’s a stretch, at best; violent video games cause actual violence as much as watching a slapstick comedy will make you obstinately clumsy.  It’s surprising to say the least that there are actually people who are not skeptical of sensationalist lawyers such as Jack Thompson who scream for headlines everytime some nutjob goes on a shooting spree – but just happens to own an Xbox, or politicians like Hillary Clinton who step up on the soapbox to denounce video games as if they’re smut being “peddled” to children – as she put it back in 2005:

We need to do everything we can to make sure parents have a line of defense against violent and sexually explicit video games and other content that is being peddled to our children. That’s why the legislation I will be introducing will put real teeth into video game ratings by instituting a financial penalty for retailers that fail to enforce the rules.

Asserting that gaming behavior is a reflection of social and moral surroundings rather than the other way around would be a more accurate statement, but it would also be way too honest and a lot more difficult of a social dilemma for most to deal with.  Instead, we find a scape-goat to blame it on and continue telling ourselves that our kids have become brain-dead, violent, foul-mouthed punks because of that damned video game console.  We never hear that people who are antagonistic in nature, who come from an abusive environment, or who suffer from a mental affliction turn to video games as an outlet to inflict upon others what they themselves have to deal with (or keep bottled up); it isn’t the video game causing the person to act like a tool – it’s the person acting like a tool while they’re playing a video game!

What is most pathetic is just how common it is, and how widely accepted and expected this behavior has become.  Case in point: I recently had a “discussion” on xbox.com with someone who insisted that nobody will read your posted opinion or even take it seriously if you aren’t insulting and degrading.  You may be thinking that this is just one instance of idiocy, but spend a little time browsing the forums and you’ll find this ideology running rampant.  This is definitely not a case of video games altering an individual’s state of mind, but an obvious effect of a person’s pathologically skewed view of how the world works invading the video game culture.  Toss in a pinch of anonymity, and you have the perfect recipe for ignorance.

When we live in a world where it’s “hip to be thug” and we use our television sets as babysitters, where we glorify “sports” like UFC and ignore drug-use in the MLB, it’s no wonder that any shred of dignity we have in the real world goes no farther than the on-button to our gaming consoles.  It’s about as ‘bassakwards’ as you can get: we don’t blame the parent for buying a 12-year old a copy of F.E.A.R., we blame the game store for not warning us about it’s content; we don’t blame our racist uncle who defiantly screams out the N-word, we blame Xbox Live for it’s lack of moral values; we don’t blame the bully in the neighborhood, we blame a video game for keeping our children from going outside to play.  The fact of the matter is, we live in a society that is easily duped into blaming something else rather than taking responsibility for anything negative.  If it isn’t blamed on video games, it’s rap.  If it isn’t blamed on rap, it’s movies.  If it isn’t blamed on movies, it’s the internet… 

Lord knows we certainly aren’t going to blame ourselves.

 

 

 

Knowing your place: ranked vs. unranked

As a casual gamer, I have little to no interest in how I rank among the world in any particular game.  On occasion, my interest has been piqued enough to give it a try – which has ended up with me getting my ass spanked – but more often than not, it’s been met with a lot of frustration and time wasted either being booted out of games unexpectedly, staring at a never-ending ‘waiting to connect to server’ message, or simply falling asleep waiting for a lobby to fill up, only to have the host decide to quit when just one more person was needed to start.  Once a ranked game has started amazingly enough, it has ended up being a spawn camping nightmare or a mad dash to grab a superior weapon (unless you’ve played the map a thousand times, you’re not getting it), or the worst: dealing with gamers whose only purpose seems to be to throw out insults nonstop to everybody, regardless if they are in the lead or not.  They will then call you a n00b once the match is over, spouting off how badly they ‘pwned’ you while they stayed in one spot on the map the entire time, picking you off as you tried to venture out & find someone to shoot at.

Unranked matches aren’t really that much different from ranked, except you have a lot more people who think everyone should be taking the game as seriously and be as knowledgeable about the gametype and map as they are.  Then, there’s the team-killers and glitch-prone nitwits who aren’t interested in actually playing the game, just on being the most annoying person you’ve ever come across on Xbox Live (after all, the score doesn’t matter; it’s not a ranked match!).  Call them on it, and they become high-pitched screamers and call you a n00b just before they leave the game.

Opinions about the type of players themselves aside, ranked and unranked games do have their place, and every gamer should be aware of theirs.  I’ve always thought of ranked games being a haven for those who take their gaming more serious than everyone else, with the whole point of competitive play being their priority.  Unranked games, on the other hand, are more about having fun, not caring about winning or losing as much, and trying out different gametypes that aren’t always found in the ranked version of the game.

The problems come up when gamers who should be in ranked matches because they are way too serious join up in an unranked match and bitch incessantly about everyone else’s experience and abilities.  On the flip side, if you’re a gamer who isn’t familiar with a gametype’s objective, or don’t use a mic, or don’t have the skills needed in your own opinion to “keep up” with the big boys – you shouldn’t be jumping right in to a ranked match.

example of a no skilled noob in a ranked match

In the end, it’s all just a game; but use some common sense…  If you’re competitive, get pissed off because people don’t play the way you think they should, or think you’re badass enough – stick to ranked games.  If you do play an unranked game, keep your elitist bullshit comments to yourself and remember that not everyone else in the game thinks you’re such a cool guy if you have to be making flippant comments every two seconds.  Nobody cares about your damn rank.  Likewise – if you’re new to a game, don’t have any skill, or can’t communicate when it comes to a team game – stick to unranked matches where it really doesn’t matter.  Don’t drag everyone else down because you’re a tool.  It’s all about knowing your place, and respecting it.

Down with Video Game Perks

Call of Duty 4 isn’t the first game to offer a perk system, but it looks like it’s becoming the newest trend in games, particularly in the shooter genre, which I think is a shame.  Perks – a system that rewards players with special attributes or abilities based on their amount of time spent in-game – will only reduce the type of content developers add  because the overall emphasis will be to constantly ‘level up’ instead of just enjoying the game for what it is.  If the focus is only to create an artificial advantage over other players by unlocking better items or having better stats, the fun factor quickly goes downhill.  Whatever happened to the idea of simply out-gaming your opponent on an even footing?

Some may argue that in order to unlock perks in CoD4, you need to have skill – but I’ve put that to the test by climbing up the ranks and unlocking perks easily enough, and I am not what you’d consider an expert player (believe me, I’m never going to see the top of any game charts with my skills – or lack of them).  The fact of the matter is, all that really is required to level up or unlock most perks, abilities, attributes – whatever – is spending a whole lot of time glued in front of the TV with the console running and controller in hand.  The problem is that it’s a huge frustration to get your ass handed to you over and over until you’ve reached the top of the perk pile and can finally start dishing out what you’ve had to take.

In the video game market, competing developers are going to copy that which proves to be successful.  But what ends up happening more often than not is that it becomes overly satiated and causes the gimmick (let’s be honest here; that’s all a perk system really is) to grow stale and generally loathed by the gaming populace to a large extent.  This not only creates a massive overkill in a genre by having every single game just like the last one (WWII shooters, for example, or games with bulking alien monsters in the wake of Halo2), but it causes developers to fall into that stagnant ‘must have’ game requirement, pushed by the demand of stockholders.  Worse still – it causes casual gamers who jump onto Xbox Live looking for a little down time to become frustrated (“wow, I’m respawning – again!”) and quickly turn their attention away from what might otherwise be an outstanding game.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not against perks or a game’s innovative solutions to an over abundant genre; Halo’s matchmaking is top-notch and that’s something I wish every game took advantage of…  I just don’t want to have to spend every waking moment playing a game to unlock something that will get me on a level playing field with everyone else!  If a game offers an option for perks, that’s fine; but let’s not go overboard and make the entire game based around it.  And if a game is going to be based around perks, how about setting it up so that the people you’re gaming against have the same amount of them?

 

Loyal Fan? So what!

When does going from enjoying a game like everyone else reach the point of thinking you actually have more of a role in the game – like how it should be enjoyed by others?

I find it hilarious when I go to a specific game’s community site to browse and I get the sense that the few dozen or so “loyal fans” registered speak like their opinion of what the game is all about and what the “proper” way to play the game is should be the only one that matters.  I literally laugh out loud when I read something to the effect of: “If you want (place game’s type/addition/consideration here) then go find a different game…”   The fact of the matter is, there are many more fans of the game that don’t have 10,000 posts on a specific game’s community site that also have an opinion about the “proper” way to play the game – and it may not be the same as a few dozen or so “loyal fans!”

It’s time that people remember that it’s just a game; there will be those who enjoy playing the game differently than they do (or, maybe the same way – who knows).  When fans who buy a game insist that their way is the only way to enjoy a game and if anyone says different – they need to consider putting the controller down, stepping back from the keyboard, and taking a deep breath.

While I’m sure that developers take into account the loyal fan’s opinions, those fans have to be reminded that the developers must also take into account the casual gamer’s opinion just as much – probably more; the game has to be able to sell to a wider mass market (it’s not like a couple dozen copies are going to pay the bills, right?).

I can relate to one issue loyal fans of a game series continually find themselves facing: they’ve finally found a game – a niche – where they truly feel at home because a developer is able to fly under the radar and make a game the way they envision it should be like, and suddenly the demand is there to make a follow up that sells even better… so they have to begin catering to a wider market, which means – you guessed it – the game goes the way of mass market casual.

We’ve all felt that little tinge of betrayal stabbed into our backs when we realize the next volume in our cherished game series (usually after paying for it) has been reduced to just another game in the genre.  However, even dissed fans don’t have a right to demand that anyone else be restricted to their preferred way of playing the game.

When it comes down to it, games are meant to be played, and people – no matter what you think or say – are going to play them the way they feel like it.  So how about showing a little courtesy and respecting that fact?  It might lead the next guy who comes along will respect your opinion and not tell you to go find another game to play if you don’t play it his way.  Because even if you think you’re a hardcore gamer who demands respect, or a casual gamer who just wants to unwind for an hour – you’re just another gamer whose opinion doesn’t mean anything to the next console over.