Aussies, please correct me if this news is true.. I am so heartbroken now.

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

Uhh, Bruce Wayne?? Do you mean John...?

[Yorick]

Lav, it's a little more complicated than that man. Film/game violence does play a role in violence in society.

The James Bulger case, some years ago, proved that parenting alone does not shape childhood behaviour.

Rather, it takes a village to raise a child, and role models on TV and in games are part of that village. Especially in fatherless homes.

I mean just look at a forum like Ironworks, where kids sprout morality and personal philosophies they clearly imitatively receive from computer games.

Of course most people here, in defense of their beloved games will leap to the defense, fearful that censorship will shut down their favourite game. But that's just blind love.

Objectively we must look at the ingredients.

1.Parenting
2.Peer behaviour
3.Observation of TV/film role models
4.Role-play in computer games
5.Messages in music
6.Information in print media

I'm sure people can come up with other variables.

It's not like there's one single cause but all these elements shape a persons learned behavioural patterns.

As a professional artist I assure you, I'm no fan of state censorship. I do however, advocate SELF-censorship, and a greater responsibility placed on artists/game makers/film producers etc to help shape society towards positive ends, rather than perpetuating self-destructive tendencies in kids, just so they can make a buck.

In the case of Fallout 3, where self-censorship clearly went out the window, Australia made a decision to limit it's availability. C'est la vie. If we all chose to drive within a safe speed limit there'd be no need to fine speeders either.

[Firestormalpha]

In short children/adolescents/teens, are imitators, of almost anything they are exposed to.

[Cerek]

Originally Posted by Lavindathar This censorship/policitcal correctness is going mad.

I'll agree with you on political correctness, but I'm with Yorick when it comes to the influence games and movies can have on kids.

One reason censorship is "going mad" is because game content has also started "going mad" itself. GTA is the best example I can think of, where the player is encouraged to RP a criminal and do everything from stealing cars and using drugs to killing police officers. It's just INSANE for a game like that to be invented to begin with, IMO.

Now before everyone starts bursting veins in the necks and heads, I understand completely where you're coming from. Remember, I played AD&D (PnP version) during the mid-80's when it was widely considered an "eeeeevil, satanic influence". All it took was 1-2 random cases of AD&D players acting out their characters in r/l to give the whole genre a bad name.

I also agree with Yorick that this would be a non-issue IF we were just talking about older teens/young adults playing these games (altho that is still a very rebellious and impressionable period in most people's lives and the games could still influence their behavior). Despite the still impressionable personality at that age, you're also supposed to be old enough to exercise judgement, discernment and restraint. But younger children are NOT able to make the same judgements and discernments. If companies won't censor themselves from producing games that very realistically depict graphic violence and drug use, then governments have the right to censor the contents within their boundaries.

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

Cerek!
Is it just me, or have you been away since April!?

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

Originally Posted by Cerek I'll agree with you on political correctness, but I'm with Yorick when it comes to the influence games and movies can have on kids. One reason censorship is "going mad" is because game content has also started "going mad" itself. GTA is the best example I can think of, where the player is encouraged to RP a criminal and do everything from stealing cars and using drugs to killing police officers. It's just INSANE for a game like that to be invented to begin with, IMO. Now before everyone starts bursting veins in the necks and heads, I understand completely where you're coming from. Remember, I played AD&D (PnP version) during the mid-80's when it was widely considered an "eeeeevil, satanic influence". All it took was 1-2 random cases of AD&D players acting out their characters in r/l to give the whole genre a bad name. I also agree with Yorick that this would be a non-issue IF we were just talking about older teens/young adults playing these games (altho that is still a very rebellious and impressionable period in most people's lives and the games could still influence their behavior). Despite the still impressionable personality at that age, you're also supposed to be old enough to exercise judgement, discernment and restraint. But younger children are NOT able to make the same judgements and discernments. If companies won't censor themselves from producing games that very realistically depict graphic violence and drug use, then governments have the right to censor the contents within their boundaries.

Thanks Cerek,
..saved me all that typing!

[Cerek]

Originally Posted by Variol (Farseer) Elmwood Cerek! Is it just me, or have you been away since April!?

Uhm...yeah....since about April of 2005 to be more precise.
Don't won't to derail this thread, tho. Maybe I'll put a post in the Cafe'.

[Bungleau]

I'll join in with the "senior" folks

I'm against this PC stuff.... it goes too far, as evidenced by a kids' baseball league in Florida doing away with the All-Star game because some people wouldn't make the team and think they were good enough. It happens... either get motivated to make it next time, or get going to something else.

Games, however much I enjoy them, do have an impact. I played GTA3 at my brother's, and my driving behavior was *quite* different when we headed out to dinner. And I'm no youth/preteen/teen, either

People imitate their heroes. Guys like Joe DiMaggio, Yankee great, who was asked why, when he was playing in a meaningless game at the end of the season, was he still running full-bore as if the championship were on the line. He responded "There is always some kid who may be seeing me for the first or last time, and I owe him my best".

Contrast that with Charles "I am not a role model" Barkley. Sorry, amigo... it comes with the territory.

That's why you see so many kids running around in Hannah Montana T-shirts... hero worship on another level.

So... put it in the games? They'll imitate.

I actually stopped playing Fallout2 because it was too realistic for me. Killing monsters in battle is one thing... killing people when they're trying to run away is something else, and it didn't do good things for me.

That's where self-censorship, like Yorick said, comes into play. I won't tell others not to play FO2... I just won't do it. I probably wouldn't let my kids play it yet either; they're still a wee bit young.

[Aelia Jusa]

The problem as I understand it in Australia is that there is no 'R' classification for games like there is for movies. So if a game has content that can't be classified under MA or M, it can't be released. There is currently (because of the non-release of games like this and GTA4 (I think it is 4?)) moves to try to change the classification scheme to include an R rating.

[Cerek]

Originally Posted by Aelia Jusa The problem as I understand it in Australia is that there is no 'R' classification for games like there is for movies. So if a game has content that can't be classified under MA or M, it can't be released. There is currently (because of the non-release of games like this and GTA4 (I think it is 4?)) moves to try to change the classification scheme to include an R rating.

Or, better yet, manufacturers could change the games so they didn't include material requiring an R-rating.