- Frogwart
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- Exalted Mythic Member
Posted by: Sporndog
...ratings are there to give the parents an idea of what the kids should or should not play. If the parents buy their kids a game that's rated "M", it's on their heads. They should know what the ratings mean, why the games are rated what they are, etc. Also, parents shouldn't go around blaming the source (i.e. videogames, television, internet) for their kids' problems. They should be the ones monitoring their kids' intake. What, when, why, etc. Granted, the kids need a little freedom to discover things on their own, but come on. When a 13 year old kid is playing HALO in his back yard and melees a friend in the back of the head, the parent's are partially responsible for teaching their kid that that's not right. Parents have just gotten lazy, in my opinion. They think technology is a good babysitter.
[color=white]Excellent points, but I would add that there isn't a clear idea (for anyone, really, parents or kids) of the consequences of not paying attention to the ratings and what "kids" are playing.
Just from the posts on this site, it's obvious that a number of parents have given their consent to their kids playing Halo (or not, and their kids do it anyway--my nephews have, so I need no argument or proof, thanks).
I personally don't see exactly why Halo got an "M" rating in the first place. The blood, for the most part, isn't red (except in MP, where it's all red) and the violence isn't any worse than in other games on the market. The language is PG-13 at worst, and the content is no different than that found in most PG movies.
The thing is, most kids aren't going to be visibly effected by playing a game like Halo. For every ten (or 20, or 30--I don't have statistics, does anyone?) that aren't, though, there may be one who isn't entirely grounded in reality (a job for his or her parents, not any form of technology--even Disney movies, which seem to pass for babysitters in the homes of many people with toddlers and small children) and goes off one day in some violent way. Who is to blame? No one has figured that out, and unfortunately no one is likely to, because in every case, it's a different combination of factors that affect the outcome.
Additionally, when the factors are decided in each case, who pays the price? Often it's the kids who do the deed, whatever that is. The parents, though, rarely if ever are blamed and/or punished.[/color]