I think there's probably always going to be an issue when it comes to age ratings on games. At the end of the day, they are only games, and while some of the content might be to violent or graphic, it only reflects the real world. You can watch the news headlines and hear about sex, violence, war and prostitution, so playing a game that covers any of them topics I get IS a but different, it's still a fact of life that it does happen in the real world, and maybe people should campaign more to end it on the streets in our cities everyday, rather than trying to ban it from our game systems?
Parents: Do you follow the rating labels when buying a game for kids?
- Thread starter Zyni
- Start date
I'm a parent and to me, it depends on how old my kid is. Violence is all around us, even with the tv off, negative influences are always there. They will not be kids forever, but with proper guidance, they may fall in the right path still amidst the negativity. I religiously pick the material my kid watches, though, something once in a while slips through, but I know how to educate my kid whenever the time arises.
@Sunflogun Do you not find though that stopping somebody from playing a game just makes them want to play it even more? If you allow them to play it at least you have a certain amount of control, and at least they're not just going round to their friends house and playing it there behind your back instead.
I think ESRB ratings can be pretty misleading. The "M" rating encompasses an enormous range of content, from just a few f-bombs to near pornographic material. I really believe parents should use other avenues to determine if a game is appropriate for their child; resources like YouTube reviews and parental rating websites.
I have to agree and say that the official ratings can only be used as a guide to what's acceptable for your child or not. The parent is, or SHOULD be the one that knows their child best, and knows when they will be mature enough to play certain types of games.
Yep, that's true, but they are still too small for that, eventually when they are older they can go around me, but not this young no.
Yep, that's true, but they are still too small for that, eventually when they are older they can go around me, but not this young no.
At least your realising that in the future that IS what will happen and you'll be powerless to stop it!
Seriously though, the ratings are just meant to be a guide, and I think it's obviously down to the parent to recognise what's appropriate and what isn't for their own children.
