Game Industry Stricter Than Movies or Music

[Big B]

...So says the FTC. Kotaku has the low-down:

In its latest report to congress, the fifth and most comprehensive study since 2000, the FTC said that while the entertainment industry generally comply with their own standards, the movie, music and gaming industries continue to market adult content to a teen market.

"Self-regulation, long a critical underpinning of U.S. advertising, is weakened if industry markets products in ways inconsistent with their ratings and parental advisories," said FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras. "This latest FTC report shows improvement, but also indicates that the entertainment industry has more work to do."

...now, remind me again, which industry get's the most flak over content?

 

[Swansen]

Its all crazy, and really depends on what people find "patently offensive" and "incendiary" Really gory games in a way can be related to the adult film industry and all the trouble and craziness they get. That and movies have been around forever, so people are desensitized to them or are used to what they portray IMO.

 

[Big B]

Look at the ESRB ratings. They've been more descriptive as to what content would be deemed objectionable and listed it. Looking at the Parental Advisory, it's only been very recently that they've started to mention why a CD got a particular rating. Even then, it's more vague than an ESRB. I still remember when movies were still doing 'R' for Restricted. They've changed sooner than CD's, but still don't have the length of application time that the ESRB rating for games does.

I have a few CD's that have a barrage of F-bombs in it, yet no Parental Advisory sticker. I have others that have it once and have been slapped with that sticker. If the first set of CD's were movies, they'd be rated R, no question at all, just on account of language.

 

[Swansen]

Yeah, theres not doubt that people brush off the music and movie industries content so nonchalantly, thats a definite. Its the same struggle that all new media go through and in twenty or so years it won't even be an issue anymore, same thing happened with movies, when showing a girl with a low cut top, or if there was blood in a movie, it was going to be the damnation of the entire world. Its just really dumb that people try to push all kinds of absolutely ridiculous crap on games.