Grand Theft Auto IV & the ESRB Ratings
With the release of Grand Theft Auto IV and all of the attention it has been receiving about its content, I wanted to visit the ESRB rating system to help shed some light on the uninformed. There are quite a few different ratings a game can receive. E (Everyone), E10+ (Everyone 10+), T (Teen), M (Mature) and a few more. I’ve had a few parents approach me asking for my opinion on buying the game for their 13 or 14 year old kid and I was really surprised at my response. I told them that I wouldn’t recommend it. I wouldn’t allow my daughter to play it even if she were 13 or 14 so I responded with that in mind.
There are some things in the game that even I had to ask if it was too much. Controversy is what this game has been about and apparently that’s not going to change. GTA IV is rated Mature. Let’s look into the game and break down its rating shall we?
Mature titles are meant for those who are 17 years of age or older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language. Intense violence includes graphic and realistic-looking depictions of physical conflict. It may involve extreme and/or realistic blood, gore, weapons and depictions of human injury and death. Blood and gore includes depictions of blood or the mutilation of body parts. Sexual content includes non-explicit depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including partial nudity. Strong language includes explicit and/or frequent use of profanity.
I took this information from the ESRB and simply put it into one paragraph for easy reading. For a title like Grand Theft Auto IV, you could throw in quite a few more content descriptors like Drug Reference, Mature Humor, Sexual Themes etc. Should we expect a 13 or 14 year old to process things of a violent or sexual nature as well as a 17 year old? Yes, I know that today’s society even some 8 year olds know about this stuff but work with me here. Anyone younger than 17 years old shouldn’t be playing this game because a Mature rated title is clearly not intended for them.
Adult Only titles are meant for those who are 18 years of age or older. Titles in this category may include prolonged scenes of intense violence and/or graphic sexual content and nudity. Intense violence includes graphic and realistic-looking depictions of physical conflict. It may involve extreme and/or realistic blood, gore, weapons and depictions of human injury and death. Sexual content includes non-explicit depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including partial nudity. Nudity includes graphic or prolonged depictions of nudity.
Some people in the media have suggested an AO rating for GTA IV and once you digest the rating system, you’ll probably find little reason to suggest their argument makes no sense. It does make a small bit of sense on some scale judging by the descriptors above. What exactly is the difference from 17 years old (Mature) to 18 years old (Adult Only)? I’d say a few million dollars. Most retail chains have a policy that doesn’t include the sale of titles with an AO rating from the ESRB. One has to wonder how many checkmarks short on the rating checklist was GTA during the grading from the ESRB panel.
The keyword in both of these descriptions is “prolonged”. Once you get more familiar with the rating system, you’ll see that Grand Theft Auto IV’s saving grace was that it went away from any lengthy use or depiction of sexual content, nudity or violence. Yes, the ability to do so is there but that’s only at the player’s discretion. You have to choose to do some of these things in the game and although the tools are there, it’s not depicted in the game for a prolonged period unless there’s a trigger. And yes, you are the trigger.
In other words, you’re not being fed a consistent image via cutscene and you’re not able to walk the streets to see prostitutes constantly giving BJ’s in the alley. And the fact that you don’t constantly see it with no trigger is what likely saves most Mature rated titles from being Adult Only. What I’m hoping for is that parents get themselves familiar with the ESRB ratings of these games. Know how to operate the parental controls on the Xbox 360. There is information available and ways to help make the right gaming decision for you and your home. All it takes is a little effort and willingness to know.
Grand Theft Auto IV is a violent game that has a lot of “in your face” depictions that I wonder myself if they’re really needed. Did Rockstar go too far? Did they push the limits of what is acceptable in a video game? Would it be GTA without it? I don’t make the big bucks to answer that so all I can do is restrict the effect that it has in my home. I control the effect of Grand Theft Auto IV and I hope the information here will help others out there control it too.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:26 am
Maybe I’m just to passive with my parenting I don’t know LOL.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:41 am
Great article as usual, Deac. Parents really need to be educated about this. A lot of parents buy these types of games for their children without checking the rating or looking at the content descriptor.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:47 am
very well written Mr. Deacon! and i second Kinjutsumaru. but i am guilty of not knowing what the descriptors actually meant lol. so thanks Deacon!
May 6th, 2008 at 11:58 am
I know what all the ratings mean but I haven’t found one I have restricted fully yet. Some scenes of GTA my son doesn’t watch but for the majority he plays it.
May 6th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
yeah that plays into basically how ratings are broken down. there are “some” things you could come across but then you have to trigger those things yourself.
you’re cool Rhyme because you’re always there to limit whatever it is.
May 6th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Yeah and besides my son is at the age now where girls are not cool LOL.
May 6th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
“I told them that I wouldn’t recommend it.”
You did the right thing Deacon.
(golf clap)
May 6th, 2008 at 2:15 pm
I don’t think Rockstar went too far or pushed the boundaries of what’s acceptable. It’s pretty pathetic how the main stream media keeps attacking the game and spreading misinformation about it. Is it a game that kids should be playing? Absolutely not. It’s a mature game that deserved the M rating it got. An AO rating would have been unnecessary. Saints Row didn’t really draw much hate or controversy and I think that game had more questionable material.
May 6th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
big titles get big attention. Saint’s Row and GTA are in some regard the same title but no one would argue against the fact that GTA is the king.
the media targets the higher profile games. tis a shame but that’s the way the cookie crumbles
May 6th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
My knee jerk reaction at first, thinking I could yank someone out of car, cap them on the spot, run to a strip club and have a lap dance, pick up a hooker, and then get drunk and drive off was WTF! Crazy, but the fact is the more I’ve looked at this, the more I see its freedom of choice and you don’t have to do those things at all. The game doesn’t force you to go on a rampage. Yes this is a title, worthy of Adult, perhaps, but if not its really high on that limit. I feel that only 17+ should play the game, its my opinion and feeling. Rhyme’s doing what’s best for his family and being the parent. He knows what limits to set and is there to talk about stuff with his son. As for AO rated games, sounds like I’ll never see a title like that, but at least with GTA IV, I can very well see where the line is drawn now.
May 6th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
I used to work at a video rental store from 2000-2003, and I helped many parents understand the rating system more. Around that time, the ESRB started putting descriptors, like “Mild Language, Blood”. Parents found this extremely helpful in deciding what games to get for their children.
Around that time the MPAA also started using descriptors similar to the ESRBs for movies that I find quite helpful and also showed many parents.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
I have the situation of having all different ages in my home. My 21 yr old and I play GTA. My 13 yr old can play with his older brother, who is ahead in the game. Older bro skips scenes and mutes it for younger bro. Mostly though he plays racing games with his friends. He plays where we all can see him with the volume at zero.
That said, Im sure I’ll still take heat for this, but I feel he is properly supervised.
All families are different as are all children. I respect any parents choice on gaming for their child when they are involved. It’s those who dont care and just throw games at their kids that upset me.
I actually had a mom ripping me about playing Halo3 when her college aged daughter said “Your 12 yr old son plays GTA mom” This mother had NO IDEA about the game. BE INVOLVED!
Nice job Deac…thank you!
May 6th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
i think its all the parents fault with all the complaints of young kids playing these games, im not even gunna get myself started. it will just be !!!alien side boob all over again!!!!
May 6th, 2008 at 10:51 pm
I have to disagree with your comment about 13 and 14 year olds. I am 14 and the majority of my games are Mature and I understand what is being presented to me.
May 7th, 2008 at 6:42 am
what’s to disagree with? Mature titles aren’t meant for anyone under 17. that’s a fact. i know there are those like you who understand the game but the fact remains though that Mature titles are meant for those 17 and older. just the facts
May 7th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
saw a very cool photoshopped GTA IV cover here:
http://www.worth1000.com/contest.asp?contest_id=19203&display=photoshop&page=1#entries
if anyone is interested, check it out!
May 7th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
lol @ Ray Charles. that’s wrong.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:12 pm
“what’s to disagree with? Mature titles aren’t meant for anyone under 17. that’s a fact. i know there are those like you who understand the game but the fact remains though that Mature titles are meant for those 17 and older. just the facts
”
That is not a ‘fact.’ Games are developed for whatever audience is willing to buy them, regardless of their age. It’s the ESRB that suddenly steps in and decides who the games are meant for. Sorry, but your statement is just a non sequitur. Who games are ‘meant for’ shouldn’t be the determining factor on who should get to play them.
It’s a little off topic, but I’m fed up with the ESRB, MPAA, and censorship in general. Censorship only harms our children. They’re already exposed to most of these concepts daily. For the rest of these concepts, what good does hiding our children from them achieve? They’re only unprepared when they encounter these things in real life. Sixteen year olds can’t play a game like Grand Theft Auto, but in just one year they can be in the military fighting, experiencing it all and more first hand. Retailers should man up and distance themselves from the ESRB. The ESRB ratings are incredibly useful to educate parents, but that should be the extent of their use and power.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
hey don’t blame me Gibson..blame the ESRB and Jack Thompson