Video Game Bill {Updated 05/05/2005}

Again...

from Stardock Forums
Yesterday a committee of the California Assembly backed a bill to restrict the sale of violent video games to minors. Numerous bills of this type are currently pending in state and local councils across the country and two have already been ruled against for breaking First Amendment rights. The First Amendment is the same grounds that the game companies have been using for their defense all along.<BR><BR>Nonetheless, the committee passed the bill with an 8-0 vote. The California bill's sponsor, state assemblyman and child psychologist Leland Yee said "these video games teach our children how to kill, how to maim, how to hurt people; women, minorities, poor people. These are not the lessons that we should be teaching our children."<BR><BR><B>Source:</B> <A href="http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&amp;u=/nm/20050419/media_nm/media_videogames_california_dc">Yahoo News</A><BR><BR>{Updated 05/05/2005}<BR>The State of Illinois has joined numerous other states in passing a bill that will cause a stir in the video game industry. The "Safe Games Illinois Act" will make the ESRB's current software ratings null by creating their own standards and slapping them onto each game. Unlike the ESRB system the Safe Games will be able to penalize any non-compliant stores with a $1,001 fine + a mark on their permanent record. <BR><BR>From the bill we can see one clear rating, should it be approved as laid out: "'Violent' video games include depictions of or simulations of human-on-human violence in which the player kills, seriously injures, or otherwise causes serious physical harm to another human, including but not limited to depictions of death, dismemberment, amputation, decapitation, maiming, disfigurement, mutilation of body parts, or rape." Any game of this type would certainly be given an "18" rating, to match the same style rating as the Music industry.<BR><BR><B>Source:</B> <A href="http://www.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=1&amp;RecNum=3763">Press Release</A><BR><BR>However in California the opposite has happened. Leland Yee has been shot down by the California House of Representatives for the second time in as many tries. His bill, CA AB450, sounds much like the Safe Games Illinois Act in that it will also fine any retailer selling M-rated games to children under a certain age. Unlike the Safe Games bill, CA AB450 would not impose a new rating system on the media but instead continue to use the ESRB system. Lee's second attempt was shot down with a 5-4 voting, 6 votes are needed to approve.<BR><BR><B>Source:</B> <A href="http://www.iema.org/news.php">Press Release (pdf)</A>
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Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top
Pretty silly IMO.
Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top
I actually think a bill like this isn't bad, although her quote IMO is pretty ignorant theres no harm in keeping the bad games out of the hands of kids. The bill is supposed to just make the ESRB system more of a legal vending rule rather than at a distributors level. Overall I don't think it will matter because parents are so dumb about just getting their kids whatever. But at least then it won't be the VG vompanies fault at all.
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Reply #3 from Stardock Forums Top
What these people want to do is equate M-rated games with other activities that we restrict in our society. Let me ask a question (because I don't know): Is it illegal to buy a Playboy if you're under 18? If it is illegal, then I can better see their justification with this law. However, if it's not, then I find it ridiculous that they're trying to censor speech which is just as valid as what you can buy in the store in print form.

Of course, in the end, this is just another way for parents to escape their responsibilities as parents.

Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top
Personally I think R movies porn and violent video games should be illegal to purchase if you are under the age (although I think 18 is high, you can run someone down in a car at 16...) but most ppl don't seem to care. I mean you can't see R movies in Connecticut anymore unless you are WITH a parent, they can't just buy the tickets anymore...course sneaking in is way more fun....those were the days
Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top
I think that this new Illinois law is just crazy. Even the federal government has praised the ESRB as being the best rating system between music, movies and games. Now Illinois wants to throw that out? That just makes no sense at all.
Reply #6 from Stardock Forums Top
Not only that but it would waste how much of Ill. money setting up a new commitee to create enforce and rate the games...
Reply #7 from Stardock Forums Top
I wonder out of interest if the implementation of this kind of restriction on games will cause an increase in Pirated copies of games.. I'm betting it won't really - If a kid was going to buy it anyway the parent will more than likely go and buy it for them with the kids savings... But still, if it's easy enough to get them pirated without the folks knowing and without spending precious cash, It might just create an increase in pirated copies.
Reply #8 from Stardock Forums Top
Interesting thought, but I think the kids would more likely to pirate than ask their parents if its a restricted game, even though alot of parents would probably buy it for them anyways. That would just piss off the game companies even more...
Reply #9 from Stardock Forums Top
As KooPA pointed out, it's a waste of taxpayer dollars. Obviously Illinois must be running in the black...

I don't think it'll increase piracy, but it could. The law may make some parents actually think about the games their child's playing, making the child just hop online and download a warez version.