Vulgar Language in Games

[MagickPoultry]

What's wrong with parental guidance labels exactly?   I think disclaimers are the decent thing to do in any medium.  I don't have problems with profanity, and in some cases, I think it's more appropriate to include it.   But I recognize that some people do object to profanity, for whatever reasons, so I think it is right to inform them ahead of time if it's there.  It's a moral issue.

[juncmodule]

Parents hit the malls in droves, descending on Toys R Us and Software Etc. like locusts, looking for holiday gifts to make their children smile. Somewhere on that list is a video game or two. Some parents will scan the box, using the screenshots on the back as a barometer of whether this is something they want their child to play. A smaller number take note of the rating on the front cover, wondering what it means. Most simply grab the game and check an item off of their list.

Flash forward to the end of December. Children are blowing enemies into gelatinous piles of goo, hacking off limbs with a shotgun or watching a stripper bump and grind in DVD clarity. Parents go ballistic, blaming video games for the downfall of civilization, and the gaming industry goes on the defensive, saying parents need to more closely monitor their children's gaming habits.

That is a quote from a October 30th CNN Money article. Censorship DOESN'T WORK. All it does is take away freedom. Responsibility on the part of the "consumer" is the only thing that works. Censorship of any kind is something that dictatorships practice. I guess if that's the kind of world you want to live in...well...have fun.

-junc

[MagickPoultry]

This probably ought to be moved to the other board, but...

You're right that consumers have to be responsible, but you're wrong to think the answer is to stop being upfront about the contents of the product.  If there are no ratings or labels, it's even more difficult to know whether it will be acceptable for children or the easily offended and therefore more difficult to be a responsible consumer.  However, if you say upfront what might be objectionable and they still buy it or play it or whatever, they have no right to complain.  This is not censorship.  It is acting like an honest, courteous person ought to act.

The bottom line is:  It should remain the choice of the game's designer whether or not to include profanity or any other potentially objectionable material.  However, they should respect other people enough to warn them.  That's not censorship.

[theparanoidlsdfreak]

http://www.mega-tokyo.com/forum/index.php?board=5;action=display;threadid=1191

I am working on a game with no swearing.  It might be offensive though, because of the heavy drug content.

I will make it so that if you type in curse words in the game, you will be cursed (I actually had the idea before that South Park $H!# episode) and die.

Don't expect it any time soon though, I am barely starting the game, and I will start college soon, so I don't know how much free time I'll have to finish it.

[juncmodule]

I was thinking about that whole not about SCI thing...but, this board doesn't get much traffic anyway.

Regardless of whatever our opinions are on the matter, we all are aware that someone was offended so, if we choose to censor or not to censor...cool. Regardless, just like with GTA3 this thread is nothing but a huge promotion for "Al Pond".

That's pretty cool. I like Al Pond anyway.

Thanks!

LOL!

later,
-junc

[Andrew_Baker]

I actually worked with this cat once who played all those fancy fps's with his kids.  He had this eight-year-old who loved Aliens vs. Predator, but this guy actually sat down and played the games with his kids.

That's the difference.  Instead of casually buying the games and plugging the kids into the idiot box, this guy sat down with them and discussed the differences between gaming and reality.  He asked them questions about how a game made them feel.  He asked them if they realized that gaming behavior was unacceptable in the real world.

He monitored their internet and tv/movie content in the same manner.  If I were a parent, I would do nothing less.  I'm going to actively promote my game to parents on my site, explaining the lack of profanity.  (I'm actually using Cromer's template, so if the player uses profanity, the game will boot them)  There are other questionable matters within the game, but I'm going to address them during the intro.

I want people of all ages to play my game, but I refuse to alter the content for the sake of censorship.  I'll explain the difference between my game world and reality, and I won't deliberately use profanity, but if anyone got upset with the content of my creation, I would feel no sympathy for them whatsoever.  I have never purchased or downloaded a game without some real idea of its content.

Those parents who "accidentally" buy their kids ultra-violent games are obviously not paying enough attention.  Those kids might get into trouble, but it will be due to their lousy, ignorant, irresponsible parents, not lousy, ignorant, irresponsible games.

Word to your mother!