This is just coming from experience, and still narks me when I think about it. Was a few months back a relative came over with his swanky Xbox 360 (which I am jealous of cos I STILL don’t have one!) and I saw him playing a game. Me being naturally interested in games (And Xbox deprived) I am to games like bees are to honey so I swung on in there and wanted to have a go.

The game revolved around you stealing and driving cars and doing tasks of taking out people with various types of weapons (I think you know which one game I’m talking about here!). I was staggered to learn he had managed to obtain this game and so I interrogated him by how he managed to get this game.

Me: “Hey lil dude, what you got there, oohh Xbox 360, me wants to have a play!!”
Relative: “Sure!”

(Not like the poor kid has a choice mind you, I swoop in like a hawk and nab the controller off him! And after few mins of playing I’m just a bit concerned…)

Me: “Eh, Dude, this game is a bit violent no?”
Relative: “It’s cool though, you get to shoot people and steal cars and stuff!”
Me: “But eh… it says on the packet it’s an 18 rate…”
Relative: “Yeah?”
Me: “You’re 11 years old!!”
Relative: “Yeah???”
Me: “well how in hell did you buy the game!?!?!”
Relative: “Oh, *Insert grown up person of age 18 and over here* bought it for me for my *Insert special event here!!*”
Me: “WHAAAA???!!??” *shakes fist of rage*

Now usually I’d be shaking the parent/relative vigorously, asking them why and what in their right mind are they doing, but unfortunately they weren’t available!

But one thing I have to say is this…

IT’S AN 18 RATED GAME FOR A REASON!!!!

>_< <—- Yes I am pulling that face as I type this!

I mean you wouldn’t give alcohol or cigarettes to a child now would you? The same reasoning should be applied to the games rating system. If they’re not of age, then don’t buy it for them. It is common sense after all.

And you hear on the news “games blamed for child violence on others” etc etc. Well, how did they get their hands on the game in the first place? I would assume that game stores and sellers have the sense not to sell an 18 or even a 15 rated game to someone who looks underage to play it. Do they even ask you for ID when you’re buying a game and you happen to look younger? (I got asked once for ID when buying lotto tickets, 16 is the legal age, I was 21 at the time! Ha! I find that quite flattering *n_n*)

But then there is the internet. Children can seemingly buy games with ease with their own pocket money just as long as they have an account and a bank card, then it’s all hunky dory. They get the game. No questions asked.

It’s good that the rating system is going in for an overhaul. But i just hope thye don’t go too overboard with it, as in for example, take a good game like Super Mario series and put it a rating of “12″ because it contains “Mild head stomping of animals, pyromania and drug induced growth by mushroom eating” !

Sometimes I hear “But it’s only a game Sooz, kids play on them all the time! What’s the fuss?” You are kidding me!?? What kids’ game do you know that takes you where you have to slice baddies with a overly sized sword or makes you go on a gun totting killing spree to say the least? Games aren’t just for kids, they’re for us adults too and with the market focus widening it’s audience, all the games are varied in nature.

I think exposing a child to that kind of violence and adult related content at such a young age just desensitizes them to a degree that what they do and play holds no value in the game or in real life. Kids are growing up far too fast. Let them be innocent for a while in their lil fluffy safe haven bubble until they fully understand the values and morals of life.

- Suzie

And since us women are obsessed (including myself) with our weight, it’s all weight loss pills, miracle diets that make us prick up our ears and get easily reeled in by it all. We’re all surrounded by this media and there’s no way of getting away from it. Now, computer games, being part of this media, is also a source of influence for the modern day child, but how about the modern day woman? You may sometimes hear men going “PHWOAR!! Her boobs jiggle”, the average woman saying “*Gasp* But that’s sexist!” I kinda look at it and go “Hmm that’s actually quite impressive but is it necessary in game-play or enhance the game-play experience?” Fair enough the game is promoting “realistic physics” but if you’re viewing the game-play as a FPS or an over the shoulder 3rd person, then what’s the point? But compared to what women are faced with the advertisement media, promoting emaciated looks and thin shapeless bodies, at least over sexed women in games have body shape.

Now some glamour-zons may say to me “But Sooz, they’re not real, they’re not real people.” Neither are the faces and bodies you see in adverts. They’re all artificial in some way and no doubt they have had touch ups done here and there! At least in games they show you “yeah this is a man’s ideal of what game women look like” but you rarely get to see that kind of thing in the main stream media. It’s even my ideal that women should have boobs (at least!) and a curvy figure and be healthy looking (Unless she’s a zombie of course!) But in all fairness, you don’t actually get to see many thinner woman or larger ladies who have more to love (Stick thin zombies don’t count, nor do the Jabba the Hut variety mutant of the female kind!). Maybe games companies should make women with different body shapes, like larger woman or slimmer women characters which play a substantial plot in the game. At least it would level the playing field and make it more realistic, and isn’t that what nearly all games companies are aspiring to do? Not every woman has the same body type. Everyone is different, but everyone should be healthy! So all in all, at least Computer games are promoting “meatier” woman, and not woman you just want to buy a sandwich for! I’m glad that games do promote curvy figured women, at least I don’t feel pressurised to “fit in” while I play.

Suzie