| "
"Does it make any rational sense to you that we're going to pass a law someplace that says we're not going to prevent minors from buying `Passion of the Christ' or `Kill Bill' or `Texas Chainsaw Massacre' in a local store but you can't buy `Resident Evil?'" said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the Entertainment Software Association, referring to three violent movies and a popular horror-action game Deloitte & Touche predicts the worldwide number of "game compliant devices" other than PCs â€â€? mobile phones, consoles, and handheld computers, for example â€â€? will see a six-fold rise by 2010, from 415 million now to 2 A version was killed in 2002 but a revised draft is making its way through the Judiciary Committee, with 43 co-sponsors
"They look at how hypocritical our society is when it comes to judging the content or sexuality in the media," McGee said
The National Institute for Media and the Family, a critic of violent games, reports that 79 percent of stores it surveys prohibit selling mature-rated games to kids They are disturbed by games' cultural ubiquity and the always-improving technology that makes virtual gore more realistic than ever Rockstar and several major publishers refused to comment
For some legislators, that's a call to arms "
Lawmakers in at least seven states proposed bills during the most recent legislative session that would restrict the sale of games, part of a wave that began when the 1999 Columbine High School shootings sparked an outcry over games and violence Are games harmless, perhaps even cathartic, as many people who grew up playing them believe? Or are they teaching kids to be more aggressive, and in extreme cases, to kill?
To game opponents â€â€? many of whom admit they don't play video games â€â€? it's the latter
And the most popular computer game of all time is Electronic Arts Inc
Meanwhile, we're in the midst of a gaming explosion Many major chains â€â€? including Wal-Mart Stores Inc S
Still, the notion that games should be restricted is accepted elsewhere
"Vice City" trailed the top title, "Madden NFL 2004," as well as two Pokemon games and "The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker," a Nintendo Co "And they look at how these double standards or triple standards are applied to films versus games or music versus games or written fiction versus games, and it's a silly argument to get involved in The boys, who pleaded guilty to reckless homicide, reckless endangerment and aggravated assault, told authorities they were inspired by the "Grand Theft Auto" series; Thompson and another lawyer are suing on behalf of the victims
There is also the inescapable fact that the military uses video games to train its soldiers â€â€? will have a carding policy in effect by the end of 2004, though the titles are available over the Internet
"It felt like I was living it when I seen the flames coming out of windows, the blown-up car in the street, guys crawling around shooting at us," the soldier says A bill by Yee that sought to restrict the sale of games died in committee 6 billion
The next 12 months could see a flurry of new scrutiny of violent games because three controversial franchises are due to release sequels Some want the violence in some games declared obscene , would penalize retailers who rent or sell games with violent, sexual or other "harmful" content to minors
Past efforts have failed, often because of challenges from the Entertainment Software Association
Game makers have been largely silent on the issue They include "Doom," notorious as a favorite of the Columbine killers; "Mortal Kombat," with its calls for a player to "finish" opponents in myriad gruesome ways; and "Grand Theft Auto," which exhorted players in its latest iteration to start a Cuban-Haitian race war New Zealand, Brazil, Germany and several other nations have outlawed some games soldiers in the current Iraq war in his new book "Generation Kill Circuit Court of Appeals Joe Baca, D-Calif
"You can carve out some exceptions to the First Amendment when it is determined that these things we are talking about â€â€? like pornography, like alcohol, like tobacco, and so on â€â€? have harmful effects to children," Leland Yee, a Democrat in the California Assembly
"There's a culpability here that should be shared by those who are training kids to kill," Thompson said
"On average, there is a significant tendency for the studies to yield an increase in aggression by those who have played the violent games," said Craig Anderson, an Iowa State University professor and leading researcher on the effects of media violence
A St "
The opponents cite new research that they say suggests strong links between violent games and aggressive behavior They point to new studies that purport to show a stronger link between violent games and aggressive behavior than ever
Game makers counter that parents are responsible for the games kids play â€â€? and need to understand that games aren't just for kids anymore 6 Louis County law that would have limited children's access to video games was rejected in the 8th U None of the measures that passed have survived legal challenge tale featuring a kid in a green outfit who travels by talking boat and pals around with an excitable fairy named Tingle and Electronics Boutique of America Inc S
The debate reflects a divide in the way people perceive games
"Grand Theft Auto: Vice City," the best-selling game of 2002, was the only mature-rated game among the top 10 for 2003, according to NPD Fungroup, at No S
Among games' most vocal critics is Jack Thompson, a Florida lawyer who has tried, so far without success, to argue for acquittal of defendants in violent crime cases in which he believed that games made them do it
"I'm optimistic that the courts will heed their warnings
Author Evan Wright ponders the effects of video games on U , Best Buy Co A 2003 University of Rochester study found that young adults who played a lot of fast-paced video games showed better visual skills than those who did not 's "The Sims," in which the player is virtually incapable of committing any act of violence whatsoever " In an endorsement that "Grand Theft Auto" creator Rockstar Games would probably rather not get, he quotes one U That has put it under renewed attack from legislators and activists who claim some titles must be kept out of kids' hands, though courts have repeatedly granted games First Amendment protections
The game industry says legislating ultra-violent games out of the hands of children would deal a severe blow to free speech Some evidence also exists that kids don't particularly seek out violent games and don't have unfettered access to them
"Pediatricians and psychologists have been warning us that violent video games are harmful to children," said Mary Lou Dickerson, a Democratic legislator in Washington state who wrote a law now being challenged in federal court â€â€? banning the sale of some violent games to kids
Thompson is part of a $246 million case filed last year that accuses Rockstar Games, Sony Entertainment and other companies of causing two teenage stepbrothers to shoot and kill a motorist, and wound another, in Tennessee last year
In Britain, the makers of the "Resident Evil" series were made to change the color of blood from red to green, while the creators of "Carmageddon" had to make the people you run over in your car look more like zombies than average pedestrians
American McGee, who in 2000 made the last mature-rated game for Electronic Arts, "American McGee's Alice," said game publishers try not to get engaged in the debate over whether violent games cause violent behavior Lawmakers Attack Violent Video Games
Jul 4, 4:01 PM EST
The video game industry seems to delight in pushing the envelope â€â€? and the bounds of good taste â€â€? with ever-gorier content Game companies point to the industry-imposed ratings system that gives detailed descriptions of violence in a game and labels some titles as "mature" or "adults only soldier as saying an ambush felt just like playing the game
Nationally, proposed legislation by Rep |