M-rated games

[frodo2968]

OK, I've been thinking lately that a big reason that some games "make" it so big is because of their "M" rating. If a game is good, and is rated Mature, then lots of kids in the 13-year-old age range will be playing it and making a big fuss over it mainly because it's a game for "adults" according to the rating. Thus it is "cool" to them because it "makes them look older".

You know what I'm saying?

I mean games like Halo, Couterstrike, GTA, etc. Half the reason that lots of kids play them is because it'll make them look "cool" in the eyes of other kids.

"I'm gonna go play Halo"
"Cool. Isn't that rated Mature?"
"Yep"
"Cool!"

Agree? Disagree?

[Iron Draggon]

Very much agreed. It's just like smoking cigarettes underage or drinking underage or doing illegal drugs. Do it, and you're cool. It's the same with music and movies and games. If it's forbidden to you because of your age, then that just makes it even more attractive to you because of your age.

[frodo2968]

Yeah. Like when you're in a store and this little 10-year-old is getting his parents to buy him CD's with the Parental Advisory. Heh.

[Muscelli]

so agreeable, my 12 year old neighbor only buys m rated games... he turned down ratchet and clank to get true crime... hes a dumb ASS

[Half Japanese]

There are lots of games that bend over backwards trying to be edgy when they don't need to be. Take a look at Prince of Persia: Warrrior Within. The first game (rated T) was a modern masterpiece, but unfortunately didn't sell like one. The new one is filled with unnecessary cussing, T&A, buckets of blood and more combat. I played for a little while and was just turned off by it's new dark coat of paint. Give me one like last year's model!

I chalk it up to well over half the nation being on a fucking mental vacation. It's the same reason the store I work at part time sold out of Catwoman (on DVD, though selling out of the game would also be commendable for its' sheer sigh-worthiness), and why games like the aforementioned True Crime outsold superior games like PoP: Sands of Time. Why think or be challenged when you can set the ol' pink lump on cruise control and enjoy explosions, cussing and all of the warning signs of a delusional retarded bovine?

[tony_good]

If that's true, then why are there almost no AO rated games? You'd think those would be even more profitable.

Then again, a GTA-style game just wouldn't be right without at least an M-rating.

I must admit that my favorite modern games almost always have an M rating.

[Mr.FoodMonster]

No. Completely disagree. Because I was 13 when there where M rated games, I know what its like. Just because a game is intended for 17+ dosn't automatically make you want to play it. You may think so in the sence of 'Those silly kids', but thats not the case at all.

[joshnickerson]

Take GTA, slap a big ol' "E" on the box, and I guarantee no one would give a crap about it.

[Algol]

If that's true, then why are there almost no AO rated games? You'd think those would be even more profitable.

Simply because there aren't any stores in North America that would want to sell any such game. At least none that I know of.

I wouldn't say that an "M" rating alone makes an automatic best seller; GTA and Halo sell because in the opinions of many, they're just good games. However, I do believe that M rated games do get points due to the whole forbidden fruit-ness of what comes with that rating. In other words, GTA will get someone's attention faster than say, Katamari Damacy just because of the rating and controversy surrounding it.

[SoulBlazer]

There ARE AO games. I recently got two -- Lesiure Suit Larry: MGM and Singles. However, both are PC games, both I ordered and downloaded from online, and both have M rated versions sold in stores. AO games need to be sold online to get around the restrictions that stores have.

[Aussie2B]

Yes and no. I think it's more about what goes into the game receiving such a rating than the rating itself. Most kids these days, at least most young boys, are attracted to anything and everything that has blood, gore, sex, cursing, etc. Like it or not, but modern America is turning into a society absolutely obsessed with and in love with fantasy violence.

The M rating helps confirm to kids that it'll contain all the stuff mentioned above, but really, look back to when Mortal Kombat came out. There was no rating for it, but kids were still attracted to it because of the whole "Oh shit, he just ripped out his spine! Look it all that blood, man!" factor.

[doomedpeasant]

No. Completely disagree. Because I was 13 when there where M rated games, I know what its like. Just because a game is intended for 17+ dosn't automatically make you want to play it. You may think so in the sence of 'Those silly kids', but thats not the case at all.

I agree with foodmonster. I'm 15 and and have never payed attention to any game ratings, i buy my games based on the gameplay and the storyline more than anything. i dont give a rat's ass what other people think of me. so if i think it looks interesting im going to buy it whether it was EC or AO and anywhere in betwen.

[frodo2968]

I never said that this was true in every case, ya know ;). I completely realize that a lot of people play games solely because they like the game.

I'm just suggesting that a big factor in the success of many games is only because of it's M rating.

For example, I seriously doubt that Halo would have been NEARLY as big a thing if it's Teen rating had stayed.

I mean, seriously now. So many people make such a big thing of the "story", but what's so great about it? The planet is being invaded by aliens, and MC has to save the planet. Um...OK...

And is the game so revolutionary? I don't think so. It's just a normal shooter. That's all.

And don't think that I never gave Halo a chance. I did. I bought the game, and seriously tried liking it. I wasn't skeptical at all about it.

Thoughts?

[Humanoid]

The M rating is a large draw to many people my age. (15) The average kid seems prefer M rated games over others. I hear plenty of talk about GTA or Halo 2 at our school, and yet equally as good or better games (Ratchet and Clank, GT4, etc.) get dumped upon.
Of course, I think hype has to do with it too. People want to be part of the "in crowd" so they buy into the Halo or GTA hype. Sure, they're both pretty good games, but there are certainly better ones.

[frodo2968]

Yes, but kids do play a huge role in the hype...

[magmax]

When I was a kid , Sonic 3 was just as cool as DOOM , vid games are aren't like drugs or whatever kids play what they like, not because of the rateing :hmm:

[crazyjackcsa]

I think there is an age for this kind of thinking, and it's around the same age as "I hate my parents"

You start off playing games just becasue you love it, no matter the game, It's all about quality.
Then you enter into the age where it has to be "cool and edgy", because that's what you are and apperance is important
Then as you get a little older, It turns into, screw it, I don't really care about being cool and edgy, where are the good games at?

Not everybody goes through these cycles, but a lot do. As an aside, My parents never limited what I played, ever My Parents bought me Mortal Kombat when Myself and my sister where 12 and 9 years old. I think to a large extent that's why I didn't go through the stages, because if a game wasn't forbidden, then there wasn't that added incentive.

[dj898]

i'm waiting for the day when they will have NR titles... :p

[evildead2099]

So many people make such a big thing of the "story", but what's so great about it? The planet is being invaded by aliens, and MC has to save the planet. Um...OK...

And is the game so revolutionary? I don't think so. It's just a normal shooter. That's all.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that Halo is "revolutionary," but the game was unique in the sense that no FPS featured enemies which reacted as strategically and life-like as those of Halo.

I agree that "M" ratings may influence the public's reception of games, but I don't think the phenomenon is as prominent as you make it out to be.

Final Fantasy sells a buttload of copies every time a new installment in the series comes out. EA's Madden games sell through the roof despite the absence of "wardrobe malfunctions" ;)

[frodo2968]

i'm waiting for the day when they will have NR titles... :p

Seriously, I've been surprised for a while now that they haven't had those. I mean, think of all the possibilities ;)

[XxMe2NiKxX]

You guys don't know squat about kids.

[frodo2968]

You guys don't know squat about kids.

WTF? I'm still a kid, so I think I know a little about kids... :hmm:

[Humanoid]

You guys don't know squat about kids.
I also am a kid, so I should know a little bit about being one.

[dj898]

i'm waiting for the day when they will have NR titles... :p

Seriously, I've been surprised for a while now that they haven't had those. I mean, think of all the possibilities ;)

think of the possibilities...

and also other editions...
directors cut
programmers cut
designers cut
producers cut
publishers cut
marketing dept cut
reviewers cut
...

he he

[Nesmaster]

Take GTA, slap a big ol' "E" on the box, and I guarantee no one would give a crap about it.

took the words right out of my mouth, and yes i agree with what the original poster had to say.

[Muscelli]

they had a leisure suit larry uncut for the computer

naughty

[dj898]

Xbox release in Europe is also uncut unlike US release...

[Graham Mitchell]

I remember being about 12 or 13, and being absolutely obsessed with the Genesis version of the Immortal. Not only was it a great game, it was extremely, gratuitously violent. My dad walked in while I was playing it, and saw me slice a goblin in half and basically banned the game from the household. After that point, I did everything I could to sneak that game back into house. I don't know if that was because of the violence or, as anyone who has played it will vouch, it's an amazing game, and looks and sounds great on the Genesis.

About a year later, I was older and my parents' policies towards violent or sexually-themed materials relaxed severely. It was around this time that Mortal Kombat was released. I spent so much money playing that game in the arcade, and I owned the Genesis, Sega CD, and SNES versions of it, and I'm sad to say that it had to be the violence that kept me so fascinated with it. Let's face it, MK isn't exactly a deep game. If I was 26 and saw that game for the first time, I would have thought it was stupid. But the violence was such a strong factor that it compelled me to buy that game MULTIPLE TIMES.

In conclusion, I think for some people of a certain age group, the naughty parts of a video game really can be their main selling points. This stuff sells, as Hollywood will show you.

I was also heavily teased for playing and collecting games all through elementary and middle school--until Street Fighter II came out, and everybody wanted to come over to my house to play it. The violence, sex, and profanity in games seemed to escalate more and more with each generation of console (remember Loaded for PS1? You blast people into bloody smears and there's porno magazines all over the floor and walls), and with each new generation, video games became more and more accepted by the mainstream. I'm not saying the increased adult content CAUSED the increase in gaming popularity, but I think it definitely accompanied it. Something to think about.