ranting: this is why games (and movies) get a bad rep

i know i've spoken out about this before, but this weekend, i was given a whole lot more fuel for my fire on parents (and retail stores) responsibility for children's media consumption.

that's a fancy way of saying, wtf parents?


hmv

jesus. with all the media coverage around gta iv, you'd think that hmv would have some sort of a talk with their employers to watch out for kids when selling the game. but no, that would be too easy.

the whole reason that people still listen to wingnuts like jack thompson is that kids are still able to (easily) get the game.

i was in hmv on friday, picking up a copy of the new kooks album, and i look to my left to see a male employee of the scarborough town centre location, not only selling the game to an obvious minor (under 5 ft tall, and looking to be around 12 years old, no adult accompaniment) but also discussing the finer points of the game. namely, how realistic the driving and gunplay are.

for god's sakes. when i go to such lengths telling people the merits of the great story in the game, and how it's intended for adults, which is why it's given the 18+ mature rating by the esrb, it pisses me off that people go and ruin it for everyone by pulling this kind of crap.

going to the movies

when i finally calmed down from seeing this spectacle, i went on to have a decent weekend.

but then, when jen and i were out shopping on saturday, we decided to go catch a flick at the mall. we went to harold and kumar escape from guantanamo bay.

now, this is not a kids movie.

i don't want to say it's not funny, or a good movie, but seriously: nine year olds should not be there. there was lots of drug consumption, a hefty portion of nudity (male and female, tops and bottoms) and while it's all in the name of jokes, there is a reason the movie is rated r in the states.

but, not only was there a dad who took his 9 year old son to the movie, but some woman in our row had a god-damned baby in the theater! what?!?!? she had a car seat propped up in one of the theater chairs.

now, not to mention the content of the flick, but isn't it really bad for a baby's hearing to be in a really loud movie theater? aren't their ears still developing at that stage and super fragile?

this weekend i was supremely disappointed by the human race and if you work at a games (or music) store and sell to minors or are a parent who doesn't take your kid to age appropriate movies or give them age appropriate video games, shame on you.

what's at stake: kids staying kids and adults getting adult content easily

seriously, you're just making it harder for of-age people to keep getting the things they want without a hassle. by being bad parents and lazy employees, you're making it harder to make and distribute interesting, envelope pushing entertainment.

and to boot, your kids are missing out on the best parts of childhood, innocence.

i know it sounds cliche, but games like GTA and movies like harold and kumar are so much better consumed when you've got a bit of maturity life experience under your belt.

and in the end, all we'll get is a homogenization of our culture because politicians and crazed parents will think that they have to save children since no one else will. and to me, that's crap.

parent your own children so that the government won't try to do it for you.

and hmv, read the esrb labels, understand them and follow them. it's really simple, you just have to believe that you can still make enough sales without a 12 year olds allowance. suggest another game, something that won't get you in trouble for selling.

/rant

JD