Colin StevensGTA 4 - Dial MA for Murder
June 2nd 2008 04:27
Don't look back in anger, GTA
The controversy rages on as it ever has, GTA 4 being the latest in the line of video games to hit our shores that has tested the boundaries of our morality. Too much has been written about the issue already for there to be need for me to add to it, suffice to say that anyone who had played the game, which is meant to be the watered down version, knows that an R rating is essential. Don't get me wrong, kids today have as much right as anyone to run over the elderly with a fire engine, it just seems constitutional when you think about it. As long as you don't spray paint anything, al la Mark Ecko: Getting Up, which was banned from our shores.
For me, the real point of the whole debate is about pushing the 'art' of video games. Does an adult title such as this, with its massive profile and exposure, damage or promote gaming? Sure a lot of users take a destructive and childish path through the game, but it's sheer level of sophistication allows that. If you gave GTA 4 to your mum, it would be an extremely different game. She wouldn't be out car jacking, she would probably just pick up one from Romans garage. There would be no summary executions or prostitutes involved and it would still be a compelling experience inside the context of the storyline. Not for everyones mum but mostly justified. For all of the talk in the news about its grubbiness, the list of achievements is incredibly tame. There's no "Catch 22" mission involving ladies of the night and visits to the clinic or "Head Count" unlock for indesciminate butchery. And the radio and TV stations are genuinely funny. Not for everyone but then again neither is Billy Connolly. You have to wonder just how much of the blame needs to be laid on Rockstar. They are providing the content that creates the opportunity but do not overly promote it's use in game.
The last thing we want is for video games to continually be dragged through the mud. Correct classification would reduce complaints considerably, and the push from Hollywood is bringing professional production values to the pastime. Gaming is coming out of the woodwork, out of the dark, dingy basements and turning into a respectable pursuit. It's a fact that people of every age connect with gaming on some level, and it will be a very short time until the industry catches up.
So stand up gamers and be proud! We are part of the fastest growing industries around. Not since Donkey Kong have we lived in better gaming times. The revolution can't happen fast enough!
| 54 |
| Vote |
Subscribe to this blog
