The ESRB functions as a governing body to highlight and rate dubious content before titles are cleared for release. Titillation extravaganza Dead of Alive Paradise, the tenuous part sequel to the Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball series, recently appeared under ESRB scrutiny but with a distinctly un-impartial slant.

The quote in question (since pulled) read “the game also contains bizarre, misguided notions of what women really want (if given two weeks, paid vacation, island resort)’”Paradise cannot mean straddling felled tree trunks in dental-floss thongs.” Despite the title’s unquestionably male gaze, the ESRB exists to make note of, rather than criticise, a games content. A listing should stand as a descriptor of violent or sexual content rather than an opinionated discussion on the moral value of such material.

Wikipedia suggests that the ESRB occasionally sanctions “raters” to look over upcoming titles, “in essence allowing people who aren’t regular video game players, to review games as if they were the customer and receiving their first glance at the game.” Regardless of source, off the back of today’s now dissipated angry slur, it looks that perhaps it is additional content editors that everyone’s favourite ratings board should seek to employ.

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Microsoft’s upcoming virtual Game Room has circumnavigated the need to present each and every title for ESRB classification by instead lumping classification on the service as a whole rather than individual cabinet content. While this will no doubt increase the speed and quantity of weekly releases, the assigned rating of E10+ means that titles which feature mature content like potential release candidates Street Fighter et al will be forced to remain perpetually absent in spite of fan demand.

Unlikely to affect the type and era of games so far bandied as potentials for the avatar arcade, the decision, in contrast to the Wii’s virtual console, means that later 16-bit classics like Splatterhouse or its sequels could never find home in the retro arcade. Sadly, despite countless Atari 2600 ROMs being announced already through trailer, those desperate to play an unedited Custer’s Revenge seem flat out of luck.

The ratings workaround is certainly an innovative approach to one of digital distribution’s stumbling blocks. However, it seems that shy of later releasing an ‘Adult Game Room’ complete with headbutts, bloody jugular geysers, pixel mammaries and a permanent M sticker, retro gamers will miss out on content like Mortal Kombat and the sumptuous Metal Slug through Microsoft’s utilitarian approach.

Via: Kotaku

In what is perhaps the most bizarre ESRB write-up for a game ever, it was revealed that Scribblenauts would ship with the E10+ rating. What ultimately ended up affecting the rating was the inclusion of cartoon weapons and violence, as well as the ability to attach steak to a baby to ‘œattract lions.’

Other highlights include the mention that ‘œa bicycle can be used to jump over a baby’ and ‘œif players wish to, they may type in the word vomit, which causes a beige-coloured lump to appear on the screen.’

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As Pyroph’s excellent interview with Prof. Doug Gentile is not only very interesting, but also rather long, I thought it a good idea to create a shorter, digest version of the interview. Basically a collection of the more interesting quotes. If you find any of this even remotely interesting, I can not recommend enough having a read of the full interview.

The topics Dr. Gentile covers, in my opinion, are among the most important issues modern gaming faces, and yet, probably the most overlooked by gamers themselves. What with them being energy drink-riddled husks of minuscule attention spans. BEES! Good, thought I had lost you there.

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[Dr. Douglas Gentile is a developmental psychologist, and is an assistant professor of Psychology at Iowa State University and the Director of Research for the National Institute on Media and the Family. His experience includes over 20 years conducting research with children and adults. He has published research on violent video games, on prosocial video games, on how video games may improve laparoscopic surgical skills, and most recently on video game "addiction." You can visit his site at www.drdouglas.org ]

Recently Doug Gentile published his most recent study, stating that 8.5% of American youth showed signs of addiction. It was picked up by a lot of major gaming sites, bringing along with it controversy among commenters.

You can read about the study here.

Dismissal of studies and research is common among gamers; fear of anything bad surrounding their hobby creates a defensive barrier denouncing all claims. This interview’s purpose is to better inform gamers about research, the “addiction” debate, and how researchers are not the evil antagonists that everyone makes them out to be.

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One of my favourite podcasts, Invisible Walls made by GameTrailers, had a few words to say about the ESRB on their latest episode. GT’s Editor-in-Chief Shane Satterfield and resident pessimist Marcus “Grumpy McGrump” Beer minced no words in talking about how they were forced to pull every Fallout 3 trailer they had up by the ESRB.

GamePolitics transcribed the conversation.

Shane: You may wonder why all the trailers ever released for Fallout 3 were removed from GameTrailers.com. Well the reason that happened is because of our good pals at the ESRB.

Grumpy: Wankers! …I am just absolutely flabbergasted about the ESRB. They’re a bunch of bleepwads sitting in Washington.

Shane: Hear, hear!

Grumpy: …they get publishers to pull video footage. They assisted in getting the Fallout 3 ads taken out of Washington because some dumb bleepwit… on a bus got upset that they were showing images of decimated Washington…

Shane: Never watched a movie before!

To add insult to injury, the pair also made mention of some rather underhanded tactics being used by the ESRB. Technically, the ESRB can only get GT to pull videos if they were made by the developer or publisher, not if they make the video in-house. But that doesn’t stop them trying.

Shane: I hate the ESRB… The week before [removing the Fallout 3 videos] we had gotten an exclusive on a trailer… suddenly we get a call… and the publisher is telling us to take it down because of the ESRB… The ESRB can only regulate media that the publishers send us. Anything that we create in-house, as GameTrailers, they can’t touch… we’ll make our own violent-as-hell trailer that they can’t do anything about. So we did. We put it up, it was huge… then we get a call from publisher X [who said] “…the ESRB is putting pressure on us and so that bleep is going to run downhill to where we can’t work with you guys unless you do what the ESRB say” …they are like the frickin’ Mafia… These people have totally gone like a frickin’ power trip…

The ESRB exists to help the gaming industry and to enforce the rules and regulations which help keep kids safe and the industry’s cogs turning. It is not their job to essentially act like ass holes when somebody does something they don’t like. If you’re own rules allow something, then you should allow it.