Last week was every gamers favourite week; E3. E3 is the entertainment expo that allows gaming companies to showcase their upcoming titles and for console companies to reveal their latest hardware/software developments. Gamers of all ages love a chance to see the next thing in gaming being revealed at these shows. Yet little consideration is taking into account that the games shown are not suitable for all ages.
Games, just like films, have age ratings which are determined by the content of the game. Violence, sex, horror and drugs are just some of the factors taken into account when rating a game. The Pan European Game Information (PEGI) was launched in 2003 as a single system used throughout Europe to rate games according to age appropriate content. The age ratings are 3, 7, 12, 16 and 18 and include warnings on the labels to warn of particular content to make both gamers and parents aware of what the game consists of and why it has been given the particular rating it has. PEGI was only to be used as a guideline until 2012 when it was accepted as law in the UK, making it illegal to sell an 18 rated game to anyone under that age.
Research has shown that children are influenced by playing games. It mostly centres on skills such as visual attention, reaction times, the development of cognitive skills such as spatial perception or strategic thinking, planning or hypothesis testing. Video gaming could be used to enhance skills of flexibility (ability to shift from one task to another) and behavioural inhibition (ability to prevent oneself from doing something inappropriate) in children. This would have a significant impact on their ability to regulate their own thoughts and behaviour, which is one of the developmental challenges of childhood and could be of great benefit to children. There are other potential benefits of video games in terms of offering the chance to open up the imagination and explore other worlds, conquer fears and develop a sense of identity. There are many potential areas where games could have great positive potential for the mental and physical health of children and for education”
However, there is also a chance for gaming to have a negative impact when parents ignore age ratings and buy their children 18 rated games. ‘Grand Theft Auto’, ‘Left for Dead’, ‘Mortal Kombat’ and ‘Saints Row’ are all games that have high levels of violence, sex, gore and sexism, yet are often played by children as young as 8. Games are not just aimed at children any longer and those targeted at adults have content that can be potentially damaging to a child’s development.
I am not saying that playing ‘Grand Theft Auto’ will make a child go and kill everyone but I am concerned that these games can foster a view of the world that is unhealthy and can stunt a child’s emotional development. A common criticism of games is that they are extremely sexist; women are often there for sexual gratification, either of the characters or the players through the female characters (often skimpy) clothes. A young child playing this could form a harmful perception of women and see violence towards them as acceptable.
Most parents would not let their child watch a film that is rated 18 as they would not want their child to be exposed to the scenes, yet, arguably, gaming is more harmful as it is an interactive experience where the child chooses to commit the acts on screen instead of passively watching it, like a film.
Parents need to be more involved in their children’s gaming choices or at least educate themselves on the content of the game before purchase. Gaming can and is meant to be harmless fun but parents need to consider the age rating on games as important as those on films.
Thoughts of a Millennial 