Politics and Gaming -- imagine applesauce on a potato
If you've had a potato smothered in applesauce, then disregard the attempt at two very different things that would not seem to mesh together in the subject line. If not, you know what you're in for: more ignorant crap from the old people in Congress who know nothing about the culture of gaming. Let's talk about the "Truth in Video Game Rating Act". This act, if passed, would require the ESRB or any other game-rating agency to play through all content in a game before issuing a rating. It also punishes developers for hiding or misrepresenting content.
This is inherently stupid because the bill doesn't understand modern games and how they differ from a movie or TV show. How many of us have played through every single ounce of content in our games? Very few. It's a difficult task -- time consuming like nothing else (imagine having to do every single little thing in World of Warcraft from every angle, getting every item... talk about hell). Besides, online gaming has made rating the content of a game increasingly difficult, since other players like to curse and be quite rude (well, it is easier to put others down when no consequences are presented). Home-brew added content is also to be considered... that changes the experience significantly. What do you guys think? Is this a terrible, terrible idea by Congress or what?
