Ban this filth!
Daily Mail rediscovers violent video games
It was only a matter of time, but the controversial (and not particularly good) anarchistic street combat game State of Emergency has incurred the wrath of Britain's self-appointed guardians of morality, The Daily Mail. In a shocking page 58 exposé this morning, the paper posed the question, "do you really know what's on your child's computer screen tonight". Not State of Emergency, one would hope. "A mini-skirted girl in military-style jackboots runs up to a passer-by and delivers a punch so ferocious he is decapitated", writer Nicola Tyrer spouts in righteous fury. "Blood fountains up from the headless collapsing trunk. As the head hits the floor, the girl snatches it up and uses it to bludgeon another passer-by... This, believe it or not, is a game called State of Emergency - and it is aimed at children." Apparently our Nicky didn't spot the prominent BBFC 18+ rating printed on the front cover of the game, which signifies that the game is actually aimed at adults and, indeed, that store owners must not sell it to anyone under that age. Determined not to let simple facts get in the way of a good rant though, Nicola continues to express her distaste at everything from the recently released Hooligans : Storm Over Europe ("violent and anti-social") to rather more entertaining games such as Grand Theft Auto 3 ("a celebration of recklessness, chaos, hooliganism and thuggery which invites the player to commit acts of mindless violence") and Max Payne (whose bullet time effects apparently suggest that guns are "not just an instrument of death but an object of beauty"). And the solution? "It's up to parents to become computer literate, find out what their children are watching - and be prepared to ban violent trash". Yes, apparently stopping your own kids from playing violent games isn't enough. We have to ban this filth to make sure that nobody else can get their hands on it. God forbid, they might actually find it entertaining. And if that happens, "how long will it be before the thuggery on the screen is translated into yet more sickening reality"? Still, she got half of that right - parents should become more computer literate and check up on what their kids are playing. Obviously a lesson that Nicola herself needs to learn, as she admits to being "shocked" to discover that her son was playing Carmageddon at the tender age of 16. Perhaps you should be paying more attention to the gaming habits of your own children, instead of trying to run our lives?