Senators Aren't Gamers

"Censors tend to be people who don't enjoy the art they try to censor."

Allen Carrington Brooks | August 5, 2009

There's already a Wii in the White House, but the day when Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va) and Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) have an impromptu Halo tournament in their offices is still a ways off. Video games in Washington have had a checkered past, but games are making their way inside the Beltway, and that puts some insiders on edge.

True, in the 2008 election cycle, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) did release a video game on his Facebook page called Pork Invaders, a knockoff of the classic Space Invaders that involved shooting vetoes at descending pigs. The game failed to make any discernible impact on the minds of voters. This was primarily due to the fact that the game was—as far as I can tell—really bad. (I tried to play it recently and it seems that all vestiges of it have been erased from the Internet.) It was slow, poorly controlled, and looked like it was made by a high school kid's first computer science project. But you can't blame McCain for trying; it was the only official game of any campaign during the fall cycle.

It seems as if there's a bit of a waiting game being played in Washington with regards to video games, at least until the current legislators are replaced by game-literate ones. The politics of gaming was a hot issue at the recent Game Developers Conference in San Francisco—a kind of Space Camp for grown-ups, where even the nerdiest of the 18,000 nerds in attendance had a chance to be cool. The failures of the McCain game were analyzed in a panel called "Where were the Election Games?" But one of the most interesting discussions was the Anti-Censorship and Social Issues Committee discussion held by the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), a talk moderated by Daniel Greenberg, a freelance game designer and consultant with a passion for protecting the rights of video game developers.

"Given that the average age of a Senator is over 60, it may be a long time before video games are not new and threatening to government," said Greenberg. "The majority of people with the inclination and power to censor games are not gamers. Censors tend to be people who don't enjoy the art they try to censor." Gamers also seem to be constantly at odds with the puritanical base of Capitol Hill. "Video games combine several factors that make them a target," Greenberg asserted. "They're new, they're a new form of technology, and they're fun. This makes video games a target for people with neophobia, technophobia, and a disdain for play."

I asked Greenberg how he felt the industry has done with self policing, and if this was enough to stave off potential legislation. The Entertainment Sofware Ratings Board (ESRB) is an independent organization formed in 1994 with the task of creating a ratings system for all widely published games. The system ranges from "E" for Everyone to "AO" for Adults Only, and mirrors the ratings system implemented by the Motion Picture Association of America uses to rate films. "My ideal rating system would be the one that has served us so well for many centuries in the book publishing world—none. But that ideal is simply not realistic given the political climate and given that fact it takes a lot of expertise to summarize and disclose to parents on the game packaging...I'd rather that game companies put [their] expertise into making games."

Greenberg seems to believe the best offense is a good defense, but Michael Gallagher, CEO of the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), a video game lobbying firm in Washington, DC, is waging an all out offensive on Capitol Hill. In an email interview, Gallagher pointed out that video game sales now top recorded music and movies in sales. "Like rock 'n' roll and comic books in the '50s and '60s, video games are now often the focus of criticism and targeted by elected officials. In response—and to help educate elected officials who may not be familiar with this new entertainment medium—the Video Game Voters Network has provided a platform where voting-aged gamers can contact their elected representatives to be heard and to defend video games."

Hoping that common sense overcomes fear, Gallagher noted that when "the upward track of U.S. computer and video game sales is compared to violent crime statistics to the Department of Justice, they are in complete opposite directions." Video game sales rise as the rate of violent crime falls. But Gallagher, too, is holding out for generational change. "Soon an increasing number of computer and video game enthusiasts, individuals who grew up with the medium and understand its power and expressive capabilities, will be making decisions in newsrooms, board rooms, and classrooms. I think it will be then that we will see a paradigm shift in how computer and video games are perceived, used, and enjoyed."

The numbers certainly back up Gallagher and Greenberg's claims. Last year, the video game industry brought in more than $22 billion in sales compared to the $9.6 billion in movie ticket sales. That's way too much money for legislators to ignore, not to mention the fact that more than 83,000 people are directly or indirectly employed by the gaming industry. A generational shift may still be a few years off, but for the lawmakers looking at clamping down on the games industry, that's still a massive voting block. Recently, Alabama Attorney General Troy King publicly backed the ESRB's rating system, appearing in a number of public service announcements for the group. In an accompanying press release King stated, "it's important that parents play an active role in choosing games for their children. ESRB ratings are an effective and informative resource that allows parents to decide if the video game their child wants is appropriate." It would seem that some politicians have already decided where they stand on game censorship, and it's with the gamer. Let's hope others follow their lead.

Allen Carrington Brooks is a freelance games writer living in Alexandria, VA.

Comments

Spoonman|8.5.09 @ 3:13PM|#

"Pork Invaders" sounds like a mentally scarring porn site.

|8.5.09 @ 3:17PM|#

"DROP DOWN, GO LEFT AND MOVE FASTER!"

Ska|8.5.09 @ 3:30PM|#

up up down down left right left right B A start

You can even legally disagree with Congressmen with whom you have no party affiliation with.

(sorry, I know I shouldn't play with matches and gasoline in the same room, I just can't help myself)

Anyone else really looking forward to Modern Warfare 2?

|8.5.09 @ 3:37PM|#

Rockstar will probably lobby for larger stickers on M-Only titles warning parents that they ought not purchase this game if there is a child in the house.

If I were them, I'd also lobby that games rated E through E-10 *MUST* contain educational content and T games *MUST* abide by something analagous to the Hays Code.

WWJGD|8.5.09 @ 3:47PM|#

That's just vicious, Jaybird. But I like it.

The question isn't who is looking forward to MW2, it's how long until there's some story about a kid buying the Prestige edition and using the Night Vision Goggles to kill somebody. Clearly, MW2 is training us to be killers.

Jerry|8.5.09 @ 3:52PM|#

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peLMsYqlDd0

Ska|8.5.09 @ 4:05PM|#

Clearly, MW2 is training us to be killers.

Penn and Teller just did an episode of Bullshit about exactly this (except they used clips of CoD 4, naturally). Definitely worth the 30 minutes of time, but nothing too extraordinary.

|8.5.09 @ 4:14PM|#

My favorite part of CoD is the way a head shot makes the target's helmet fly into the air.

What, too much information?

|8.5.09 @ 4:18PM|#

I used Lincoln's Repeater this morning to kill a Super Mutant Master with a single stealth attack critical. To the right leg.

|8.5.09 @ 4:24PM|#

Have you downloaded mother spaceship zeta or whatever it is yet?

WWJGD|8.5.09 @ 4:26PM|#

I used Lincoln's Repeater this morning to kill a Super Mutant Master with a single stealth attack critical. To the right leg.

The twangy noise that thing makes when it fires gets on my nerves. I use the thing so much that I should be used to it but it still bugs me. I need to find Lincoln's Hat and complete the ensemble and begin the wrath of Cyborg Lincoln.

Just wait until you have to fight 3 Super Mutant Overlords in close quarters...bloody frustrating.

Ska|8.5.09 @ 4:29PM|#

I haven't, only because of how glitchy the other FO DLC is. The bug list for Pt. Lookout is long as hell, and they're bugs that make the game crash frequently. Even when you're not playing the Pt. Lookout Content.

My favorite part of CoD is the way a head shot makes the target's helmet fly into the air.

I really love that *ping* sound, and that your teammates that are close enough to you hear it also, so they know your popping heads. My real favorite is dismembering someone with a trench gun (in WaW - MW isn't nearly as gory).

I will be getting map pack 3 tomorrow for sure, with another new Nazi zombies map.

WWJGD|8.5.09 @ 4:31PM|#

I'm about halfway through Mothership. It has some nice scenery but has some repetitive aspects to it.

|8.5.09 @ 4:32PM|#

I need to find Lincoln's Hat and complete the ensemble and begin the wrath of Cyborg Lincoln.

Real holographic simulated evil Lincoln is back?

|8.5.09 @ 4:45PM|#

I'm going to play Mothership this weekend.

THEN I CAN FINALLY PUT THAT GAME AWAY AND NEVER TOUCH IT AGAIN.

Until they come out with the GOTY edition (containing all DLC!) that happens to have completely separate (but identical) achievements.

wingnutx|8.5.09 @ 4:53PM|#

I still miss the old Fallout, where you could pimp out your wife and hit children with a sledgehammer.

WWJGD|8.5.09 @ 4:59PM|#

THEN I CAN FINALLY PUT THAT GAME AWAY AND NEVER TOUCH IT AGAIN.

My Fallout obsession was so bad it tore me away from WoW. It's been rough, but after Mothership and PL, I think I can finally...stop.

PantsFan|8.5.09 @ 5:06PM|#

i have no idea what you nereds are talking about.

|8.5.09 @ 5:28PM|#

Wingnutx,

I was able to buy Fallout, Fallout2, and Fallout Tactics at Target for $35 a little over a month ago.

|8.5.09 @ 9:43PM|#

I had Fallout 3 for the 360. My kids recently lost it. I am not happy.

|8.5.09 @ 10:44PM|#

I don't know much about whittling nor do I care to... I THINK IT SHOULD BE BANNED IMMEDIATELY JUST TO BE ON THE SAFE SIDE. THINK OF THE CHILDREN'S *LIVES*!!!!!

|8.5.09 @ 10:46PM|#

>I had Fallout 3 for the 360. My kids recently >lost it. I am not happy.

Eh? What do you mean by "lost it"? It wasn't installed on the system's hard drive?? Or they lost the original disc???? This is why I don't have kids... don't keep me from my Fallout 3 or there'll be *trouble*....

|8.5.09 @ 10:49PM|#

>I'm going to play Mothership this weekend.

>THEN I CAN FINALLY PUT THAT GAME AWAY AND NEVER >TOUCH IT AGAIN.

Finished MZ last night. I recommend referring to the Fallout wiki on this one, since the key weapons to get are easy to miss. I am done now. Can. Finally. Live. Regular. Life. Now.

Seriously, I have done everything in the main game possible. I wish they would've been able to just add cooler quests to the main area, but that would've been a nightmare bug-wise.

|8.5.09 @ 10:50PM|#

>I'm about halfway through Mothership. It has >some nice scenery but has some repetitive >aspects to it.

Definitely. But I thought it was a nice last DLC overall... assuming this actually this the last DLC...

Don't neglect to get the Xeno perk!

|8.5.09 @ 10:57PM|#

>I haven't, only because of how glitchy the >other FO DLC is.

First off, sorry for all the consecutive posts. Secondly, I am surprised how glitch-free MZ has been for me. Apart from OA, this has been my only problem-free DLC so far. Don't get me wrong, I think Bethesda has done a fine job on the DLC's so far, but yeah most of 'em have been glitchy as hell.

Gabe|8.6.09 @ 5:59AM|#

"[...] in the 2004 election cycle, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) did release a video game on his Facebook page called Pork Invaders, [...]"

Don't you mean the 2008 election cycle?

ruumis|8.6.09 @ 1:45PM|#

FYI, there's a lively discussion about this article over at the Evil Avatar forums:

http://evilavatar.com/forums/showthread.php?t=91991

SFC B|8.6.09 @ 3:56PM|#

I still miss the old Fallout, where you could pimp out your wife and hit children with a sledgehammer.

I think that was Fallout 2. Unless I missed a whole bunch of cool content in the original.