Priorities?

[Andrew Green]

http://www.shacknews.com/docs/press/072005_gta_sa.x

GTA: San Andreas has had its rating revoked and retailers are being told to stop selling it. Why? Because a unauthorized 3rd party modification allows for some brief sex/nudity.

Now, call me crazy, but with all the violence, and crime that is a part of the game how does a pixilated nipple cause such an upcry? Especially one that is inaccessible in the retail version, and making it accessible is a violation of the EULA?

Shooting people in games is ok. Stealing in games is ok. Running them over in cars, still ok. Blowing things up = no problem. Seeing Naked people not ok. What am I missing?

 

[dubljay]

I see where you're coming from. While I don't buy into the whole violent video games induces violence in people routine, I think that some games are a bit absurd with their level of violence, its beyond what is needed for actual game play.

As for the sex/nudity concern... I think that the problem is that the rating was issued for the game based on the violent content, and with this thrid party patch it makes content available that was not included in the rating. With this new, and hidden content they were forced to re-evaluate the game.

 

[Andrew Green]

Yes, but this wasn't part of the game. Many games have patches that make people naked, could probably reskin any "E" game to have naked people. This was a patch that can't be accessed normally.

Plus, with all the violence, and now a little bit of nudity, what difference does the nudity make really? Is there anyone that should have been playing the game before, but is too immature to see a naked person?

Whats the message? Sex is far more "immoral" and damaging to anyone that might see it then killing people? Playing the game might make people want to go out and do something awful like have sex? When it was killing (I don't buy it either, but for the sake of argument) that was bad, but now that it has a little sex thrown in its much worse?

 

[dubljay]

As I understand it the patch does nothing to modify the game code, it simply unlocks a portion of the game that was written in by the programers. It isn't like changing the skin of the characters.

It was content put in by the game designers that was hidden from the rating board.

I don't dissagree with you... I think the priorities of the ESRB and game designers is screwed up and sick at best.

 

[arnisador]

http://www.shacknews.com/docs/press/072005_gta_sa.xNow, call me crazy, but with all the violence, and crime that is a part of the game how does a pixilated nipple cause such an upcry?

George Carlin, your phone is ringing!

 

[Fight with attitude]

IMHO it's a little more extreme then just nude people. I've seen the game with the 3rd party mod, it's not just naked people, it's naked people having sex. It looks like softcore porno. I still don't think stores should stop selling it. They ID people who want to buy M rated games, so along as they keep it from being sold to minors I don't have a problem with it.

 

[Cryozombie]

My roommate manages a Gamestop.

The directive was that per the ESRB rating system for the game, it needs to have an "A" rating, not an "M" because the code is NOT an add on, its an unlock for somthing already in the game.

His store is not STOPPING SELLING the game, they had to stop selling it UNTIL rockstar provides them with "A" rating stickers that replace the ESRB rating on the box.

 

[dubljay]

thanks for cleaning that up technopunk... I was trying very unsucessfully to say that.

 

[hardheadjarhead]

Whoa...I better get a copy before they're all gone. Or several. That game is going to be worth some money.

I had a minister once ask me about a movie that he was considering for his kids. He asked me if there was any sex. I responded, "Well, there IS a lot of violence."

He said, "Oh, I'm not worried about the violence. I'm worried about the sex."

I fail to see how sex is so darned evil.


How much is that game?


Regards,


Steve

 

[arnisador]

Leaving the sex scenes in the marketed game was pretty dumb, no?

 

[Andrew Green]

But they weren't left, they are completely unaccessible without altering the game files, which is a violation of the Licence Agreement.

Now why they where initially included is another question. It could have been a idea someone worked in and got turned down, but for whatever reason they where created. But in the end decided not to include them in the final product.

Now, the thing about software programming is stripping out entire sections of code is dangerous as you can inadvertantly break something else. Given that the programmers where probably on a rather tight deadline stripping out entire sections of code and going back to square one on Q/A testing was probably not a favourable option. Making the code inaccessible to the user is much safer, and much easier.

Now, from the looks of the video that is circulating this "feature" doesn;t even look like it was finished, so I'd say that is a fairly safe bet.

Or you could go with the conspiracy theory, they put it there on purpose and hid it from the ratings board, knowing that someone would find a way to unlock it and get media coverage for them...

 

[arnisador]

I understand those concerns, having done much programming in my time, but...this wasn't ready to ship. Someone always hacks these things. It seems like bad business, esp. with all the other grief this particular game has taken.

 

[Marginal]

It's only accessable in the PC version. Doubt Rockstar's losing too much sleep over briefly losing a tiny slice of their market pie. Console sales (PS2, Xbox) are way higher anyway, and one would think if they were trying to corrupt children (As Hillary Clinton claims) then there wold've been a hack for the console versions by now if they were as the PC market trends towards an older demographic anyway.

This is sheer hoobie-doobery. Shareholders should know better.

 

[swiftpete]

I'm interested to see what these mods actually do to the game myself now. But i do think its a little silly that you can go up behind a granny and slit her throat on the street and thats acceptable while some sex in the game has caused a problem.
Ah well, its all good publicity for them anyway!

 

[michaeledward]

It does speak loudly about our priorities, doesn't it.

I remember, when I was a bit younger an 'R' rating on a movie meant there were going to be naked breasts in the film (Think Stripes - Friday 13th).

Now, movies with 'R' ratings (especially horror movies), rarely have naked women.

As a society, we are pretty wound up about nakedness and sex. I have no doubt that 'Real Sex' and 'The Bunny Ranch' are very, very popular on HBO (don't have it - but I am in hotels with it quite often) ... But, nobody talks about what they watch.

Violence on the other hand .. .. .. well, never mind.

 

[Andrew Green]

It's only accessable in the PC version. Doubt Rockstar's losing too much sleep over briefly losing a tiny slice of their market pie. Console sales (PS2, Xbox) are way higher anyway, and one would think if they were trying to corrupt children (As Hillary Clinton claims) then there wold've been a hack for the console versions by now if they were as the PC market trends towards an older demographic anyway.

This is sheer hoobie-doobery. Shareholders should know better.

Actually it can be accessed in console versions too, just not as easily. Got to use Action replay, or install to hard disk then mod or something along those lines.

 

[ginshun]

Technopunk has it right. The way I understand it it is not a 3rd party add on that does this, but rather just a hack to unlock it. It is in the original coding for the game. I think the uproar is that what it unlocks is actually a sex mini-game. You get to have sex with a chick and you hit different buttons to switch positions and what not.

Check this out (not work safe)

http://hotcoffee.ytmnd.com/

And from what I have read on gaming boards, you can unlock this mini-game in the PS2 version, you just need some Acion-Replay type devise. Don't know about X-Box.


I honestly don't know what all the hub-ub is about. So before the game was 17+ and now with the AO rating it is 18+. Big deal. It already had the highest rating in Europe anyway, as it is a different ratings board over there.


As far as priorities go, I would tend to agree that they are messed up.

Hack and old lady apart with an ax? Not a problem

Have sex? Holy hell, call your congressman, our youth are being corrupted!!!


Quite honestly, I would be willing to bet that this will increase the games sales if it affects them at all.

 

[Marginal]

Actually it can be accessed in console versions too, just not as easily. Got to use Action replay, or install to hard disk then mod or something along those lines.

Hmm.. Using an action replay voids your warranty according to Sony. Still can't see intent to distribute without a code that's been preprgrammed in by Rockstar.

 

[sgtmac_46]

Whoa...I better get a copy before they're all gone. Or several. That game is going to be worth some money.

I had a minister once ask me about a movie that he was considering for his kids. He asked me if there was any sex. I responded, "Well, there IS a lot of violence."

He said, "Oh, I'm not worried about the violence. I'm worried about the sex."

I fail to see how sex is so darned evil.


How much is that game?


Regards,


Steve

It could be a problem with the violence and the sex are intertwined. Not sure if the lesson we want to teach our kids is that violence is a necessary part of sex.