The ratings system and hypocrisy between media

This week's post is focused on censorship; that is what the ratings system is for games, movies, the lack thereof for books, and how these ratings coincide with other forms of media in America. I can only give my own perspective, therefore I can't give a full opinion on other countries views of cultural norms and what is deemed acceptable for certain age groups.

First off, when you purchase a game in America, there's a little letter in the bottom left corner of a game (most anyway) that indicates the suggested or legal allowance of censorship. The ESRB or Entertainment Software Ratings Board  provides ratings mostly for parents to make informed choices for their kids  http://www.esrb.org/ratings/ratings_guide.jsp. Now note that as long as a guardian for a child buys the game (as many of you have probably come across) you get the issue of kids playing games that they might not be ready for maturity wise. I've been a Gamestop employee in the past and having a enraged parent come to return a game that they bought for their little darling that was overtly violent (occasionally) or sexual (usually the case,and with this it is predominantly of the female figure). The label is clear on the boxes, yet parents (or other guardians) either aren't understanding the ratings systems as they do the MPAA guidelines, or they fail to realize that games these days aren't only for children.  

I haven't played any Animal Crossings yet as I know I would get sucked in just as bad as I did for Skyrim, but I have a feeling that I might try this one out...

Now before I go further on that thread, I'd like to outline the MPAA guidlines. The MPAA or Motion Picture Association of America was established much  earlier  than the ESRB  http://www.mpaa.org/ratings/what-each-rating-means.  The ratings for movies are also generally to be understood by mainstream America as well as movies are a pretty large chunk of popular culture today. Their site's ratings loosely define things that the said movie has that could offend parents or children of various ages. This ambiguous gray area is up to much subjection and can change with the popular values of when the movie was made. G rated movies in the 70's might be rated PG in terms of sexual issues and a PG-13 movie back then with a fair amount of violence then might only be labeled PG in 2013. This skewing between violence and sex is from my understanding somewhat revered in other cultures ratings wise, yet nevertheless persists in that vast gray area in terms of context. The issue is further complicated as how the MPAA compares to the ESRB. They are two  independent  organizations enforced by law (for M rated games and NC-17 Movies as you have to be 25 or older as a guardian to purchase something for a minor) that have some overlap between what is legitimate in a movie versus a game. I find this disparity and hypocrisy needs to be examined further in terms of how much censorship (and what  exactly) should be kept from children and what is allowable.  

This  financial/economic  issue with Adults Only rated games is that popular consoles will not allow such rated games to be played on their machines. Because of the negative image this would otherwise present for console makers trying to identify with a "family friendly" persona, you won't find an A rated game in your local Gamestop or any major retailer. The list Wikipedia displays is predominantly on the sexual side as well I'd like to note, which is why most of these games are on the PC, Mac, or mobile platform  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AO-rated_products  circumventing the console "problem".

Obviously some 13 year olds will be more mature than others, yet the conundrum of how books are then thrown into the mix baffles me further. Unless it's going to be taught in schools, in this day and age banned books seem a historical hallmark rather than a current day issue when it comes to pleasure reading. Print Pornography aside, a child (with enough money) can go to a bookstore and buy a copy of a harlequin novel; complete with multiple  amorous  endeavors written out in explicit detail or the horrific killing of children by other children for survival as is in  Lord of the Flies. The fact that the imagination prompted by words versus visual images renders a lack of censorship mandated by law seems an interesting (to say the least) paradox within our culture. I learned much more in books than I ever did in a movie or video games ironically because of this.  Imagination  or a certain  perspective  brought on by visual images then are differentiating factors that render censorship and ratings necessary. Yet the imagination is boundless and for now cannot be censored on its own. Because of this, it can be even more explicit, frightening, or valuable in growing  up.  

Now I didn't say they were literary canon material, but my, aren't these some  delightfully cheesy titles?

Games like  Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas sparking outrage because of its Hot Coffee mod become irrational to me then when the game is highlighted because of the freedom to do violence on it's denizens (There are no children that you can kill in most of them however, which is a hallmark across the board with most games) such as killing hookers or police officers are lauded. While there is fun to be had and things to be  learned  from having the access to freedom and its consequences within these free roaming games, I ask that the next game you play to take note of how you would rate it based on your experiences. What do you think should be censored more and why? What would you do differently? Should parents be held more accountable for their children's game collection or should kids be taught earlier about  decision  making and why some complex issues are better encountered when they are a little older? Should there be ratings at all if parents are going to buy their child a copy of  Amnesia  or  Dead Space  anyway for their 8 year old?

Progress & Perspective

For this week's post, I wanted to talk about one of the biggest reasons video games helped me so much when I was growing up. It really took me a few years in hindsight to put my finger on it and how by even being aware of it did not diminish the importance of it. The role of progress in a video game and how that affects an individual is a concept that I don't believe has been studied very much (if at all yet) in a scholarly sense. When my life was crappy, I knew I could turn to video games and make a difference, whether it was collecting heart pieces, catching that elusive Pokemon, or defeating Kefka.

(He's Square's version of the Joker I swear! All he needs is Mark Hamill's voice.)

Regardless of how your real life may be, by supplementing any "real life" progress (tests, dates, family, and other stressors) by accomplishing something that often rewards you psychically with in games items or experience also does so psychologically in the real world. I know it boosted my confidence and gave me a sense of accomplishment which was not imaginary by any means. Having that effect helped me to get through many things, and that confidence boost was sometimes the extra bit that pushed me to strive for something. I definitively had ambition to do well with my life, but at the time lacked self esteem and self worth. When you can say you just defeated someone trying to conquer the world though, anything that you might be dealing with at school just got a little less daunting. Such things didn't replace any real life accomplishments, but they helped to make them happen.

Obviously only having such things to one's name can be dangerous to a degree. Hubris and overconfidence distorting one's abilities and skills is not the best thing to be touting. But, I will say that's also a part of growing up and getting to know yourself within that context. So, even if you do become rather egotistical and like to rub it someone's face with a sense of superiority by the setup of you're Pokemon lineup, only to realize that someone just kicked you're butt with a Magicarp, it is nevertheless a learning experience.

Specifically focusing on Pokemon, when you originally caught all 150 (Mew didn't count in the lineup achievement wise back then I believe) what you received in the end was a diploma from Celadon city that you could print out as a thanks from the developers. What this says to me (among many other songs, movies, and books) is that it is the journey and the act of progressing through the journey (and thus the self discovery) that matters.

The fact that all this really comes down to one's attitude and perception is rather amazing. The problems you have to face are still there, it's simply the way that you now are facing your problems that are different. On that note I'd like to leave you with a rather succinct quote from everyone's favorite pirate Jack Sparrow: 

"The problem is not the problem; the problem is your attitude about the problem"

Now where's my jar of dirt?

*As a side note, I'd like to bring to your attention a kickstarter that  my friend the wonderful Matthew Ritter, is helping to create. Welcome to Boon Hill is a game about graveyards, tombstones, and the joy of solitude. It has just reached the 10k mark, which  means the game will be crossplatform, including ios and Android. If you've always been interested in the tombstones that you find in games and enjoy the simplicity of exploring a graveyard, Boon Hill is right up your alley: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1607565961/welcome-to-boon-hill/posts/490899?ref=email&show_token=dc6f92238695bd45

The life of an immortal: Lost Odyssey

Developed by Mistwalker and Feelplus and published exclusively for the 360, Lost Odyssey is in my opinion the real Final Fantasy 11 as it was produced by Hironobu Sakaguchi. The notion of having an immortal protagonist seems overpowered to the initial observation, but with the way the game mechanics work, you'd be surprised how many game overs you get if you aren't careful. You team is made up of both human and immortal characters. If an immortal is downed, they rise after 3 turns, but they can only progress with new moves via learning from a human character. This symbiosis and self balancing (at least initially) of weaker human characters like Jansen with the "stronger" immortals like Kaim and Seth make for a pleasantly challenging experience.

Most notably unique to my own playing, the aiming ring system that makes the player sync up their attacks for the right time to strike their enemy is a great and engaging mechanic that helps deter boredom after hours of gameplay.


In tangent with this, there are front and back positions to help guard any squishy characters "In combat both the player's party and enemies are arranged in two lines, front and back. Up to five party members can participate in battle at once. At the start of battle, the back line is protected by a special defensive "wall" which is based on the combined hit points of the front line. This wall reduces damage that the characters in the back experience. However, as the front line takes damages, the wall weakens, and can only be recovered through the use of certain spells or skills. When the wall is completely gone, the back row will have no damage reduction. This mechanic also applies to groups." (Wikipedia)

Timing your hit up to just the right moment lands you a perfect which will almost always lead to a critical attack. Not bothering to go with this mechanic (unless you are a higher level) will make you miss the target, so actually participating and getting the rhythm of the game is essential to both understanding and mastering the battle system.

The music is another great aspect that I'd like to mention. While the main battle theme is only changed up for boss battles and special side quest fights, the music is both gorgeous and appealing for an updated call back to previous rpgs. Composed by the famous Nobuo Uematsu (Another Final Fantasy regular), I expected nothing less and before I even played the game was excited to know that the attention to detail in the soundtrack would be topnotch. The militaristic notes to some of the early tracks plays into the advent of some of the countries magical industrial revolution. War and other Imperialistic expansion are constant threats to the citizens  and it is only later on in some of the exploratory areas that the lasting effects are seen.

I'd like to mention one other aspect of the game that I haven't found to such a degree of quality. The inclusion of the a thousand years of dreams journal entries adds character development to the immortals and humanizes them as well. Kaim's suffering is quite evident in the encounters he has with the people he meets in the journal entries. Compounded with the fact that the immortals cannot remember anything about themselves from the onset of existing in these lands, they stumble and struggle to understand themselves and those around those who's lives are a flickering of their own. Overall, the tone of the entries evokes a pacifist view in light of all the violence that takes place in the game. Especially regarding  Ming's situation, I'd like to mention the irony of her being the ruling queen of a more aesthetically Chinese country and the unrest that the nobility and her council has with an undying monarch. That many emperors have tried in our history for an elixir to be in this exact situation begs the question of examining the ramifications of such wish fulfillment. With her murky memories leading her to be manipulated and wrested from power, is living for close to 1000 years something to truly strive for?

Living through multiple lives, including that of your children and grandchildren, living with the guilt of people one has killed, the diminishing of experiences of both joy and tragedy all ask the player to consider the ramifications of living for hundreds of years. Unable to kill oneself if one chose to, how does someone with the psychology of a person continue to live with themselves? If you're up for a beautiful and philosophical games with great mechanics from some of the most notable makers of rpg's, I suggest picking up a copy to play. I'd like to know what your experiences were if you have had the chance to play as well.

The First of Many, the Impact of Ocarina of Time

As an aspiring writer and editor, I have to talk about things I love, and besides books, video games have had just an important an impact on my life as anything else. I've been playing them for over 20 short years now, and let me say, while I will never be able to play them all, the ones that I have played have been some of the best games that the both consoles (and more recently) PC have had to offer.

I intend this blog to be an attempt into the ever changing world of video games through the lens of a 25 year old gamer. I hope to shed some light on some of the inner workings through impact, content, performance, and many other ways in order to highlight certain aspects that might not be apparent to others. Most of these games I will review has been on single playthroughs or files exceptions permitting of course. 

While not necessarily the first game I played, my first love of video games came with the advent of The legend of Zelda: Ocarina of time. I have played this game numerous times at different points of my life, most recently with the 3ds port introduced last year. This game has had an impact on me from clothes that I wear to the replica master sword leaning against my wall to buying tickets to see Symphony of the Goddesses at the Greek Theatre. I see myself as that much of a fan. Zelda pretty much permeates my life, and that's ok. Knowing the schism between fantasy and wish fulfillment, I can pretty clearly make a distinction between my daydreams and the rest of my life. 

Today's post will be about impact as this is my first ever blog and I attempt to engage you pleasantly while you otherwise browse Reddit or wait in line to see Star Trek Into Darkness. OoT (Ocarina of Time) not only won numerous awards when it was introduced but has remained one of the best games of all time. I had briefly played a neighbor's copy of Link to the Past for the Super Nintendo but did not own it until the GBA port in 2002. Thus it was the first Zelda that I had actually played completely. Having a 3D universe at the palm of my hands (the controller was big, but never as gigantic as the original Xbox of which I could not hold properly via my tiny hands) opened up a world of possibilities, expanding my imagination and interestingly putting my frame of reference in a male child and adult's perspective. From a 9 year old's tomboy's psyche  this seemed natural. I have unfortunately never played Metroid at this point, and so was used to the standard suspension of disbelief of putting myself in their shoes (or hover boots in this matter). It wasn't until I was older that I even questioned such issues when I discovered that more males were gamers than females "Video games were fun, why wouldn't everyone be playing them?!" I thought. It's one of many other issues with the gaming industry and community, and will be discussed more generally as a whole later. 

 Nevertheless, I was (and still am) happy with how Zelda impacted my life from then on. The friends I met, how it's encouraged me to have more confidence in myself, the search for a job to create more of what I love, and the idealist notions of trying to make a difference in other's lives through video games all came down to the meeting between a girl and a cartridge.

As a side note, while I can only speak on things in my own perspective, I hope to discuss things in as neutral manner as possible when it comes to more tremulous topics. I will not censor my opinion, but I fully respect the right to the other sides opinions and will deal with such as a gentleman in a top hat and monocle. Good day to you all.