ESRB says 90 percent of parents aware of ratings
by Justin McElroy 
{ May 7th 2007 at 8:45AM }
The ESRB is attempting to prove with a new study that their ratings system is doing more than just cluttering up game boxes. The group says that 90% of American parents of gaming kids are aware of the ratings and 85% use them regularly when buying games. Those numbers are up from 84% and 73% from last year.While it's certainly good news for fans of industry self-regulation if accurate, this surprisingly high number of rating-literate parents comes at a conveniently good time for the ESRB, which currently has its independence threatened yet again by the "Truth in Video Games" act reintroduced by Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas).
But who knows? Maybe the ratings are catching on. One concerned 4-foot-tall man pre-ordering Grand Theft Auto IV in our local game store who assured us that was "really a parent" certainly thought so. "Yes, I don't want my son, the son that I really have, playing those awful violent games," he said, pressing on his waxy-looking mustache nervously for emphasis. "When I have a legally-obtained beer with my adult friends at adult parties, we often talk about the ratings of games being played by our children, our real children ... the ones who are not us. Now, if you'll excuse me I hear my mom honking. Wait, no -- my wife. It's my wife honking. The wife that I have."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
samfish @ May 7th 2007 9:50AM
Aware of the what now?
Adam @ May 7th 2007 10:39AM
They may, be aware, but many simply dont care
AJ Vaynerchuk @ May 7th 2007 10:58AM
It really doesn't matter if the parents are aware of the ratings. I bet a lot of them don't understand how the ratings work, and along with that, a lot of the parents could care less about the ratings in general.
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polly @ May 7th 2007 11:03AM
Is this the survey that offered $5 Best Buy cards for completing it? Because I totally faked it for the money. Kids? Hell yeah, I got kids.
listereo @ May 7th 2007 11:25AM
Too often it comes down to just keeping the kid happy so he or she won't mope around the house over not getting what she wants. I remember feeling left out as a kid because I couldn't watch R rated movies when I had many friends who had seen them and sang praises to their gory glory.
Two things need to happen: there need to be more non-violent games that are just as well thought out, funded, executed, and marketed as any GTA or Halo game, and "Society" needs to just get used to the fact that many popular games are packed with mature content making them just as "harmful" as any R rated movie (if not worse, by body count). One or the other is fine, but both will lead to a healthier industry.
Aaron Walker @ May 7th 2007 12:17PM
I'm with you listereo.
As a parent, I am very aware of the rating and am teaching my son to be aware as well. It's a sad fact that many parents don't care what they are allowing their children to watch/play just in the interest of keeping them occupied.
Not all parents mind you, but I have seen and heard enough to know many just don't care.
The blame does lie with the parents, I don't believe the government or any agency should step in to the parent role unless the parent is not up to the responsibility.
But also, the game industry has some responsibility in making sure to encourage and promote a wider selection.
What's needed is some game developers like the Disney of old, or the Pixar(s) of today. Companies (or a division of said company) dedicated to doing what they did well. Creating quality games that were just as enthralling as their "mature" counterparts without all the cursing, crime, killing and sexual innuendo.
Pete @ May 7th 2007 12:27PM
I've always felt the ESRB icons looked cheesy. They don't really convey a serious ratings scheme.
SaraAB87 @ May 7th 2007 2:05PM
Then why are 90% of the parents with kids I see in video game stores such as Ebgames and Gamestop buying Mature rated games such as GTA and Halo for kids that are about 8-10 years old or possibly even younger?
Reinforcements @ May 7th 2007 10:11PM
Not that I think Justin McElroy is a bad, bad man or anything like that, but isn't expressing derision at the ESRB kinda counter-productive?
Anyway, I don't know what it's like elsewhere, but I work at an EB Games and we're pretty strict about checking IDs for M-rated games anymore. And the fact that I'm perfectly willing to do this has nothing whatsoever to do with me taking a perverse pleasure in denying customers what they want.
Mike @ May 7th 2007 6:54PM
Sara-
5 of every 90 parents aware of the ratings said that the ratings mattered to them. Thus, the other 85 did not use the ratings to influence their decision despite being aware of them. They aren't ignorant, just irresponsible.
Tim @ May 8th 2007 10:40AM
My parents never really denied me from watching movies or playing games based on the rating. You see, we have this totally far out concept of actually trusting each other. Crazy, I know.
Seriously, parents these days suck. My parents raised me decent, so they can actually trust my decisions about content.