It's recently been brought to my attention that an opinion I posted in the news article "Unedited Left 4 Dead 2 banned in Australia" was really good (Their opinion... No Bragging on my part) and I should Blog it. I've never really been one for the whole Blogging thing and this would be my first, but hey, since I've already written it, it can't hurt to put it here. At least it might hopefully (But not likely) knock some common sense into some people who haven't grasped the concept that mature games have mature ratings on them (Oh Sh*t.... Who would have thought it possible?) and it's the parents responsibility to consider these ratings prior to allowing their kids to get them and play them(Who?..us?..Responsibility?..Ours?..Never!). Anyway... here's the post:

I'm sorry, but I am getting tired of these prudish, inept morons who constantly think they have the right to tell people what we can see and what we can't see. Granted there is an issue when kids get these games, but that is an issue with the parents. Not the games developers. I mean come on. If you go rent a movie and your kid brings up an R rated movie (or 15 or 18 in the UK) and your kid is too young. Are you going to allow him/her to get it without question? Of course not! You are either going to say No, or you are going to watch it first and then if you think it's ok for him/her to watch it (but under your supervision) then great. The same is true for video games. The problem is many parents don't look at the ratings and stupidly buy them for their kids without a second thought until they see the game, get appauled, then blame the games developers. It's rediculous! There are games meant for kids. And there are games meant for adults. I'm an adult, and I like games that have adult (mature content).

The Witcher and Dead to Rights being good examples. I play them. I like them. But would I let a kid play them. No! Why? Because I have more sense than that. I know they are meant for adults. It says it on it's own packaging. My little brother for example. I allowed him to play Dead to Rights, because the content wasn't much different than what he had seen in countless movies and other games. However, I only allowed him to play it under my supervision. When it came to the point where the content was questionable even for him (those who have played the game know "Which" content I am referring to), I made him leave the room, I got past the part and then I allowed him to play from that point on. He was never allowed to play unless it was under my supervision. If he tried to break that understanding, then I banned him from playing altogether until he understood that my judgement is law. Period. The Witcher on the other hand, is a completely different story. Great game. But it is "only" for adults. Having played it myself, I know exactly what to expect and as such, have told him that he is not allowed to play it. Because of this, my parents now rely heavily on my advice on what games to get my brother as they know that I know what's suitable for him and what's not.

Another way is if your kid wants a game, it's rated mature and you haven't played it and your still unsure, then go online and read the reviews, see if there are any youtube videos, check the ESRB or PEGI sites (US/Canada "http://www.esrb.org") (UK/EU "http://www.pegi.info") and then make your decision. They don't have to get it right away. This is simple responsibility that is no different from checking the ratings on movies. It's there for a reason. Stop babying the adults for other parents plain stupidity and flat out laziness. Even if you don't want to take the time to check the ESRB or PEGI sites or read a review. If he/she is younger than the rating, then simply say NO! This is not a difficult concept. This is Left for Dead 2. This is an adult game. If it's not suitable for kids, then fine, give it an adult rating, but stop this censorship crap. Just because you don't like the content, shouldn't give you the right to tell everyone that they can't have it. Start holding stupid people responsible for their own stupidity and put things in place to stop stores from selling over-aged games to under-aged kids. Again, same for movies, we already stop movies stores from selling/renting over-aged movies to under-aged kids. We don't hold the movie makers responsible. So why do we hold games developers responsible? We need to stop placing blame on the people who don't deserve it and start taking responsibility for our own choices. Sorry for the rant guys. I needed to get that out of my system.