Even though Arnold Schwarzenegger, as the Governor of California, fought hard to ban the sale of “offensively violent” video games to minors – and lost in a Supreme Court battle; new legislation is being written to once again take aim at video games, as well as the First Amendment.
President Obama has called for more research into the affects of violent games on children Rep. Jim Matheson has introduced a bill that would make it unlawful to sell or rent violent or Mature-rated video games to minors, making it punishable by a fine of up to $5,000. The bill has an uphill battle, especially given the unsuccessful attempts of other government officials that have tried to take away gamers’ First Amendment rights.
There is currently no research that directly links playing violent video games with perpetrating real violent crime.
Stephen Smith, Managing Partner of Greenberg Glusker and head of the Firm's Interactive Gaming Practice, focuses on representing entertainment and new media companies in the motion picture, television, digital app and interactive gaming industries. He explains exactly what gamers have to worry about with the new bulls eye on video games in this exclusive interview.
What impact do you see Rep. Jim Matheson's bill having with the current wave of anti-violent games and entertainment?
None other than political. This happens each time there is a horrific act of gun violence. It has never resulted in any court upholding a ban or limitation on violence in video games.
With the recent gun control laws that were introduced, how might the current climate impact games?
It won’t impact games in the United States. It might impact the way (and timing) violent games are marketed – for example note how Call of Duty’s advertising has become escapist, almost comical, clearly designed to show the game as more like paintball than actual war. There will be more toning down of the marketing; but not the gameplay itself.
Grand Theft Auto V will be launching this fall. The last game in that franchise escaped scrutiny. What are your thoughts on the landscape this game is entering and how might this game's violence impact things?
Given the timing, it may not escape scrutiny this time. I think it escaped scrutiny last time because, as compared to the game before that (can anyone say hot coffee?), it just wasn’t news. Again, I think it may cause Take-Two to change its marketing strategy; but at the end of the day, the formula for GTA works. They are not going to get rid of it now.
What should gamers be worried about when it comes to what the government wants to do with games?
They should worry about the intense, immersive, incredibly rich gameplay experience being dumbed down to meet a standard that is being imposed, by and large, by people who do not play or care about gaming.
It works well and is much less hypocritical than the MPAA rating system.
Thus far, all attempts to try to censor games have failed. Even at the Supreme Court level. Is gaming still safe moving forward?
Yes. Unless Scalia retires unexpectedly and soon, gaming remains safe in the US.
How can gamers get involved with what's going on politically around gaming and the First Amendment?
This is a very good question. The one place that the gaming industry falls down is in the area of educating the non-gaming public (especially parents of young children) of the benefits of gaming. Gaming is very beneficial within moderation. It teaches complex problem solving. Many game teach cooperation and teamwork. Often, they teach history (Assassin’s Creed for example). Gaming can also be used to solve large-scale problems in industry and medicine. They are incredibly effective in the field of education. But the industry could do a much better job of informing the non-gaming public of these benefits.
The same role parents should always play. They should know their kids, know what their kids can deal with and then gauge their game purchases accordingly. They should supervise the amount of gameplay their kids engage in each day and week to make sure it remains healthy and does not become obsessive. The same as TV or music or any other immersive media experience. Games are not unique – they are simply a combination of two older forms of entertainment – a game of pretend/playacting coupled with TV/motion picture. They are like performing a play (sometimes a violent one like Julius Caesar -- where the conspirators bathed in Julius Caesar’s blood up to their elbows -- but on a television) where they are the actor and director at the same time.
