Companies like Nintendo with its Virtual Console for the Wii, must submit each game it plans to make available for the service to the ESRB board. In turn the board determines the rating and only then can Nintendo release it with whatever rating the board concludes the game deserves. This can be painstaking, so Microsoft has found a clever way to work around it.
Redmond has had the actual Game Room Classified, giving the virtual arcade a E10+ rating.
Smart move, one that makes it easier for Microsoft to release as many games as it wants on the service without having to consult with the ESRB ratings board each time it plans to release something. So this should speed up game delivery to the Game Room, an idea Nintendo must be envious of right now since it’s faced major delays and setbacks in the past when trying to provide content for the Virtual Console.
Like in all things, there’s a little problem with this easy-way-out Microsoft has forged: Hardcore gamers won’t be able to enjoy none of the retro hardcore titles in the Game Room. Titles like Mortal Kombat, street Fighter etc., and while it won’t affect most of the titles that’ll be made available, its definitely a disappointment.
This is an interesting move by Microsoft. Does this mean every game in the Game Room will be E10+, or can they also be just rated E?
Sony and Nintendo both allow their games to be rated by the ESRB(as is required now to be on the consoles), so I don’t know why Microsoft is concerned with the process really.
If Microsoft has it “classified” as a E10+ room, I would think the games still have the ESRB rating on them, and the developers/publishers still have to pay the ESRB for the rating?
Strange.
I can see Microsoft’s take on this but come on how hard is it to block a kid’s account from getting into a room that has arcade games that are above his age restriction. Why alienate the older gaming crowd because you want all the arcade games to be kid-friendly and can’t spend some extra time programming the software. If kids want to play a game that is above their age restriction they will find ways including parents just look at all the underage kids on xbox live and psn that are playing MW2 and Gears of War they all cried to their mommy and they illegaly bought their kids the games. I was even reading an article the other day where the author was playing Gears of War 2 and a 9 year old kid was playing online swearing and trash-talking and when the other gamers got tired of it they told him to stop and then the kids mom jumped on and started cursing out all the players for agruing with a 9 year old kid meanwhile hello lady you are letting your kid play a game he is not allowed to play according to law but since Microsoft doesn’t stop the kids account from accessing mature content and the parent is a lazy piece of crap that has no moral values and lets their kid experience content that is way too mature he is free to play as long as parents keep buying the mature rated games. This is where parents need to take a reality check that they need to be spending quality time with their kids and building lifelong learning experiences instead of being lazy and using the xbox or ps3 or wii as a babysitter. Now I heard Mass Effect 2 is blocking underage accounts and I applaud them and all other devs who do as it will greatly help the future of gaming in the long run. Now don’t get me wrong we all started gaming when we were knee high to a grasshopper and I believe it is a great tool for kids to develop their motor capabilites and co-ordination and I am all for kids gaming their hearts out or until their fingers are black but back in my time there was only sonic or mario there wasn’t heads exploding and titties jiggling and just because the gaming market is really mature now it doesn’t give parents or kids the right to play the games. There are thousands of games that young kids can play now and many are really great games and parents need to really realize the consequences of their irresponsible behavior because those parents who buy their kids overage content just because the kid really wants it and cries for it are demoralizing our kids future and they will be the first ones to start complaints or get on the news crying about tittes or heads exploding. So really Microsoft how hard would it be to have a room with Mortal Kombat,Street Fighter,etc. and block kids accounts from accessing. It would not be very hard at all they are just being lazy like all the parents out there using mature games as a babysitter for their kids.
I think Microsoft should read your comment…
It’s weird they’d leave out the Mature crowd just to make the process faster..
Surely there are other ways to streamline a service; I don’t think eliminating the most avid gamers was the right move.
Indeed Ernice I agree with you 100 percent there are easier ways to streamline the service, they eliminated a huge chunk of the gaming population by saying only games rated E+10 because I think a lot of us older mature gamers would have spent countless hours playing the old Mortal Kombats or Street Fighters.