Gang members slitting the throats of their rivals and beating up strippers. Combatants hacking away with chain saw-equipped assault rifles. Football players taking steroids and celebrating game victories with hookers.
Those images flicker across the screen in some of the 10 video games that a media watchdog group warns should be avoided by kids and teens under 17.
The National Institute on Media and the Family is unveiling its 13th annual video game report card Tuesday to help parents choose games that are appropriate for their children as the holiday shopping season picks up.
The institute in past years has urged the video game industry to develop better ratings and retailers to do more to prevent kids from being able to buy mature-themed games. This year, citing the positive steps taken by industry officials and retailers, the group is focusing on ways parents can play a more active role in safeguarding their children fro m games that glamorize sex, drugs and violence.
“In spite of the fact that all of the games are rated, in spite of the fact that the retailers are doing a better job, we still know that there are a lot of teenagers who still spend a lot of time playing adult-rated games,” said institute president David Walsh.
The institute cited figures from the Pew Internet and American Life Project showing 97 percent of all teens, boys as well as girls, play video games regularly, and most parents pay attention to what their kids are playing. The group wants stronger parental oversight.
“We parents need to wake up and realize that the games our kids play do influence them,” said Walsh. “And it’s our job to make sure they are playing age-appropriate games. It’s the next big step.”
A video game guide for parents, including tips on using the parental controls on game consoles, is highlighted in the new report, which will be available on the group’s Web site.
Bloodshed and brutality are staples in the list of 10 games to avoid. All the games were M-rated, intended for those aged 17 and over.
“Blitz: The League II” players can target which body part of their football rivals they want to injure. Warriors in “Gears of War 2” use a combination rifle and chain saw. “Saints Row 2” features gang violence and allows players to shoot police officers.
Other games listed were “Dead Space,” ”Fallout 3,” ”Far Cry 2,” ”Legendary,” ”Left 4 Dead,” ”Resistance 2″ and “Silent Hill: Homecoming.”
Meanwhile, the institute recommended five T-rated games, intended for ages 13 and older: “Guitar Hero World Tour,” ”Rock Band 2,” ”Rock Revolution” ”Spider-Man: Web of Shadows” and “Shaun White Snowboarding.”
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More