Weekly Featured Topic: MADD wants Grand Theft Auto 4 rating changed to AO.

[Nicodemus]

MADD Gets Mad Over Drunk Driving in GTA IV …Calls for ESRB to Re-rate as Adults Only

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) has issued a statement critical of the opportunites for virtual drunk driving in GTA IV:

"Each year nearly 13,500 people die in drunk driving crashes and another half a million are injured in alcohol-related traffic crashes. This is why MADD is extremely disappointed by the decision of the manufacturers of the game Grand Theft Auto IV to include a game module where players have to drive drunk.

Drunk driving is not a game and it is not a joke. Drunk driving is a choice, a violent crime and it is also 100 percent preventable. MADD is calling on the Entertainment Software Ratings Board to reclassify Grand Theft Auto IV as an Adults Only game, a step up from the current rating of Mature and for the manufacturer to consider a stop in distribution – if not out of responsibility to society then out of respect for the millions of victims/survivors of drunk driving."

http://gamepolitics.com/2008/04/30/madd-gets-mad-over-drunk-driving-in-gta-iv-calls-for-esrb-to-re-rate-as-adults-only/
Well this is stupid .. if anything, I would think that this would help PREVENT drunk driving in the game because its f*cking impossible to drive drunk without wrecking.

Plus, when you're drunk in GTA 4 and walking to your car, the game suggests that you call a cab.

[Ultimate Rpger]

My thoughts exactly its not like they say, " Oh hey your drunk...go ahead drive around it doesn't matter how many people you kill..."

No people always want to blame Video games for everything.......its sad that something that brings fun and enjoyment to people can be said to be evil or w.e.

[Mystic Wolf]

Yeah, and the company definitely won't stop distribution just b/c game content offended people...yet again. One would think that these people/groups would go find a hobby already.

[Nicodemus]

Yeah, and the company definitely won't stop distribution just b/c game content offended people...yet again. One would think that these people/groups would go find a hobby already.
Yes, but if they rating is changed to AO, then no retailer will sell the game.

[Ultimate Rpger]

This might actually boost sales right now...

People right start getting scared that they wont be able to buy GTA 4, and go buy it now instead of waiting......That would work for Rockstar and the whole GTA crew

[Cyanide]

I like how every time a group like this makes a statement the first thing they do is cite the same statistics over and over and over.

[Harris]

It's a really tiny portion of the game, too. I've put over 15 hours into it and haven't chosen to get drunk and drive once.

[gookyd]

As it's been said here and other places, if anything GTAIV would make people not want to drive drunk. But of course, people get offended at everything without even bothering to check it out for themselves.

[Captain Obvious]

This might actually boost sales right now...

People right start getting scared that they wont be able to buy GTA 4, and go buy it now instead of waiting......That would work for Rockstar and the whole GTA crew
No it won't the sells is already high. Just because it has drunk driving doesn't mean that makes the game great.


Well this is stupid .. if anything, I would think that this would help PREVENT drunk driving in the game because its f*cking impossible to drive drunk without wrecking.

Plus, when you're drunk in GTA 4 and walking to your car, the game suggests that you call a cab.

Yeah I haven't tried it yet but I do know this, Niko does not use seat belts :P The thought of running into a pole and flying through the windshield is something I don't want to do.

[Mystic Wolf]

[QUOTE=Captain Obvious] Just because it has drunk driving doesn't mean that makes the game great.QUOTE]

NO, but it is nice to hit pedestrians while being drunk behind the wheel and NOT get into real trouble for it.

[Crosshair?]

This is ludicrous, I'm sick of groups like this attacking video games to validate their point. We KNOW people die from drunk driving, we KNOW drunk driving is stupid, hence why I choose to do as much as possible while playing GTA instead of doing it on friday nights. Fu(king idiots!!

[Ultimate Rpger]

No it won't the sells is already high. Just because it has drunk driving doesn't mean that makes the game great.

I mean since there trying to get the rating changed to adult, and stores wont carry the game then people will be like, "Oh hey lets go buy 3 copies right now. One for us and two for when people cant buy it......"


I honestly don't know anyone THAT dumb thinking MADD could change a game rating but...........ya.......:wink:

[Darth-gamer]

You can drink and drive in Saints Row. I guess that doesn't matter though. However, the second the words "Grand Theft Auto" are mentioned, the game may as well be rated "S for scapegoat".

[Mystic Wolf]

However, the second the words "Grand Theft Auto" are mentioned, the game may as well be rated "S for scapegoat".

It is not just GTA games that are violent and used as "scapegoats", but for whatever reason people like to attack just GTA and nothing else.

[Fool's Requiem]

Each year nearly 13,500 people die in drunk driving crashes and another half a million are injured in alcohol-related traffic crashes.
I’m not trying to be insensitive, but does anyone else actually believe this statistic? I'm sure there are a lot of people that die or get injured in drunk driving accidents, but I don't believe the number to be that high, then again, I could be completely off.

I don't understand how driving drunk could possibly influence the rating of a game the openly allows players to plow over pedestrians sober. :hmm:

Damn soccer moms need to pay more attention to their kids instead of trying to rid the earth of violent video games.

[Captain Obvious]

outdated but here
http://www.driveandstayalive.com/info%20section/statistics/stats-usa.htm
http://www.alcoholalert.com/drunk-driving-statistics.html

Keep in mind I can't grantee that those figures are accurate.

The argument here is should driving drunk change the game rating to AO. If anything GTA teaches us not to do it. And if the rating does change rockstar would just make another version without it.

[Mystic Wolf]

The argument here is should driving drunk change the game rating to AO. If anything GTA teaches us not to do it. And if the rating does change rockstar would just make another version without it.

Yeah, which is why these poeple need a hobby so they will quitting picking on video games and the gaming community.

[Darth-gamer]

It is not just GTA games that are violent and used as "scapegoats", but for whatever reason people like to attack just GTA and nothing else.
I know it isn't just GTA. There are tons, but nowadays when these ignorant morons rattle off crap about violent video games it usually goes "With the violent games today like X,X,X,...Grand Theft Auto, (You know the game where you can have sex with prostitutes and then kill them)." That thing about the prostitutes ALWAYS seems to get mentioned. Played GTA:IV for 1 week today and haven't touched them once. :D

[Mystic Wolf]

That thing about the prostitutes ALWAYS seems to get mentioned.

That is b/c sex sells and these d*mn soccer moms are prudes.


Played GTA:IV for 1 week today and haven't touched them once. :D

Congratulations. So how long before you touch them?

[Nicodemus]

I’m not trying to be insensitive, but does anyone else actually believe this statistic? I'm sure there are a lot of people that die or get injured in drunk driving accidents, but I don't believe the number to be that high, then again, I could be completely off.
Sounds right to me.. you have no idea how many drunk drivers there are out there.. at the police agency I work for, its just a matter of getting onto the freeway and looking for one, it never takes long, especially on a weekend. Our population is only 45,000 and we have 2-3 fatal accidents involving a drunk driver each year. Last year, a drunk driver tboned a woman driving her kids home and killed the entire family of 4.. and that's from ONE accident.

For a country of over 300 million, that statistic doesn't really seem that high.

[Darth-gamer]

Congratulations. So how long before you touch them?
Well, with the vastly improved friend/girlfriend aspect in IV, hopefully I will only use them sparingly.:D However, I also find it funny that sex is taken far more seriously in game rating consideration than violence.

[~Mr. Indecisive~]

Yes, but if they rating is changed to AO, then no retailer will sell the game.

Thats probably the point. Get it rated AO, and no retailer will sell the game. It would be a huge blow to Rockstar Games, mainly in sales. Then it could cause Rockstar to not develop a fifth GTA because it could end up being pushed into an AO rating again, and therefore sales would slow, and eventually GTA would fade away.

Its like Eric Cartman on South Park trying to destroy Family Guy. Once MADD gets their way, others would as well, and the game would be ruined.

[Mystic Wolf]

Well, with the vastly improved friend/girlfriend aspect in IV, hopefully I will only use them sparingly.

Why doesn't this surprise me in the slightest.:D


However, I also find it funny that sex is taken far more seriously in game rating consideration than violence.

That depends on what side of the collective fish bowl people are on.

[Jofish]

Dear Lord...
You can drink in Bioshock.
You can have sex in God of War.- Encouraged in the game.
You can Smoke in Metal Gear Solid.-Encouraged in the game
You can Illegally race in Need for Speed.-Encouraged.
You can Graffiti up walls in Getting Up.-Encouraged in the game.
You can "snuff" people in Manhunt.-Encouraged in the game.
You can use drugs in True Crime.-Some what encouraged.
You can drive drunk in GTA-No encouraged in the game.
Killing is encouraged in all those games but one.
Now which one of those games gets attacked? The whole thing is a double standard. It's lame.
It's just the post release heat, they'll forget about it when Rockstar eventually pays them to shut up.

[Fool's Requiem]

They'll forget about it when Rockstar eventually pays them to shut up.
And that right there is the one and only time I would agree with paying somebody to shut up... Though I'm suspicious of MADD and their real intentions. Maybe their aim was to get Rockstar to pay them a s**tload of money to shut up. Even soccer moms can't pass up an opportunity like that.

[Silent Kayos]

Well this is stupid .. if anything, I would think that this would help PREVENT drunk driving in the game because its f*cking impossible to drive drunk without wrecking.

Plus, when you're drunk in GTA 4 and walking to your car, the game suggests that you call a cab.

Really? Who makes you an authority on what messages the games trying to convey? What I took from it is that drunk driving in GTA4 is so much fun that doing it in real life could potentially be just as rewarding. Why you ask? Well when I'm sipping whiskey out of a 7/11 extra large slushy cup (Halo 3 edition) at 4 AM in the morning in downtown Pittsburgh I can barely find my head lights let alone the way to my house. Now with the help of GTA4 I can finally do it.

Basically what I'm saying is that GTA4 is a drunken driving simulator that lets you practice at home before you actually hit the road in real life. In fact, this will probably make the roads even safer than they already are! :cop:









Don't take me seriously, I'm just trying to be as absurd as MADD for even making this an issue. As with all of the other groups out there trying to stop the sales of controversial video games in anyway they can, frankly I find it frustrating but this comes with the territory of being a new entertainment medium. The state of the industry is where the music was in the late 80's early 90's. Constant attacks from politicians, lawyers, and anti-fun groups are going to be very common.

The best thing to do is, if you're that committed to the cause, is to join groups that protect the rights of the games being made. The ESA (http://www.theesa.com/)(not so much for you and me but more geared toward developers and publishers) and Video Game Voters Network (http://www.videogamevoters.org/) are two good examples of this.

Anyway, I don't actually drink, but I do kill hookers to get my money back.

[Mystic Wolf]

Even soccer moms can't pass up an opportunity like that.

Nobody or group can pass something like that up.

[cloudstrife24]

I’m not trying to be insensitive, but does anyone else actually believe this statistic? I'm sure there are a lot of people that die or get injured in drunk driving accidents, but I don't believe the number to be that high, then again, I could be completely off.

I don't understand how driving drunk could possibly influence the rating of a game the openly allows players to plow over pedestrians sober. :hmm:

Damn soccer moms need to pay more attention to their kids instead of trying to rid the earth of violent video games.
i agree they are worse games out there than gta, but the rating should stay the same be sides you got to be 18 to buy mature rated games and if your mom says what u can and can't play at age 18 thats bad.

[Crosshair?]

Maybe their aim was to get Rockstar to pay them a s**tload of money to shut up. Even soccer moms can't pass up an opportunity like that.
MADD is a non-profit organization, that would be...illegal to say the least.

[Mystic Wolf]

MADD is a non-profit organization, that would be...illegal to say the least.


Yeah but they can still ask for the money and when MADD gets it, all they have to do is claim the money will go to help those in need and just keep it for their selves. I am not saying that is what they will do but it is common though, historically speaking that is.

[Beha]

I knew this would be the first major thing to come under fire in the game.

Rockstar won't budge, and the ERSB won't either. The only reason San Andreas was getting moved was because the game was altered due to Hot Coffee, and so it was an entirely different game and thus warranted AO. They knew drunk driving was in there when they reviewed the game, and so they're not gonna change it because a bunch of soccer moms (majority of which actually drive WORSE than drunk drivers) are whining.

Also, is it bad the only time I've driven drunk in GTA I didn't crash and actually got back perfectly fine?

[Mystic Wolf]

a bunch of soccer moms (majority of which actually drive WORSE than drunk drivers)

It's not just the whiny soccer moms that drive worse than drunk drivers, the majority of the population drive that way.

Also, is it bad the only time I've driven drunk in GTA I didn't crash and actually got back perfectly fine?

No, it's not.:D

[Silent Kayos]

It's not just the whiny soccer moms that drive worse than drunk drivers, the majority of the population drive that way.

Not really. I'm pretty certain the worst drivers in the world are soccer moms, teenage girls with a phone glued to there face and old women. How do I know this? I have the worst f*cking road rage imaginable (not saying I've followed anyone home for cutting me off and then tearing up there yard with my cars tires.....) and 90% of the time it's because of those three types of drivers.

But by all means I'm not saying that all women are bad drivers...It's just hard to dismiss the observations I've had.

[Captain Obvious]

Also, is it bad the only time I've driven drunk in GTA I didn't crash and actually got back perfectly fine?
Actually when I was drunk I was driving more carefully because I had Michelle with me.

MADD is only saying that GTA is stating that it's okay to drink and drive and that it's alright for people to do it in real life. It's very clear that they didn't play the game nor do they understand the game rating system.

[Mystic Wolf]

Video game bashers will never understand the games.

[Jofish]

Video game bashers will never understand the games.


Thats the problem. They need to understand that it is a game. Of course they see the violence and hi-def ultra realism and see it as a simulator. There really is no good argument to defend gaming because they've all been seen and ripped apart before. Like I said before it's just the post launch heat. They'll forget about it soon and start abusing something else.

By the way did anyone notice the little "Hot Coffee" joke Niko and Michelle have after the second date? lulz.

[Beha]

By the way did anyone notice the little "Hot Coffee" joke Niko and Michelle have after the second date? lulz.Second date? What are you talking about? First date FTW!!

And Kayos, you are right, but, not being racist, I think 4/5 bad drivers I get behind are African American females, and 3 of them are also on their cell phones. I dunno, maybe it's just more so where I live but to me it seems that demographic is the worst set of drivers. Yeah, it's stereotyping, but speaking from experience that's what I've discovered. They're right up there with soccer moms.

[Mystic Wolf]

About 90% of the people in this country are bad drivers and they just make it worse by trying to talk on cell phones, play games, eat, etc while they are driving.