Senators Hilary Clinton, Joe Lieberman, Sam Brownback and Evan Bayh have decided that games such as Manhunt 2 should be evaluated more accurately by the ESRB.
Of course, we all know that these politicians have been avid gamers for quite a long time and know exactly what they’re taling about, right?
If you will recall, Manhunt 2 was originally going to be rated AO (adults only) by the ESRB. Getting this rating would have virtually killed the game because many stores refuse to sell AO titles. Rockstar then went back and reduced the number of chunking and slashing incidents and voila, ESRB re-rates the game as "M."
But now, almost a month after the fact, the above mentioned senators feel that this should not be so and are asking that the ESRB reconsider and revamp their processes of classifying games.
In their astute letter, they say:
“We ask your consideration of whether it is time to review the robustness, reliability and repeatability of your ratings process, particularly for this genre [Manhunt 2] of ‘ultraviolent’ video games and the advances in game controllers. We have consistently urged parents to pay attention to the ESRB rating system. We must ensure that parents can rely on the consistency and accuracy of those ratings.”
Last year, Clinton gushed about what a fine job the ESRB was doing and said, "…I’m pleased that the ESRB and retailers are working together to educate parents about the video game ratings and make sure they are enforced."
[via gamesradar]
