This week in entertainment: urban warfare, the supply and demand of narcotics, nudity, and a lengthy list of miscellaneous indecencies brought to you by both a critically acclaimed TV series and a video game. However, despite the similarities, the difference between the two is a simple one; the Boardwalk Empire is a lauded TV drama, while the release of Grand Theft Auto V has been shrouded in negative reactions from the media and parents alike. Although video games have become a societal norm, with 58% of the American population identifying as a member of the gaming community, they have also become a highly divisive social issue. This can be seen in the comparison of the coverage the game has received. The Toronto sun’s Tech Gaming columnist Steve Tilley covered the release with an article entitled “5 ways ‘Grand Theft Auto’ has changed videogames”. As a voice for the gamers, the article highlights everything about the game itself; the $265 million that was spent to develop the game, the five years it took, and the $6 billion it is projected to earn during the first six months. In contrast, CNN’s Doug Gross presented the same data, but followed the bare tech facts with an examination of the associated controversy and social problems that have come along with it. These two media outlets and their writers serve to show that while Boardwalk Empire has been gifted the golden ticket to be edgy without fault, the double standard whips back around to corner the video game industry for everything perceived to be wrong with society. I have always been a gamer, so encountering the stories the foist blame on the gaming industry for violent children or other influences on their social development is a sensitive topic for me. I have personally played the GTA series, and it has never influenced personal choices in real life, such as stealing a car or shooting a random civilian. There is absolutely questionable moral content in the game, but when played by the audience that it was meant for it is a provocative situation, not a normalizing one. As it is entertainment, the players do not think of the social improprieties but of the amusement value, a similar response to the viewers of Boardwalk Empire. The ability to recognize the division between constructed fantasy and reality is the key issue present, a societal issue instead of a media driven one. This society creates a dichotomy where it is considered normal to chastise gamers and the gaming industry for the “failed” upbringing of children by parents who are clearly so caught up in the uproar over games they believe shouldn’t be developed, yet continue to buy these games for their children without consideration. The industry standard of rating games from E (Everyone) to A (Adults Only) has been overlooked in the circus around the development of the games, and by completely dismissing the warnings the parents themselves become responsible for the psychological effects of the over stimulating mayhem. By refusing this responsibility and holding the gaming industry responsible, the social discussion becomes a one sided screaming match at best, with the developers being held to a standard unlike any other media outlet.
The unwillingness of the parents to accept that the M for mature rating does not cover their child is the driving force behind this social issue, and frankly I want answers to why is it the industry takes on so much responsibility for what they release. The consumer is not a mindless being, and it baffles me that society has come to a point where something as petty as a videogame can spark so much controversy when there are so many problems in the world around us that deserve more attention. That being said, gaming and all other relevant industries have come to be such a major part of our culture that responsibility for critical consumption must be taken upon the user to determine the appropriate audience and then stay within it. Blaming the industry for the actions of a 8 year old playing a videogame rated far beyond his social cognition level [Gamers Gear Up for GTAV] should not be normalized into a mindless resentment and overwhelming social response. The lack of responsible critical intake has become the social issue, covered up by the overwhelming contradiction applied to the entertainment industry and accurately depicted by the recent upheaval over GTA V.