Games Developer Conference, Leipzig, Germany

 http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/94585

 Quotes:

"The Video game industry thinks it is treated unfair by the child walfare. While the movie indstury can show extreme violence scenes in films like "Bonni und Clyde", "Clockwork Orange" or "Natural born killers" without being listed on the index (?AO Rating?) games must be cut until they are unrecognizable to get a T Rating."

.....

In Lair the gamer plays as dragon, spitting fire and eating soldiers. Eggenbrecht says all flying body parts had to been removed or shades till they are unrecognizable." 

....

"The ESRB had problem with explosioins, burning thousands of soldiers. Eggenbrecht called this guidelines absurd.

Sex is even handled tougher in the USA. While films like "Der letzte Tango in Paris", "Basic Instinct", "Crash" or "Eyes Wide Shut" contains very explicitly nude scenes, games with even only hints would get a "M-Rating" which limits the distribution. Factor 5 originally build in a easter egg in Lair. The Cheat "Hot Coffee", in reference to the scandal around GTA:SA, was playing a short movie of a coffee machine. That had to be removed from the game, because it was undercutting the authority of the  ESRB"

 ----------------------End of qoutes-------------------------

He ( Eggenbrecht ) says also:

-game developers would be prosecuted like communist in the fifty's.

-Sex is a basic need like eating and sleeping

- more rating are needed between T and M 

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Sorry, had only time for a quick and dirty translation. 

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=27812

Heres it is.

He really stuck it to then, Go F5!!!

nice! Thats way better than my crappy translation :)

Factor5 are kinda pissed and so they should be the guidelines for games are ridiculous they should be the same as movie guidelines because at least the games are 3D its not like they are real unlike movies.

Movies are real? Hmm. Interesting point of view.

Basically the reason why movies pass, when games doesn't, is that movies are easy to edit, when there's content, what is inappropriate. Movies don't go directly to homes, they are first viewed in movie theaters, where there is (should be) control over who can watch it. And usually movies on DVD:s, are edited from the theatre version.
Games go straight to homes, no theatre views, no (real) control etc.

I think that's the main reason why games are rated harder than movies.
But, is the criteria correct, that would be a different topic.

Games are more interactive: It's watching a realistic person getting killed for effect vs. Killing realistic people yourself for enjoyment.

I've always thought Mario, Pokemon, Viva Piñata, etc. are just as good as more violent games; violence doesn't make a game better by itself.

Games aimed at that audience should be designed with minimal violence in mind, not doing and then getting angry that censorship you knew would happen is enforced and you have to ruin the game. It was your (as a company) decision in the first place.

Mr Eggenbrecht is right. They should get treated no diff, Why Manhunt 2 gets banned and movies like Hostel 2 get released makes no sense.
I guess we can thank American lobby groups who need something to blame when kiddies goto school and shoot each other. Rather than look at the degenerate american society as a whole.

Did not take long. So what is it will nintendo people and everything should be childish. Are you scared of the realism of viloence in games, what type of world do you live in. Cant you handle it, what ?

The retarded way the rate games thats the problem, a little blood and its M but people on fire ohh thats fine that is T rated. The hypocrisy and ignorance of those idiots behind the game ratings is what F5 is complaining about.

Hus what is wrong with you, do you really have to make everything about consoles?  This has nothing to do with fanboys or individual consoles yet you have to make that rediculous attack anyways? 

On the topic: Most people on these forums know how I feel on this subject so I won't go in depth.  I am just wondering how long we are going to let the ESRB tell us what is too violent/sexually explicit for us before we tell them off and make our own decisions about content.  I don't think anyone is suggesting there aren't certain games that cross a few boundaries, but I just don't see how a group of people can tell me what content is too violent for me or too sexually explicit for me, I am an adult and I will make that decision for myself and I expect every parent to read reviews on any game their child wants to buy.

PS - Nobody ever talks about how stupid it is that the games companies actually have to pay the ESRB to rate their game. 

When Manhunt 2 was given the AO rating this group had one of the stupidest things to say.

Here's exactly what I sent to my boyfriend: