GTA: San Andreas Rating Revoked
UPDATE THREE: Thursday, July 1st, 2005 @ 3:40 PM
Numerous people and organizations have responded over the last 36 hours with regard to the change in rating of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas to Adults Only.
First, Hal Halpin, President of the Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association [IEMA], has issued the following statement:
The ESRB (Entertainment Software Ratings Board) notified us late this afternoon Eastern Time that they have revoked the "Mature" rating previously issued for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, following an extensive investigation. Our members intend to immediately cease all sales of the game until existing inventory can either be re-stickered with an AO (Adults Only) rating, or exchanged for new versions of the game that has the hidden content removed and the original M (Mature 17+) rating intact. Though not a policy, IEMA members generally do not carry AO-rated games any differently than we do not carry X-rated videos or DVDs, thus it is likely that our members will be removing all copies of the current version and re-stocking with the updated version.
The National Institute on Media and the Family, one of the groups opposed to the content in GTA: SA issued this news release:
Pressure from National Institute on Media and the Family Means New Rating for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Institute Urges Independent Video Game Ratings System
Minneapolis - Pressure from the National Institute on Media and the Family resulted in the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) today revoking the M-rating for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The National Institute on Media and the Family now calls upon all retailers to immediately pull the video game from their shelves.
"The ESRB's findings confirm what we expected, but major questions still remain," said Dr. David Walsh, president and founder of the National Institute on Media and the Family and author of the best-selling book on teenagers, WHY Do They Act That Way? A Survival Guide to the Adolescent Brain for You and Your Teen. Earlier today, the National Institute on Media and the Family confirmed and was prepared to announce that its computer experts discovered the pornographic content on the retail version of the PlayStation 2 disk for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
"We are pleased that two major retailers based in Minneapolis, Target and Best Buy, were prepared to pull Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas from their shelves due to involvement from the National Institute on Media and the Family," said Dr. Walsh.
"Now that it has been confirmed that Rockstar Games and its parent company, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., failed to disclose to the ESRB the pornographic content of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, the National Institute on Media and the Family recommends the creation of a video game rating system fully independent of the video game industry," added Dr. Walsh. "It is clear an independent rating system is the only way parents will get the accurate information they need to make wise media choices for their children."
Computer experts from the National Institute on Media and the Family discovered and confirmed that the code for the "Hot Coffee" pornography is on the retail version of the PlayStation 2 disk for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The National Institute on Media and the Family used a disk easily purchased from a major retailer, along with a widely available cheat code from the Internet, and accessed the sexually explicit content that was already on the disk.
The National Institute on Media and the Family previously issued a National Parental Warning that the pornographic content is easily available to players of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Last week, Dr. Walsh joined with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) to again alert parents about the pornographic content and called upon the game's publisher, Rockstar Games, to immediately disclose whether they programmed the pornographic code onto the game's disk.
The Parents Television Council also was pleased with the rating change of GTA: SA, but wants Rockstar to recall the game and issue refunds to anyone who purchased it. The company issued this release:
Entertainment Software Ratings Board Changes Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas' M: ature 17+ Rating to AO: Adults Only
The Parents Television Council was pleased with the rating switch, but called on Rockstar to voluntarily recall the game and offer refunds to anyone who purchased it.
"I tip my cap to that first step of showing responsibility," said Tim Winter, the council's executive director. "Phase two needs to be absolutely getting to the bottom of this coding issue. How did it get into that game? How did it get past the ratings board?"
Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), a long-time critic of violent videogames, has issued a statement as well:
I am pleased that the ESRB moved promptly with their investigation, and demanded immediate corrective action. The integrity of the self-regulatory system has clearly been challenged by Rockstars actions. I believe the ESRB correctly recognized the critical need to maintain the credibility of the rating system. Parents must know that they can trust this system, and that adult material will not be available on games which receive less than an AO rating. I trust that Rockstar and other game manufacturers will take steps to ensure that in the future, all content available in game discs are fully disclosed to the ESRB and to the wider community in order the maintain the viability of the self-regulatory system and protect our children.
UPDATE TWO: Thursday, July 21st, 2005 @ 3:03 PM
Wal-Mart has now pulled Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas nationwide. In addition, Target has also pulled the title.
UPDATE: Wednesday, July 20th, 2005 @ 7:34 PM
Advanced Media can confirm that the retail sector is indeed following the ESRB direction to remove Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas from shelves for all platforms.
AMN staff happened to be visiting one GameStop at the same time employees were told to "stop selling" copies of GTA: San Andreas. "We've been told to not sell the game until further notice is given," said the store manager.
An EB Games store, however, was unaware of any plans to pull the game. A Wal-Mart store has not yet pulled the title, but does have a policy of not selling AO-rated games.
Best Buy, on the other hand has pulled the game from shelves and put out an official statement to announce that it has pulled Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas both online and in stores.
In compliance with our policy not to carry adult-only (AO) games, Best Buy is immediately taking steps to remove all copies of the now AO-rated game "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" from all of our North American stores. Earlier today, the ESRB adjusted the game's rating from Mature (M) to AO. We also have stopped selling the game on bestbuy.com, bestbuy.ca and futureshop.ca. This decision applies to both the game console and PC formats. Our decision reflects the commitment we have to our customers to help them make informed decisions. Best Buy is a strong proponent of the ESRB ratings system. We will continue to work with them to ensure that the ratings system is a meaningful way to help customers make educated video game purchases. With our decision to stop selling "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas,"we hope to send a strong message to game developers encouraging full cooperation with the ESRB.
We'll keep you updated.
ORIGINAL STORY
The "Hot Coffee" controversy has continued to percolate, leading to a very extreme measure. The ESRB said last week they would investigate whether or not the retail versions of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas contained all the data to render sexually explicit scenes that were discovered in the PC version by a mod author, who claimed all he did was create a mod that unlocked content already in the game.
The ESRB has concluded its investigation and issued a press release just a short while ago, which we present to you in its entirety:
ESRB CONCLUDES INVESTIGATION INTO GRAND THEFT AUTO: SAN ANDREAS; REVOKES M (MATURE) RATING
NEW YORK The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) today announced the findings of its investigation into the "Hot Coffee" modification for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and its immediate revocation of the game' M (Mature 17+) rating1. The game's publisher, Rockstar Games, a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., will immediately advise retailers to cease all sales of the game until corrective actions, as mandated by the ESRB, can be taken.
"After a thorough investigation, we have concluded that sexually explicit material exists in a fully rendered, unmodified form on the final discs of all three platform versions of the game (i.e., PC CD-ROM, Xbox and PS2)," said Patricia Vance, president of the ESRB. "However, the material was programmed by Rockstar to be inaccessible to the player and they have stated that it was never intended to be made accessible. The material can only be accessed by downloading a software patch, created by an independent third party without Rockstar's permission, which is now freely available on the internet and through console accessories. Considering the existence of the undisclosed and highly pertinent content on the final discs, compounded by the broad distribution of the third party modification, the credibility and utility of the initial ESRB rating has been seriously undermined."
In addition to directing retailers to cease all sales of the game, Rockstar has agreed to take the following ESRB-mandated corrective actions:
Offer retailers the option of either re-stickering existing inventory with an AO (Adults Only 18+) rating, or exchanging all unsold inventory for new versions of the game that has the hidden content removed and the original M rating intact.
Make a downloadable patch available to all consumers who have previously purchased the PC version of the game, which will make the modification that unlocks the material inoperable. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was originally released with an M (Mature 17+) rating with Strong Sexual Content, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Blood and Gore, and Use of Drugs.
Going forward, the ESRB will now require all game publishers to submit any pertinent content shipped in final product even if is not intended to ever be accessed during game play, or remove it from the final disc. Furthermore, the ESRB calls on the computer and video game industry to proactively protect their games from illegal modifications by third parties, particularly when they serve to undermine the accuracy of the rating.
"The integrity of the ESRB rating system rests upon its accuracy and reliability, and we will continue to do whatever is necessary to protect the public's trust in it. Independent research confirms that the overwhelming majority of consumers find ESRB ratings to be an effective tool to help make informed purchase decisions," continued Ms. Vance. "We encourage every parent to always check the ratings before bringing games home for their families, and to actively monitor what their children play."
About Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is a non-profit, self-regulatory body established in 1994 by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). ESRB independently assigns ratings, enforces advertising guidelines, and helps ensure responsible online privacy practices for the interactive entertainment software industry.
