Brilliantly said! Video games need to be protected under the same rights that protect other forms of free speech.

Porygon-2000:

Pugiron:
Glad evil, stupid America has a Constitution, unlike Britain, and that our Constitution has a Bill of Rights to guarantee us those rights, unlike Australia's Constitution.

Now, you act as if a lack of a bill of rights is a bad thing. It honestly isn't. While it is true that Australia does not have one, it hardly makes daily life any different. It just means we got rid of the gun nuts after the first big massacre (Port Arthur, to those not in the know), rather than having them hide behind a scrap of paper.

...Legal Studies FTW!

No guarantee of Free Press or Free Speech FTL! Censorship of Video GAmes FTL! Understanding what you studied fail!

I guess it doesn't make much sense for politicians to pander to video game fans. From what I've seen here (and this includes me), we're a bunch of people jaded to the whole politico to the point of just choosing to be uninvolved. So in our seeing politics for what it is and subsequently ignoring it, we've kind of made ourselves vulnerable.

I hear and obey O_O

Not G. Ivingname:

Yahtzee Croshaw:
Snip

I assume this has at least something to do with the upcoming United States Supreme Court case between the ESA and California right, the biggest threat to ever face gaming?

Sort of.

The Supreme Court members are appointed for lifetime jobs and as such aren't really swayed by public opinion.

However should the case turn out horribly and our side loses it would be worth it to have something like the VGVN to try to persuade politicians not to make these laws.

albino boo:

The same law is already extant in most of the democratic world, the EU alone has 500 million people living in it. The presumption that America is bigger market that the EU, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Korea combined is just plain wrong. In the UK Asda, which is owned by walmart, sells 18 rated games. Also Amazon, steam, direct to drive and gamestop all continue to sell 18 games. Most western countries already have boards that give legally enforced age requirements to films, yet somehow manage to maintain artistic freedom, in fact French and German film is considerably more political than Hollywood. Bottom line here guys, if virtually the entire western world has this law without any threat to sales or to freedom of speech, why is America so different?

Because some people, that the uninformed masses think are cool, say it's bad. Get over it USA. It's not as bad as you think - by far. Like i said, it may even be a chance to have more mature games be made, once the kid's welfare has been taken care of. No more ambiguity.

Hummm... Not a Fan

I couldn't care less about happens to the to the U.S., and am disappointed that Yahtzee would follow said country on Facebook and waste an entire video talking about the issues his new friend is facing. I waited a week for this video.

I dunno, I don't wanna feel like a drone for just doing what yahtzee says but.... I dunno seems like a good cause

I'm a starving Canadian college student, why would the US supreme court have any reason to care what I think?

...besides, I'm no longer sure which side to take on this issue.

Dispite my interest in seeing the politicians win this one...No but seriously, I'm curious to see if video games would be sold at liquor stores, porn shops, certain bars and/or at other stores that would regulate how they're sold or just keep anyone under 17 or 21 away. I'm definitely signing up to see what I can do.

mr_rubino:

PoisonUnagi:

mr_rubino:
forgotten country

See, now you're just trolling.

Better a successful one than a failed one. Back in the real world, New Zealand still serves no purpose except perhaps providing some species of insect nobody particularly wants coming to their shores.
No wonder you're so bitter; your big brother is causing all manner of commotion in this debate and all you can do it sit there doing nothing. =(

You're not successful once you openly admit to trolling. Reported.

dennett316:

Oyster^^:

thefreeman0001:
dont comment on the video do it NAO!

??

OT: Not the anti-fun brigade! I'm not sure this currently applies to me since I'm not american but I appreciate the idea in general.

A Governor Schwarzenegger joke, he'd be part of the system in that area that needs convincing.

Ahhh. I understand. California for the win?

Ben (Yahtzee), you should have mentioned that it's only in the united states, I live in Denmark, and although I'd like to give my support, I can't due to a non-available zip code or such in the US.

So...if I live in Canada, can I not join the club?! Boourns! Tried entering my postal code, and the site wouldn't accept it - looks like it's an American thing, I'm not sure how many Canadian politicians bash videogames, actually, I'd like to find out

I understand this is a cool and important political thing...but...but...

"different to"?

"DIFFERENT TO"???

I'm not normally a grammar maniac, but man, that construction makes me all crawly.

Why is the European Space Agency bringing such a message to me?

this scheme needs to be spread to as many countries as possible fucking *now*.

AnneSQF:
I have looked at the site and it is looking good. Great of you to mention it. But I'm 16 and not American so I wish you the best of luck.

By the way: Is video game violent a big problem in Europe? Here in Denmark we don't hear anything about it, what's up in the other countries?

yeah here in britain they like to jump on the bandwagon whenever some kid goes apeshit with a stanley knife and carves out on of his schoolmates guts (which is pretty much every day with a y in the name in london) or whenever its a slow news day (see previous brackets).
and dave cuntface cameron and cronies would love to see anything more violent than wii kitten stroking outlawed in the name of 'big society', that is wooing the easily distracted knee-jerking daily-mailocrite dimbo demographic.

Kinda weird coming from Yahtzee since he's in Australia, but the point is still clear to any Americans. Luckily for me, I've been a member for almost two years now.

jono793:
And like the United States, British supermarkets will happily stock 18 rated games on their shelves without issue.

Fixed. At least, if this law gets struck down. Which it will.

I'm an American gamer and I am totally appreciative to know about this. I had no idea the fight for video games had gone this far. Luckily the state I'm from isn't on the list, but if they win the fight what's next our right to watch porn up on the chopping block, again? This is ridiculous. I'm going to do everything in my power to stop this, and I'm going to spread the word. Thank you Yahtzee.

Good pimping Yahtzee.

(Although games aren't really a "storytelling" medium mind, but they're still due to be recognised as free speech like any kind of art).

Yahtzee is advising American gamers to get politically involved to avoid the nightmare of the American gaming market coming to resemble the censored Australian gaming market... Is that irony?

and yahtzee should know. living in Australian... it could really get THAT bad for you Yanks!

This whole thing is pretty crazy. I watched this episode of Penn and Teller's Bullshit, and they covered how violence in video games effecting children was ridiculous. I'm thinking of copying that and sending it to the Supreme Court. Would that be too drastic.

I do wish there's anything I can do to help, but I'm Egyptian, so all I can do is try to inform as many of my American gamer friends as possible of this and hope (read: threaten to kill them if they don't) that they act!

Considering that video games are a multibillion dollar industry and that this is America, I'd have to say this threat sounds greatly exaggerated. And, for better or worse, the fact that much of the entertainment industry as a whole opposes California will probably carry some weight. Also, this bill has been struck down, what, twice already?

I would sign up, But I live in Britain where no-one in power is calling for video-game banning or censorship. But seriously...go for it. Stand up against the injustice. Join the proverbial Rebel Alliance (VGVN) to fight the proverbial evil Empire (The Man). Go Rock and Roll!

randomrob:
I would sign up, But I live in Britain where no-one in power is calling for video-game banning or censorship. But seriously...go for it. Stand up against the injustice. Join the proverbial Rebel Alliance (VGVN) to fight the proverbial evil Empire (The Man). Go Rock and Roll!

The newspapers still get up in arms about video games, being quite willing to lie their non existent balls off to sell some more papers to angry pensioners.

You only have to look at the recent Daily Star report where they were outraged by a 'GTA' game based on the Raoul Moat killings, which didn't exist, and rather than spent 20 seconds fact checking, they went with it because it fitted the anti gaming opinion they like to push.

On top of that, many UK politicians are more than willing to leap on any anti gaming bandwagon if it makes them look like they are 'defending the nation's morals' or 'protecting children from corrupting influence', when videogames are one of the few industries we still have.

We can't vote on the US stuff, but we can speak out, keep reminding people that gaming is now more an adult hobby than a child's one and that they are age rated and moderated, and that few games are like Manhunt and Postal 2.

I'm hopeful that Yahtzee's prediction comes true however and in about 20 years all the old people who are too ignorant and frightened of games are all dead of old age, and you know what that means - videogamers hold the majority of the vote, and we start seeing politicians turning 180 on their policies faster than Blinky after Pacman eats a power pill.

Hmm? Video game politics? How will joining this video game voters site really help video games in general?

mr_rubino:
There already is no ambiguity. It's called a ratings system, but unfortunately, the porked-up baby-boomers and aging Gen-Xers (Did I reverse those...?) aren't big on the whole "parenting" thing, so they don't do research. (There is, naturally, no such push when it comes to movies, showing a hypocrisy only the most useless people can't see.)

But those ratings can't be legally enforced so retailers can sell inappropriate games to little kids all they want. Do you honestly think that the current state is a good way of dealing with these "f**k-and-forget" token-parents? Who procreate, but then don't care about raising their kids appropriately? And then the rest of society has to deal with the outcome? What else would YOU do about it then? Introduce some parent education program? I bet they're all very keen on participating...

mr_rubino:
You see, there's one thing we couldn't expect Euros to particularly understand: Americans believe in personal freedom to choose for themselves what they want to expose themselves to. We don't see it as the government's place (MPAA is not a government agency, btw) to coo a lullaby into our ears and tuck us into beddy-bye at night.

Yes, but this isn't about adults, it's about kids playing games they shouldn't. The same goes for movies though - no objection there, on my behalf.

Yahtzee, you live in Australia. How can you send in your opinion on that website if you yourself don't have an american postal code? They reject them as invalid.