House requests FTC investigation of 'Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'

AP on Bakersfield Californian ^ | 7/25/05 | Juan-Carlos Rodriguez - AP

[NormsRevenge]

WASHINGTON (AP) - An uproar over hidden, sexually explicit scenes in the video game "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" spread to the halls of Congress on Monday.

On a 355-21 vote, the House passed a resolution asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the game's manufacturer, Rockstar Games, and its parent company, New York-based Take Two Interactive Software Inc.

"If that company purposely hid that information or material to make a sham of the ratings, it is nothing less than deceptive advertising, and should be punished, in this case severely," said Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., last week also asked the FTC to investigate Rockstar. She said the company had "gamed the ratings system" by concealing sex scenes in the game that can be unlocked by computer programs available on the Internet.

Video games usually have layers of content, and sometimes there are hidden areas that can be unlocked with special codes or modifications. A program known as "Hot Coffee" allows players to download the "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" modifications, or "mods," that reveal the dormant scenes.

The game was released last October with an "M," or mature, rating, for players 17 and older. In the wake of a wave of negative publicity about the hidden scenes, the Entertainment Software Ratings Board, an industry group responsible for rating games, changed the "M" rating to an "AO" rating, for adults only.

Take Two Interactive initially said the scenes were not part of the retail version of the game, but were created by third parties. Later the company admitted the scenes were contained in its version.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Target Corp., Best Buy Co. and Circuit City Stores Inc. have pulled the game - last year's top-seller among console games - from their shelves following the rating change.

Rockstar Games has stopped producing the alterable version of the game and is working on a more secure version that will qualify for an "M" rating.

Take Two Interactive was unreachable by phone for comment.

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On the Net:

Federal Trade Commission: http://www.ftc.gov

Entertainment Software Ratings Board: http://www.esrb.org

Take Two Interactive: http://www.take2games.com

[Lockbar]

Hillary is upset the sexual activity unlocked using "hot coffee" mod is heterosexual, not lesbian.

[Stellar Dendrite]

where are u at in the game? i'm in san fierro (really san francisco).

[SouthernFreebird]

I'd think the 17 and over rating would mean adult enough to handle hidden sex scenes that you have to actually seek out.

[Dan from Michigan]

This is ridiculous.

[Callahan]

That's true. You get to choose, just like life. Although, if you go the pacifist route you won't get very far in the game.

[newsgatherer]

Do you have the HR number? I've searched thomas and can't find this.

[BlueNgold]

OMG ... 17 yr olds are seeing stuff they should have to wait another year to see?? This is like making a difference between an NC-17 movie and an X.

This is nothing more than proof that the ratings system is a sham not because of manufacturers, but because of lack of parental interest and attention. Your 14 yr old shouldn't have the game anyway!

[Gator101]

I have never understood this. Are Hillary and friends saying that if it weren't for the hidden sex scenes that this game would be OK for children??? It's rated "Mature" for a reason.

BTW, I love the game for myself (Grove street fo' life...cuz!) but would never let my kids play it.

[Dan from Michigan]

BTW - "Are you professional morons, or just gifted amateurs?"

[Nathan Zachary]

"get yours now, the decency nazis are out..."

There should be some "decency" in this country, rather than porn, and the promotion of indecent behavior everywhere you look.

What's laughable about this story is that democrats, the very people who promote immorality in this nation, are making an issue out of it.

BTW, I have my copy, but you need more equipment to open the sex scenes. It's not just a simple cheat code that gives you access, so this is a big "non-issue". Who the heck gets off on a animated figure, a useless twit at that, having almost visible sex?

This flap the democrats are on is laughable on so many levels it makes your head spin. just turn on the TV and watch the soaps and you see more disgusting immorality than you would see this cartoon figure doing on a dumb game.

If people bitched about the entire game, the "plot", then I can see a reason to bitch.

[BlueNgold]

Anyone else notice that they are not deleting the scenes, but working on a more secure version .. someone please explain that to me...

[Stellar Dendrite]

"Hillary is upset the sexual activity unlocked using "hot coffee" mod is heterosexual, not lesbian."

lol

[NormsRevenge]

http://clerk.house.gov/cgi-bin/lgwww_bill.pl?100376

H. Res. 376:
expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Federal Trade Commission should investigate the publication of the video game "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" to determine if the publisher intentionally deceived the Entertainment Software Ratings Board to avoid an "Adults-Only" rating

The title of the measure was amended. Agreed to without objection.
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

On motion to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, as amended Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 355 - 21, 1 Present (Roll no. 419).

[Jrabbit]

My sons are grown now, so never faced this....but does the rating mean nobody under 17 can purchase this game? Are ID's checked?

[Conservative Firster]

Game Player Data

How Many People Play Computer and Video Games?

• Fifty percent of all Americans play video games.

Who Purchases Computer and Video Games?

• Ninety-five percent of people who make the actual purchase of computer games and 84% of people who make the actual purchase of video games are 18 years of age or older. The average age of the game buyer is 37 years old.

How Long Have Gamers Been Playing?

• Adult gamers have been playing an average of 12 years.

Will Gamers Keep Playing?

• Fifty-three percent of game players expect to be playing as much or more ten years from now than they do today.

Who Plays Computer and Video Games?

                    

For Computer Gamers...

• Thirty-five percent of most frequent game players are under eighteen years old.
• Twenty-six percent of most frequent game players are between 18 and 35 years old.
• Thirty-nine percent of most frequent game players are over 35 years old.

For Console Gamers...

• Forty-six percent of most frequent game players are under eighteen years old.
• Thirty-five percent of most frequent game players are between 18 and 35 years old.
• Twenty percent of most frequent game players are over 35 years old.

What about Women Gamers?

• Forty-three percent of game players are women.
• Women over the age of 18 represent a greater portion of the game-playing population than boys from 6 to 17 (28% and 21% respectively).

How Much Time Is Spent Playing Games?

• The average adult woman plays games 7.4 hours per week.  The average adult man plays 7.6 hours per week. Though males spend more time playing than do females, the gender/time gap has narrowed significantly.  Whereas in 2003, males spent an average of 18 more minutes a day playing games than did their female counterparts, in 2004 they spent ony six minutes more each day doing so.  Females spend an average of two hours more per week playing games now than they did a year ago.

How many Gamers Play Games Online?

• Forty-three percent of most frequent game players say they play games online, up from 31% in 2002.

Who Plays Games Online?

• Sixty percent of online game players are male.
• Forty percent of online game players are female.

What Other Activities are Gamers Involved In?

• Gamers devote more than triple the amount of time spent playing games each week to exercising or playing sports, volunteering in the community, religious activities, creative endeavors, cultural activities, and reading.
• In total, gamers spend 23.4 hours per week on these activities, compared to 6.8 hours per week playing games.
• Seventy-nine percent of game players of all ages report exercising or playing sports an average of 20 hours a month.
• Forty-five percent of gamers volunteer an average 5.4 hours per month.
• Ninety-three percent of game players also report reading books or daily newspapers on a regular basis, while sixty-two percent consistently attend cultural events, such as concerts, museums, or the theater.
• Fifty percent of gamers are regularly involved in creative activities, such as painting, writing, or playing an instrument. In addition, adult gamers exhibit a high level of interest in current events, with 94 percent following news and current events, and 78 percent reporting that they vote in most of the elections for which they are eligible.

 

[Dinsdale]

Wait till you have to steal the harrier and the jet pack. It gets truely psychotic after that.

I got to 100% on all the flight school tests (to get the Apachee). Cops don't stand a chance. But the harrier will shoot you down everytime you get to six stars. Hunting Elvi in Vegas is fun.

You can't just steal a tank and be invulnurable like in the last two. Rampages are much more challenging.

Haven't seen 'Hot Coffee' as I skipped the girlfriend subplots. Is it worth going back?

[Texas_Conservative2]

glad to know the government is on top of this very important matter

*rolls eyes*

[Nathan Zachary]

That's what's so fricken' stupid about this flap the democrats are making. It's a rated game to begin with. I enjoy playing the game myself, but it's not something 10 year olds should be playing (although millions do).

Besides, the so called "sex" scenes are no big deal at all. You have topless dancers in the strip joints on "vice city" Hookers walking the streets that jump in the car and give you a hummer.

Tapping your keypad so AJ gets off better just shows how sick society is becomming, and the need to get our kids off the playstation, computers, the couch, and get a real life. Play baseball or something. Better yet, make their parents PARENT!

[johnmecainrino]

Hillary has an ACU rating of 0 she has not shifted at all in her votes.

You have to give Hillary credit though for one thing she votes like an extremist liberal like Ted Kennedy and is able to still pretend she is a centrist.


God save this nation from the hildebeast.

[Nathan Zachary]

Both my son's are grown up as well, one is in Iraq, the other just left for Afghanistan a week ago.

I would suppose that the ratings mean kids under age can't buy those games, but then they can by booze and cigs underage, so the rules are enforced according to the retailer's willingness to comply with the laws.
I think parents should be in control of their underage kids, what they buy, what they see, what they play. I think that ultimately, should their little darling be caught doing something illegal, the parent should be charged.