Skyrim Officially Gets 'M' Rating

[Nerevar Telvanni]

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim gets an 'M' for Mature rating from the ESRB in the US, indicating the game features "blood and gore, intense violence, sexual themes and use of alcohol." Alright!!

Here's the official word from the ESRB listing:

This is a fantasy role-playing game in which players assume the role of Dovakin, a prophesied figure with the power to combat dragons in the fictional world of Skyrim. As players traverse through mountainous open-world environments, they complete missions and quests that impact the eventual fate of their character. Players use swords, bows and arrows, axes, and magic attacks (e.g., fireballs, ice shards) to kill various enemies (e.g., wolves, dragons, human bandits and soldiers). As players engage in melee-style combat, some sequences are highlighted by slow-motion effects, particularly for decapitations. Large blood-splatter effects also occur during combat, and some environments are stained with blood or body parts (e.g., heads impaled on spikes). Some sequences allow players to injure/kill nonadversary characters, including prisoners chained to a wall; they scream in pain amid splashes of blood or fire. As the game progresses, the dialogue and on-screen text contains references to sexual material (e.g., “. . . all the whores your heart, or any other organ, desires,” “She . . . raped the men as cruelly as Bal had ravished her,” and “Remember when you thought [he] was . . . intent on making you . . . into his personal sex slave?”). Alcohol such as wine, mead, and ale can be purchased and consumed by players' character throughout the game; and in one sequence, players can engage in a drinking contest with another character, which eventually results in slurred speech (e.g., “One more. No problemsh . . . Thash grape!”).

This pretty much is the same description that Oblivion got, before it got re-rated from "T" to "M" all because someone on the PC made a mod that removed the underwear from the character model.

I actually own a copy that still has it rated as "T" I want to say its my CE of Oblivion that's still rated as T for Teen.

 

[Nerevar Telvanni]

Deranged Hero

"Skyrim seems rated as MA15+ here.

I find the different standards between Aus and the US amusing.
Oblivion started at M rating and stayed there, and M has no age restrictions here what so ever.
Hell, I didn't even know about the "Nudity Scandal" until my BF went to get a copy of the game and told me that because he was only 17 he had to get his father to do it."

Aus is SOOO uptight when it comes to mature rated games, I know a number of games that just got straight bans in Aus. Games that dev's changed just to appease the Aus ratings board.

It's just stupid, I really hate the "THINK OF THE CHILDREN!" excuses that certain review boards use. If I'm right our ESRB is comprised of a bunch of people who know the gaming industry so in a way the industry polices' itself, and not the government. I'm not sure how it works in Aus, but with this super hard "crackdown" I can only image that its some government agency like our FCC (for TV) that's setting the ratings for your games. Is your movie review system the same way?

Well here our M means you have to be at least 17 years old to buy it, other than that your free. We do have some games that get the AO rating (Adults Only) and you have to be 18 years old to get those, but no store will sell an AO game and I don't think the Xbox 360 will actually play an AO rated game.

 

[Nerevar Telvanni]

Supinelu

Because nothing is complete without the requisite rape joke/reference rolleyes

I'm not sure what they hope to accomplish with rating it 'M'. It's not like my brother hasn't been playing mature games since he was ten or anything. Oh well! I'm perfectly legal and that's all I really care about :]

I want to play like...gaaaah. Now now now

I don't think you would like A Song of Ice and Fire then, there happens to be more than a few times in the 5 books that are out, that rapping takes place. I know some people wish that GRRM would cut down on the amount that takes place.

Meh it doesn't really matter to me as to what a game gets rated since I'm old enough to buy whatever I want.

I know right, 11-11-11 can't get here fast enough. Whatever time that I have left over from what Walmart takes from me will be used to play this game.

 

[Nerevar Telvanni]

Supinelu

Nerevar Telvanni

Supinelu

Because nothing is complete without the requisite rape joke/reference rolleyes

I'm not sure what they hope to accomplish with rating it 'M'. It's not like my brother hasn't been playing mature games since he was ten or anything. Oh well! I'm perfectly legal and that's all I really care about :]

I want to play like...gaaaah. Now now now

I don't think you would like A Song of Ice and Fire then, there happens to be more than a few times in the 5 books that are out, that rapping takes place. I know some people wish that GRRM would cut down on the amount that takes place.

Meh it doesn't really matter to me as to what a game gets rated since I'm old enough to buy whatever I want.

I know right, 11-11-11 can't get here fast enough. Whatever time that I have left over from what Walmart takes from me will be used to play this game.

-shrugs-
This s**t is everywhere. I sort of have to take it as I go. I figured I'd read the first book and see before deciding on a whole series though. I saw the fifth book at Wal*Mart and it looks pretty heavy. Thinking about the Hunger Games too.

It was sort of a rehtorical question ;p
I feel the current rating system is not very effective at what it's supposed to do. But they try so hard.

I'll be writing my novel again...and finals is in November. It's a really good thing I get off for semester break December 5th :3

Given the time period and events that take place during the series I can see it happening...GRRM's books are quite heavy each book has had least 900 pages. But its worth it, there are characters in this series that I just love with all my heart and HATE with a burning passion.

HERP DERP well I can tend to completely miss those kinds of things on the net.

:O I forgot about your novel, how has that been going?

 

[Nerevar Telvanni]

Deranged Hero

Nerevar Telvanni

Deranged Hero

"Skyrim seems rated as MA15+ here.

I find the different standards between Aus and the US amusing.
Oblivion started at M rating and stayed there, and M has no age restrictions here what so ever.
Hell, I didn't even know about the "Nudity Scandal" until my BF went to get a copy of the game and told me that because he was only 17 he had to get his father to do it."

Aus is SOOO uptight when it comes to mature rated games, I know a number of games that just got straight bans in Aus. Games that dev's changed just to appease the Aus ratings board.

It's just stupid, I really hate the "THINK OF THE CHILDREN!" excuses that certain review boards use. If I'm right our ESRB is comprised of a bunch of people who know the gaming industry so in a way the industry polices' itself, and not the government. I'm not sure how it works in Aus, but with this super hard "crackdown" I can only image that its some government agency like our FCC (for TV) that's setting the ratings for your games. Is your movie review system the same way?

Well here our M means you have to be at least 17 years old to buy it, other than that your free. We do have some games that get the AO rating (Adults Only) and you have to be 18 years old to get those, but no store will sell an AO game and I don't think the Xbox 360 will actually play an AO rated game.

"I don't know all of the works of it, but it's not that many games that really have been banned. Just a few that people have made uproars about that make it seem bad, and only one game out of them that I wanted to play(banned due to drug use, fffff, I wans't interested in that part of the game anyhow!). I know L4D had the bodies removed after the zombies died or somrthing? It wasn't anything game changing I think, and they altered the drug stuff in Fallout 3 because of Aus.
Though in recent times we've been pushing for R18+ games, which I would love, less games banning, less games having content cut just to appease those that believe they're 'protecting the kids' when they're cutting down a game so they can market it to younger ages instead of doing the simplest thing possible and opening an adult gaming market. I guess that's what frustrated me the most about it. Want to protect the kids? Don't force them to cut out content from a game just to fit it into a 15+ age bracket. Gives us out 18+ content!
I really should check up on the status on R18+ games, I think we got it through and that it just needs to be worked out and implemented.

Other than that, I don't particularly have anything against game ratings. I've been playing MA15+ games since I was a kid."

Ah so in essence you really don't have what we call an M rating as in needing to be 17 years+ to play. That really sucks, they have to know that there is a market out there for those types of games/movies, etc. emotion_facepalm why is it that the voices of a few overprotective people can ruin the fun of the masses, and those overprotective people never seem to actually understand what they are bitching about. Since you live in Asu I'm not sure if you heard all the BAWWing over the love scene that Mass Effect has. Here let me find you a link to what I'm talking about...."SE"XBOX? that's the name Fox News came up with for this news "story." Watch this and try not to get angry at the ignorance SPEWING out all over the place.

 

[Nerevar Telvanni]

Supinelu

Nerevar Telvanni

Given the time period and events that take place during the series I can see it happening...GRRM's books are quite heavy each book has had least 900 pages. But its worth it, there are characters in this series that I just love with all my heart and HATE with a burning passion.

HERP DERP well I can tend to completely miss those kinds of things on the net.

:O I forgot about your novel, how has that been going?

It's funny how we keep coming back to the same time periods. Over and over. But yeah, I'll read one before I commit. The length isn't an issue for me really, I read really fast. The writing style though...

Well, technically they're all separate though they are continuing in the same universe. Thinking of doing two this year - one the full 50k and the other whatever goal I end with, because of finals, though I'd like at least 10k. I have to get into the detail-outlining part and I...hate that with a burning passion ;p
I need someone to prod me with a stick. I haven't written much in weeks.

GRRM's rights in the 3rd person POV style. Each chapter in his books, at least the SOIAF ones are POV of a particular character.

:O congrats on winning the full 50k....-pulls out a very large stick- So where do you want me to poke you at?

 

[Nerevar Telvanni]

Deranged Hero

Nerevar Telvanni

Ah so in essence you really don't have what we call an M rating as in needing to be 17 years+ to play. That really sucks, they have to know that there is a market out there for those types of games/movies, etc. emotion_facepalm why is it that the voices of a few overprotective people can ruin the fun of the masses, and those overprotective people never seem to actually understand what they are bitching about. Since you live in Asu I'm not sure if you heard all the BAWWing over the love scene that Mass Effect has. Here let me find you a link to what I'm talking about...."SE"XBOX? that's the name Fox News came up with for this news "story." Watch this and try not to get angry at the ignorance SPEWING out all over the place.

"Nope, it was either "Teens can see this" or "ban". We have R18+ movies, so why not video games?

Good lord. I hate anything news wise when it comes to video game, 'cause it's all ignorance.
"All games are violent" is what rings out here most though, it's never a specific game though, they just pick at all games in general."

We still have a few here, those like at Fox News when there's nothing else to report about will jump on this anti-gaming bandwagon and try to be all like games my kids into killers, we must protect them from violent video games. We had a case go all the way to the Supreme Court:

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court on Monday refused to let California regulate the sale or rental of violent video games to children, saying governments do not have the power to "restrict the ideas to which children may be exposed" despite complaints about graphic violence.

On a 7-2 vote, the high court upheld a federal appeals court decision to throw out the state's ban on the sale or rental of violent video games to minors. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Sacramento had ruled that the law violated minors' rights under the First Amendment, and the high court agreed.

"No doubt a state possesses legitimate power to protect children from harm," said Justice Antonin Scalia, who wrote the majority opinion. "But that does not include a free-floating power to restrict the ideas to which children may be exposed."

The California law would have prohibited the sale or rental of violent games to anyone under 18. Retailers who violated the act would have been fined up to $1,000 for each infraction.

More than 46 million American households have at least one video-game system, with the industry bringing in at least $18 billion in 2010.

Unlike depictions of "sexual conduct," Scalia said there is no tradition in the United States of restricting children's access to depictions of violence, pointing out the violence in the original depiction of many popular children's fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella and Snow White.

Hansel and Gretel kill their captor by baking her in an oven, Cinderella's evil stepsisters have their eyes pecked out by doves and the evil queen in Snow White is forced to wear red hot slippers and dance until she is dead, Scalia said.

"Certainly the books we give children to read - or read to them when they are younger - contain no shortage of gore," Scalia added.

But Justice Clarence Thomas, who dissented from the decision along with Justice Stephen Breyer, said the majority read something into the First Amendment that isn't there.

"The practices and beliefs of the founding generation establish that "the freedom of speech," as originally understood, does not include a right to speak to minors (or a right of minors to access speech) without going through the minors' parents or guardians," Thomas wrote.

That last line just bothers me, looks like this justice doesn't know that stores and other places are required to check the idea of those who don't look old enough to purchase whatever rated game they are trying to buy. These people make it look like some 6 year old could walk into Walmart pick up a copy of say Grand Theft Auto and actually purchase the game and walk out the store. No the cashier would not sell the game to the kid. Sure I know there are some places that don't do what they are suppose to do, but those are few and far between.