On Friday, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger took steps to ensure that teen gamers in his state will be doing a little less terminating in their video games.
The governor signed into law Assembly Bill 1179, which bans the sale andrental of "violent video games" to Californians under the age of 18.
Games containing the type of extreme violence described in the bill will be required to carry an "18+" label on the front of the box if they are to be sold in the Golden State. Retailers selling such games to kids would face a maximum $1,000 penalty.
"Many of these games are made for adults and choosing games that are appropriate for kids should be a decision made by their parents," Schwarzenegger said in a statement.
Similar bills have been signed into law this year in Michigan and Illinois (see "Political Battles Against Video Games Heating Up Across The Nation") and received support from top politicians such as Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Joe Lieberman (D-CT).
Just which violent video games would be subject to the law is not yet clear. Schwarzenegger's press materials describe Friday's action as a move to restrict "violent video games," using the same phrase in the actual legislation. But should a California teen worry about being able to buy the next "Grand Theft Auto," the next "Super Mario Brothers," the next "Fight Night" boxing game or all of the above?
"We're not talking about violent video games," said the bill's author, Assemblyman Leland Yee, in an interview with MTV News last month. "We're talking about ultra-violent video games."
The legislation itself defines a "violent" game as those with violence that "lack[s] serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors" or "enables the player to virtually inflict serious injury upon images of human beings or characters with substantially human characteristics in a manner which is especially heinous, cruel, or depraved in that it involves torture or serious physical abuse to the victim."
The Entertainment Software Association, which represents the game industry, was quick to voice its disapproval of the law. "We are disappointed that politicians of both parties chose to toss overboard the First Amendment and free artistic and creative expression in favor of political expediency," ESA President Douglas Lowenstein said. The ESA, which has successfully gotten courts to overturn similar laws in Washington state and Missouri and has filed suit to block the laws in Michigan and Illinois, has announced its intention to file suit to block the California law.
But those responsible for the California legislation, including the bill's author, Yee, say that this year's spate of laws will survive based on stronger scientific research than has been available in years past. Yee, a trained child psychologist, said last month that recent studies from groups such as the American Psychiatric Association indicated that the effects of violent video games on minors makes it necessary to enact laws restricting their sale to kids — even if such laws do not exist for violent movies, music or television.
Yee reiterated those claims in a statement on Friday. "Unlike movies where you passively watch violence, in a video game, you are the active participant and making decisions on who to stab, maim, burn or kill. As a result, these games serve as learning tools that have a dramatic impact on our children."
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