Comments on: Critics slam 'GTA IV' without test drive

Politicians and organizations seek to cut off Grand Theft Auto IV even before its midnight Tuesday release.

[madman_5117]

Trying again

I forgot how young and politically unaware the gaming crowd is. Most of us "old guys" are also opposed to much of what Hollywood produces. And teaching 13 year old kids how to have sex in sex ed classes, and distributing condoms in high school, casual drug use in television, internet porn, etc. All the things that contribute to our society being less than it can be. That is the whole point why I spend my time doing this. As a people we can do so much more than create games like this, and then have parents who allow teenagers to spend hours and hours playing them. Both ends of the equation are wrong. And to point to the tragic and distasteful parts of mankind as rationale to continue the downward spiral is really just an immature line of thought. It's like saying lots of people steal things, so stealing isn't really all that bad. Of course it is. Thinking like that is evidence as to why Europe, Asia, and India have been kicking our collective butts in standardized test scores for the last twenty years. And jobs. Don't you worry about that though. Just go back to playing and defending GTA. Maybe you can find someone to pay you to do that for a living after the rest of the jobs are gone.

[smokified]

Well you don't think too much do you...

I like the point about Europe and Asia having higher standardized test scores. While you are commenting on other sides of the world, you should also add in that those areas of the world have WAY LESS cencorship than we do.

The difference is better parenting.

Playing this game is no worse than sitting down and watching a rated R movie. Actually since playing GTA 4 for a few days, I have rarely run across a situation that our movie industry would have condidered PG13 since your old man ass was a kid.

The issue in America is 80% bad parenting and 20% crappy educational system.

[geoffbrown]

Don't slam GTA -- offer alternatives

It's all too easy to condemn violent videogames. But there's a reason they get made -- it's easier to program trajectories than to program human dialogue. That's why there are more first-person shooters than "first-person talkers". A new company in Minneapolis called Social Animals just patented an authoring tool that makes role-playing conversation trees far more affordable. Let's see if the GTA critics actually start using tools like these to put their money where their mouth is.

[Rawnchie14]

No it's not

It's up to you to encourage them to maybe want to do something else, not "Find them better things to do."

Parents shouldn't direct what their children do, you're guides not dictators. Dictators are always paired with being OVERTHROWN, so keep up the parental restrictions and commands. It'll just make the game all the more decadent to your kids.

If you actually sway their OPINION away from the game, and suggest some better activities w/o forcing it upon them, you'll have a lot more success.

If I had a kid, and he wanted to play GTAIV, fine. I'd let him play it. As long as I do my job as a parent, and make sure he separates the events in the game from reality.

Oh yea, thats too hard, isn't it? Better to just, hide these things from them. So they can find it themselves. Without any guidance.

[Rawnchie14]

Crime In Japan

My understanding is that the reason crime is low in Japan because most people can tell the difference between fantasy and reality, because fantasies in Japan aren't equal to the crimes themselves like they are in the states.

Japan, truely, has some crazy stuff in circulation. Sure it may be creepy, but the people who buy this stuff aren't just gonna go out off the deep end. Fantasy driven, and sometimes twisted stuff being sold without being labeled as illegal. Yet thier crime rate is far lower.

In the US, any individual who would be a fan of these "products" in Japan are left with nothing but the desires in their head. These untouched and festering desires just simmer without being fulfilled turn into ACTION because there is no outlet or anything of the sort.

Easily, why America is so demented. We hide this stuff until people find out about it on their own anyways - and interpreting it into deviant behavior. Great job, censorship.

[theantibush]

its the nihonjin

Japan has low crime because they are all of the same heritage and customs, heritage and customs of social respect (even if superficial), and not a mixed culture full of cultural and racial fault lines, underpinned by individualism.

If they change their immigration laws to allow more foreigners in to become citizens, they will get their crime.

[theantibush]

Just birds and bees

You can easily train birds to regard a bottle of laundry detergent as their mortal enemy, which they will then attack outright, so it seems logical humans can self-train to attack things that exist only in their minds.

Note that birds and other ?simple? life forms won?t do this, unless they were insane or brain-damaged.

[smokified]

Also

Humans are pompas ignorant dumbasses.

We claim to be the top of the food chain, but it seems that most of today's Americans would rather run and hide the second a big scary monster called responsiblity shows up.

The day that society realizes that we are just a bunch of hairless monkeys is the day that things will start to improve.

[Trace9723]

Idiots

I am a 14 year old boy I don't get in fights i dislike violence and my mom (who hates to buy these sort of games) got this game for me for my birthday all you parents are over protective parents with your head shoved to far up your own ***** to realise that this doesn't affect kids above the age of 8 and seeing a damn commercial doesn't affect kids of any age.

More likely than not the things your child will encounter is vulgarity in its true essence other kids who swear cuss and fight i know 3/4s of kids that go to my school and elemetary school (old) do that and i live in a good neighborhood i learned the more you allow someone to do something the less they will think about it. If you let your kid play it they aren't going to think its a big deal. If you don't they will want to play it and will make a big hurrah about it.

You over protective parents who think your kids are perfect or sheltered are retarded more than likely your kid swears and you'd be lucky if he only swore on occasion i know 7 year olds that swear lots of them so tkae your heads out of your ***** and see this as an intivative fun game. I personally use it as a stress reliever. I play this game it keeps me from flipping out and getting arrested for assault. People can basically live out their violent fantasies from their home without endangering other people only a few nut jobs want to do it after they see how quickly you die just shooting at a cop


Stop being idiots and except it as a piece of entertainment and maybe america can get onto more important matters like getting our troops out of iraq and confronting bush over having us there for no reason,and to all you parents out there you are using video games as a scapegoat for your bad parenting skills if you kid flips out and kills someone its your ******* fault pardon my french. Take some responsibility for your actions your retards.

[3rdalbum]

Space Invaders was controvercial

It's true. The classic game Space Invaders was originally controvercial because the enemies shot back at you. It was thought that gamers would find it unfair and too difficult to play.

As far as Jack Thompson goes, he's just an autistic attention-seeker. If everybody stops mentioning him in the media, he'll shout louder - but then he'll eventually go away and start targetting some other thing entirely. I know a man with autism who has the same symptoms - we ignored him when he started annoying us, and then he went onto another subject (campaigning for an "Autism Pride" day) that was less obnoxious. His paranoid imagination actually left him.

The point is: Cnet, please encourage the rest of the technology media to ignore Jack Thompson, and everyone will be much happier. Ignore him and the symptoms of his mental illness will improve, so he can possibly be a well-functioning member of society.

[The_Decider]

So what is the difference between critics and fanboys?

Everyone know what the game will be like, and if you don't like it, you aren't going out on a limb saying so.

Meanwhile the fanboys are drooling over it, calling it "oscar worthy" with playing through to the end, while slamming critics for the same thing.

I couldn't care less about this trifle of a game either way.

[smokified]

More than that.

The article was about people posting "professional" reviews and opinions about a game that they did not evem play.

It is also the principle of the situation. The people that are complaining about this game really just don't even know what they are complaining about. The media showed a previous version of this game but happend to leave out the most important part. You don't have to go on murderous rampages. The game was designed around a story.

People need to one, chill out and take the time to learn things before they go acting like they know what is going on. Two, they need to start taking responsibility for themselves. If you don't want your kids playing games that were designed for adults, then don't let them play it. As an adult I will make the choice to play the game and you have no right to tell me othewise.

[cez801]

Parent and a Gamer

This is easy, I enjoy playing GTA and I have 3 kids and I don't see the problem.
A game is like cigarettes, alcohol or an R rated movie.

I am not going to let my kids smoke, drink or watch R rated movies until they are old enough - so why would I let them play a video game which is rated 17+?

I do play GTA and enjoy it - but not when the kids are around.

[Jdiep]

Perfect sentiment

I'm a 23yo living with my 24yo fiancee, i dont have kids and no kids come to visit, i love GTA IV, i love the sandbox gaming style, and i respect the need for classification.
In australia we don't have an R(18+) rating but if this game was rated such then i would support that, i dont see why adult are allowed to watch violent and sexually explicit movies with 18+ ratings but can't play a game with the same (but simulated) aspects.

PS. I'm also a doctor and wish nothing but love towards our fellow man (and women), I'm not violent and I treat women with respect, so no games like GTA IV do not turn good people into evil ones. If a person commits a crime and blames GTA, then you'll probably find that their whole life attributes to antisocial activities, not the game.

JD

[10jayson]

this is pathetic and unreal im not even a parent and i used to play this and i was going to get grand theft auto for my psp im not even 17 and i play halos all 3 and on line games that are rated m and ps news no one cares if sooner or later some one ( there kids) see thay see this crap if you want to help us dont sheald us so much other wise we freck out if wee see this stuff