Print this page

David Walsh, Ph.D.
President, National Institute on Media and the Family
November 23, 1999

Go to the Report Card

1999 has been a pivotal year for the video and computer game industry in a number of ways. Sales and revenues continued to climb. If the holiday shopping season lives up to expectations, experts predict that the revenues from the sale and rental of electronic games will exceed those of the film industry for the first time. Many adults over 30 are stunned to discover that the gaming industry has become bigger than Hollywood.

The next generation of technology has arrived. Sega unveiled its new 128-bit platform, Dreamcast, in September. The quality of the graphics combined with the increased game speed and complexity brought the technology another step closer to “virtual reality.” Nintendo and Sony are expected to launch their new 128-bit platforms next year.

In spite of these achievements, the industry also became the focal point of controversy during 1999. Violent video and computer games had already been implicated in school shootings in Bethel, AL; Paducah, KY; and Jonesboro, AR. After it was learned that one of the perpetrators of the Columbine High School killings was an avid player of Doom, there was an immediate call for action on many fronts. The Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation into the marketing practices of game producers and distributors. Hearings were held in Congress, in state legislatures, and in town halls. There were discussions about the effects of games on talk radio, talk TV, and over kitchen tables across America. Practically every major newspaper and magazine in the country started paying closer attention to the impact of violent video games with feature articles. A rash of legislative proposals to control violent games were introduced in a number of states.

It is against this backdrop that the National Institute on Media and the Family releases its 1999 Video and Computer Game Report Card. Every year for the past four years the National Institute on Media and the Family has provided this snapshot view of the electronic game scene as well as parent-generated evaluations of many popular games.

The National Institute on Media and the Family is an independent, non-partisan, non-sectarian, non-profit organization. The Institute’s mission is to maximize the benefits and minimize the harm mass media have on children through research and education.

The National Institute on Media and the Family:

Although this is not a scientific study, the results will provide valuable information for all concerned about the welfare of children.

We did not find any games that did not bear the Electronic Software Rating Board (ESRB) rating on the box.

ESRB Rating Categories:

EC = Early Childhood: content suitable for children ages three and older
E = Everyone: content suitable for children ages six and older
T = Teen: content suitable for personas ages 13 and older
M = Mature: content suitable for persons 17 and older
A = Adults Only: content suitable only for adults
RP = Rating Pending: product has been submitted to the ESRB and is awaiting final rating

Grade for percentage of games rated..............................................................A

The National Institute on Media and the Family conducted a study in which panels of six trained media raters viewed 78 electronic games and evaluated them using the KidScore^TM rating system.  Those evaluations were then compared with the ESRB ratings.  There were almost complete agreement when the games carried an “EC” or “M” rating.  This year, however, there was more disagreement than last year in the “E” and “T” categories.  The parent raters found 13 out of 48 “E” rated games inappropriate for children younger than 8 years of age and 2 of the 48 were inappropriate for children 8- to 12-years-old. They found 7 out of 23 “T” rated games as inappropriate for teens. It could be that parents were more sensitive about game content in the post Columbine months. Nevertheless, if parents were assigning the ESRB ratings, a significant number would be rated more strictly.

Grade for accuracy of ratings.....................................................................B-

There was some progress in several areas this year. Last year only 11 percent of retail or rental stores provided any educational information about the ratings. This year 26 percent of stores provided pamphlets or posters. Even though the percentage of stores who train their personnel about the ratings remained unchanged at less than 30 percent, the percentage of employees who reported that they could explain the rating system to a customer rose from 43 percent to 75 percent.

Grade for ratings education.........................................................................D+

On November 9, 1999 the Interactive Digital Software Association (ISDA) announced a major public education campaign about the ESRB rating system. The campaign will include a high profile media campaign supported by extensive print materials. Since education about ratings was one of the major recommendations in the 1998 report card, we applaud IDSA’s decision and efforts. We are hopeful that in next year’s report card we will be able to report on the success of those efforts.

Grade for IDSA’s plan for ratings education................................................A

There was improvement this year in the number of stores that reported they had policies preventing the rental of “T” games to children younger than 13 or “M” games to those younger than 17. Last year only 21 percent had enforceable policies. This year that percentage rose substantially to 62 percent. How effective this enforcement is remains to be seen. There were a number of “sting” operations conducted by newspapers in recent months in which young children successfully purchased games from stores that purported to have enforcement policies. Nevertheless, stores do appear to be taking the issue of enforcement policies more seriously.

Grade for ratings enforcement......................................................................C

In September 1998, a coalition of arcade trade associations announced the completion of a rating system for arcade games. A grade of “Incomplete” was assigned in the last report card because the rating stickers were just beginning to appear. This year we visited 25 arcades and found that 30 percent had all their games rated. An additional 50 percent had the ratings displayed on some of the games. 20 percent had no ratings displayed at all.

Arcade industry designated stickers:
Green: Suitable for all ages
Yellow: Mild violent or sexual content
Red: Strong violent or sexual content

Grade for ratings display..............................................................................C

Only two arcades out of the 25 had any educational information about the ratings other than the information printed on the sticker itself. Eleven of the 25 arcades we visited had attendants, but we only observed two with any real enforcement. In fact, during our site visits we observed young children playing “red” labeled games in four different arcades. When we questioned attendants about enforcement, the usual response was that it was the parents’ responsibility even though parents were rarely seen in the arcades with the children. On a positive note, in one large arcade there were no games with a red sticker. They only had games with “green” or “yellow” stickers, presumably because there was no attendant to supervise.

Grade for ratings enforcement.....................................................................D

Game producers and distributors offer game samples that can be downloaded and played by youngsters. In addition, there are more sites where participants either download or purchase software, enabling them to play with other players on the Internet. Very few of the sites examined by the staff of the National Institute on Media and the Family carried ratings or warnings.

Internet Gaming Site Ratings/Warnings........................................................F

Last year the National Institute on Media and the Family studied marketing activities for the first time. We identified a disturbing development in that some producers/distributors were marketing “Mature” or “Teen” games to young children. Once again this year we found evidence that this was continuing. For example,

Again this year there were promotional messages used by some producers or distributors that promote the portrayal of violence as fun. Examples we found in a review of magazines and web sites included:

On October 13, 1999 the IDSA announced the formation of an Advertising Review Council (ARC) to “ensure that advertisements placed by U.S. computer and video game software makers are appropriate, responsible, truthful, and accurate.” The ARC principles, guidelines and procedures will go into effect on January 31, 2000. The National Institute on Media and the Family views this as a positive response to the marketing and advertising practices that have been used by some in the industry. We will include an evaluation of the implementation and effectiveness of this initiative in next year’s report card.

The National Institute on Media and the Family recommends that: