What's the point in video game age ratings?

[noobcubed]

Okay, so I wanted to discuss this but wasn't sure whether it should go here or in the more general Congregation of the Masses forum. Anyway...

On another Smogon thread, one Smogonite (who shall remain nameless) reckoned he thought that there was no harm in children of maybe ten years old playing M-rated games (or Call of Duty, anyway, but same difference). It seems that many kids of that age want to play these games, many parents are letting them, and I have even heard stories from my own younger brother when he was that age that many of his peers would wander into a video game shop unaccompanied and purchase these video games without any prevention from the shop staff.

So, do video game age ratings matter? Is the depiction of violence worse in video games than in other media because it allows the player to indulge in an interactive, violent power fantasy? Is the presence of foul-mouthed ten-year-old boys on various FPS server rooms going gaga over loadouts and killstreaks tarnishing the industry's image? How would you try to restrict these video games from minors?

 

[Aladyyn]

Those ratings are merely recommendations. If a kid's parents let them play these M-rated games (is that 18+? I'm not too familiar with ESRB), then yea, they can play them. Shop staff can't really do anything to prevent them, as selling those games to minors isn't punishable afaik. Just leave the judgement to the parents, some kids can play those games without harm and their parents know it, some parents won't allow them, that's just the way it is.

Kids under the age of 10 aren't really keen on playing games like this from my experience (though my little bro played Tekken when he was like 6 and he would often try to punch me and stuff) and older ones can handle themselves most of the time, I dare say.