1P Start

In what is one of the most surprising video game related stories so far this year a politician, Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell, isn’t irrationally calling for an ban on violent video games like others before him. Instead, the Governor is advocating in a series of PSAs that parents use the ESRB’s video game ratings in conjunction with parental controls that are built into today’s consoles. Imagine that, parents taking responsibility for their own children!

I applaud the Governor’s actions. Video games are not the ultimate evil facing children, they are a ever growing medium that appeals to many different age groups and it’s not the government’s job to determine what games should or shouldn’t be released. It’s up to parents to pay attention to what their kids are doing.

Source: Game Daily

Ladies and Gents it pains me to say my farewells to 1PStart. I’ve been here only a short time, though I’ve been at Xbox 360 Rally (another 451 site) for just under a year. I will miss you guys, though you’re probably throwing a party, chanting “he’s leaving! Huzzah! Huzzah!”. If you do miss me, though, you can find me at my new home BingeGamer.net.

It’s been fun, and I hope to see y’all around.

P.S.: Qbix — E-mail me, dude. I’m still gonna get your GTA IV to ya.

A few days ago it was discovered that, by hacking into the PSP version of Manhunt 2, you could remove the pesky censorship and play Manhunt 2 as it was originally intended: chock full o’ guts! Naturally, this had people scared out of their wits that the ESRB would pull a… well, an ESRB, and re-rate Manhunt 2 like they had with Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion before it.

Not to fear, the ESRB is laying off the banhammer. For now. In a conference call with all the big gaming news organizations that I didn’t attend simply because I was busy reviewing a producting, ESRB el presidente Patricia Vance stated that due to the nature of the hack, the ESRB had no plans to return Manhunt 2 to its original rating of AO. The ESRB believes that Rockstar disclosed every piece of pertinent content to the review organization, and went on to remind parents that they can’t regulate mods and hacks.

What parents, and indeed all consumers, need to be aware of is that computer software and hardware devices are susceptible to unauthorized modification. Parents should be cognizant of whether or not their children are engaging in unauthorized modification of their games, consoles or handhelds, as those modifications can change game content in ways that may be inconsistent with the assigned ESRB rating.

Glad to hear that the ESRB is sitting this one out, even if it does seem slightly hypocritical that they allow this hack to go, but a similar hack (Hot Coffee) brought down everything but the literal hand of God. To me, it’s just more proof that violence is more accepted than sex in this culture.

Press Release after the break.

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