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Tuesday, July 12, 2005

GTA Earns Another Star

GameDailyBiz (beware of annoying popup links) is reporting that NIMF is alerting parents about the Hot Coffee mod in San Andreas. NIMF, or the National Institute on Media and the Family, also has parent orientated reviews, not unlike our friend GamerDad ... although they're even more obscure.

What's interesting about NIMF is that they're founded by none other than Dr. David Walsh. Walsh, who also goes by the moniker Dr. Dave (I don't get the first name doctor thing, always makes them sound like a cartoon character), has appeared alongside a certain wacko lawyer from Florida occasionally. Remarkably when removed from such trappings, Doc Dave sounds pretty rational:

It's not that every teen who plays Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is going to go out and pick up an Uzi. The real impact is much more subtle. The worst effect of ultra violent, sexually exploitative video games is the culture of disrespect they create. Whoever tells the stories defines the culture. What do we think the effect is when our kids' storytellers are violence simulators that glorify gang culture, celebrate brutality, extol crudeness and trivialize violence toward women
-- Teens like M Rated Games ... duh

But I guess that "won't pick up an Uzi" bit gets edited out when one is trying to, you know, crucify an industry for getting kids to pick up Uzis. To be honest, everything I've read of Walsh's seems pretty reasonable when it's not being used as kindling for the witch burning.

1 comment:

Josh said...

Personally? Hey, tell him if he agrees to a Cathode interview, I'll buy you both a beer :)