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Minnesota pol attacks "disgusting stuff" in games

  • By Curt Feldman, GameSpot
  • Posted May 19, 2006 12:36 pm PT

House of Representatives wants to impose fine on kids caught buying AO-, M-rated games.

The Minnesota House of Representatives yesterday overwhelmingly voted to impose fines on minors caught renting or buying a video game rated AO for Adults Only or M for Mature. Doing so would be classified as a petty misdemeanor under the state penal code.

The bill, referred to as SF0785, prohibits anyone under the age of 17 from "knowingly renting or purchasing a restricted video game." It also "prohibits an owner of a retail establishment or an employee from renting or selling a restricted video game to a person under the age of 17." The maximum fine is $25.

Both ratings already direct retailers not to sell such games to individuals under the age of 17.

Rep. Jeff Johnson (R-Plymouth), one of the bill's authors, is reportedly focusing his efforts on controlling the sale and rental of games he says are full of "absolutely disgusting stuff."

Speaking with the Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis, Johnson said, "I don't want to grandstand; I actually want to change the law...and give the attorney general a good fighting chance of winning" any challenge to the ruling that might surface in the local courts.

Johnson is running for attorney general this year.

The Minnesota House passed the bill by a vote of 114 to 17. The bill reportedly passed the Minnesota Senate a year ago in a 53 to 10 vote. If signed by the Governor, the bill is slated to become law on August 1, 2006.

446 Comments

  • SuperYeti22

    Posted May 24, 2009 2:46 pm GMT

    That's stupid. Why should a teenager be fined for buying an m rated game when they're under 17, seriously!?

  • rpgenie

    Posted Jun 9, 2007 6:32 pm GMT

    I'm pretty glad I don't live in the states, no offense of course. Well I turned 18 a few days ago so it wouldn't really matter to me anyway...

  • littlewiz77

    Posted Oct 11, 2006 6:32 pm GMT

    oh, no! twenty five dollars.

    *shakes in boots*

    okay. im done.

  • eaglefan831

    Posted Jun 29, 2006 10:25 am GMT

    that is so freakin stupid i've been playin M rated games since i was 5.

  • Vortexx

    Posted Jun 17, 2006 6:58 pm GMT

    Sooooo glad I'm not in Minnesota. Now they're going in over their heads. What's next, SWAT being called in during a sting operation on a 16 year old for having a M rated games, SHOCKING!

  • darkspector23XP

    Posted May 26, 2006 7:37 pm GMT

    I agree with asking for ID for M and AO rated games. The videogame industry is only protecting their profits. I read on a website in Canada that the videogame industry would lose $100 million U.S. per game developer in each region if stores had to card people for M and AO rated games. Too many things have to do with money these days.

  • 1337l0rd

    Posted May 23, 2006 1:28 pm GMT

    What a bunch of crap.

    1) Violent videogames? C'mon, saying this stuff actually promotes the use of violence is outright stupid. "Hey, I shoot people because I've seen it done in a game." WTF?! You're insane. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to keep this civil. I'm more pissed than when I hear pro-life propaganda/terrorism. Terrorists.

    2) M games should be for kids under 17. AO games, however, are porn. Solid porn. Porn on a stick. Buckets o' porn. Kids shouldn't be allowed to buy it. Now, here's my idea: M games should be redefined. Recently, developers have added crap to games. Sexy crap. In GTA or whatever, you can get a hooker. You hear sound effects. The car you're in shakes. I forget if there's noise. My question: HOW DO YOU ENJOY THIS JUNK?! It's like porn, crappy porn, except not. People who actually waste their time in the game with that are all like, "Lol!1" and it's stupid. It's not fun. It doesn't add anything to the gameplay, does it? It's not even interesting. I think that if the ESRB made it so that utter junk like that deserved an AO rating, banning it from stores and all popularity, then developers would stop putting pointless shockers like that into the game.

    Any agreeance? I mean, c'mon. The only real thing that politicians/crap hate are the sexy bits.

  • hpi_5555

    Posted May 22, 2006 4:55 pm GMT

    I do think that M and Ao games should be for people over 17. The problem is that Parents are ingrorant of the rating system and/or just not actively involved with what their children watch and play. I guarantee that if you asked a mother who let their child play GTA, that they wouldn't let their child watch a R-rated movie. The ESRB needs to take control like the MPAA of what is allowed in places that rent games.

  • marc_man3001

    Posted May 22, 2006 4:53 pm GMT

    Rofl 25 bucks....is that really going to do anything cmon....

  • Patlabor13

    Posted May 22, 2006 3:14 pm GMT

    This whole thing is getting retarded. Kids need to use someone's name to rent items that is 18+, and there is no way they can track purchases over the counter.

  • flashtek

    Posted May 22, 2006 1:21 pm GMT

    If both the retailer and the customer pay the fine then I will agree with this bill. But again it comes down to parents to impose regulations on their children.

  • gtimandan

    Posted May 22, 2006 10:45 am GMT

    o.O Surprised to see a Republican barking up this tree...usually it's the Dems that are steering that ship, but glad to see they're on board at least to keep this from continuing as a 'party' issue only.

    In any case, I agree whole-heartedly that yes, CHILDREN should be kept in check when it comes to obtaining anything that is intended for adults, be it driving, obtaining legal addictive substances [tobacco] or playing games with violent or sexual content. All of those mature items are intended for adults, and rules are put in place to safeguard those that cannot or should not be partaking of them due to their nature, for the child's own health, safety & development.

    No kid in this world should be brought up slaying people & police officers, carjacking, using drugs, disrespecting everyone around them, even if it is all just virtual. Children lack the capacity to separate fantasy from reality...heck, even some adults lack that ability, but kids need to be brought up properly, with respect for life, and this world, being paramount to everything else. Unless, of course, you think the world in Blade Runner is much better than what we have here.

  • sk1

    Posted May 22, 2006 10:15 am GMT

    As long as you're an adult this really shouldn't bother you. Yes its silly and a waste of time but it does provide retailers with some much needed protection. Yes they should verify the id of anyone purchasing or renting a restricted title but sometimes customers will try and dupe them and retailers shouldn't be the only ones penalized. And like SCboy79S said movies and music already went through this and now the video game industry just has to weather the storm. Just remember if you're old enough to vote do so and if you're not remember how mad this made you when you are old enough. No one ever said gamers couldn't run for public office!

  • wuzup14

    Posted May 22, 2006 10:09 am GMT

    wow, u have got to be kidding me. more violent game laws? thank god that I dont live in the states.

  • Malten

    Posted May 22, 2006 9:46 am GMT

    Violent law? :p

  • Saint_Longinus

    Posted May 22, 2006 9:46 am GMT

    One of the may reasons i like having the US a 20min drive and not actually living there......

  • Bolan5857

    Posted May 22, 2006 9:17 am GMT

    I agree for once. Fine the kids that buy or attempt to buy these games. Can you walk in to a porn store at 15 and buy a Penthouse... No, Can you walk in to a Convenient store at 16 and buy a pack of smokes No, Can you go to a beer distributor and buy a case of beer at 19 No. Should you be able to buy a game rated AO at 15 or 16... NO. Fine them more... $350 to the buyer, $1,500 to the seller. That will detur kids. I know there will always be parents that buy the games for their kids or other ways to get them, Just like Beer Porn smokes or whatever other vice you may have, but for a major part of the under 18 demo, it will detur them from purchasing games that were not made for them. Besides the only people who should care about this are the under 18 crowd.

  • Matth13

    Posted May 22, 2006 7:57 am GMT

    I agree with the law. The law is meant to protect our children. Same as the laws preventing minors from smoking and drinking. If you don't give kids any limits, they'll be outta control.

    That being said, what happens to the store that sold/rented the game? Do they get fined? They should.

    Also, what percentage of games are AO and M compared to ALL available games? It can't be that high. So kids should find alternative games to play.

    And let's face it: all kids are different. If I feel my kid is mature enough to play a M rated game at 16 years old than I'll buy it for him. If he's not mature enough than it's my job to monitor his gaming habits.

  • latinsaiyand81

    Posted May 22, 2006 7:02 am GMT

    See this is the kind of law that makes sense. Rating system was put in place for a reason. All these other laws that punish the industry or the retailer because some kid that didn't play by the rules and got a M-rated game didn't make sense. Maybe this way mom and dad can actually take up the roles of parents and punish their own kids before the governenment has to step in and do it for them

  • Cricket__2

    Posted May 22, 2006 6:53 am GMT

    Man, I hate the thought of the government trying to stop stores from selling games to people, but it's based more on the principle than on anything else. I like the idea of needing parental permission to buy the games, but I don't like that the government is forcing it to happen.

  • jonnyjd

    Posted May 22, 2006 6:49 am GMT

    Wow...a whole $25 as a fine. That's...um...outrageous? No. Too much? Nope. The wierdest fine I have ever heard of? Yes. If I were a minor and wanted an AO or M rated game and knowing the store would be fined a whole $25, I would buck up some extra $ and give it to the store for their "Help us pay our fines" fund.

    Seriously...exactly who was in the brain trust came up with this?

  • regulesblade

    Posted May 22, 2006 6:22 am GMT

    Whoo hoo I look forward to these types of comments.

  • Dups79

    Posted May 22, 2006 6:12 am GMT

    Stop him!! That kid with the handgun, smoking weed! Stop him he purchased an M rated game!

  • Jedi_Osborn

    Posted May 22, 2006 6:03 am GMT

    tingle from zelda is pretty disgusting to me, are they going to ban that??

  • thatguytony

    Posted May 22, 2006 5:53 am GMT

    delol, we get it, how many times are going to post the samething? Plus, what the hell is a "fire gun"? On a serious note; my only real issue with this video game witch hunt is the unfairness of the whole thing. If these kind of laws are going to be put int rhe books, then why not have the same ones for the rest of the entertainment industry. Kids can buy violent films and albums. There needs to either be laws across the board for all entertainment, stop singling out games.

  • delol

    Posted May 22, 2006 5:10 am GMT

    in America is easier to get a fire gun than a video game.This is insane

  • LycanShadow

    Posted May 22, 2006 1:58 am GMT

    It's time they realise that it isn't just games that are violent; just switch on the tv and you'll know what I mean...have you seen cartoons these days??? A fine example would be Wile E Coyote and Road Runner..next they'll be saying that some kid blew up a building with TNT because they saw Wile E Coyote do it..yeesh...

  • Nawras

    Posted May 22, 2006 1:06 am GMT

    Thank GOD I don't live in the states! Here you can buy any game you want ^_^

  • koray22

    Posted May 22, 2006 12:59 am GMT

    OK MASTASOLIDUS,
    BUT WHO ARE YOU TO TELL PARENTS WHAT THEIR KIDS SHOULD OR SHOULDNT HAVE?!?

  • edvs89beauty

    Posted May 22, 2006 12:39 am GMT

    This is absurd bc there are songs that have more sexual and violent lyrics that even a game has and not mentioning movies. And we have to study and study and one of the things that we have to get rid of school and problems are video games. Worst is begin in the streets buying drugs or killing ppl. And you got to be stupid not to know the difference between reality and fiction.

  • ViolentPressure

    Posted May 21, 2006 11:12 pm GMT

    This is great, you can't buy slightly violent games when you are 16, because they will "ruin" you, but in just a few months you are old enough to go to Iraq and watch people get dismembered and maimed in the most horrible ways.

  • DiscGuru101

    Posted May 21, 2006 11:08 pm GMT

    enoslives7, huh?

  • DiscGuru101

    Posted May 21, 2006 11:07 pm GMT

    Next subject.

  • enoslives7

    Posted May 21, 2006 10:13 pm GMT

    The only disgusting thing in gaming is that nerd Bill Gates and his Crap-box 360.

  • dante777a

    Posted May 21, 2006 10:07 pm GMT

    awsome funny thing is ive seen much more discusting things in movies than i have ever seen in a video game

  • rohver

    Posted May 21, 2006 9:13 pm GMT

    where is Jack thompson in this one? I'm sure he's not far

  • Dream_slayer

    Posted May 21, 2006 8:18 pm GMT

    This is a crap law, im 14 and have been playing violent sex filled video games since I was 3 with Doom. Honestly video games have prevented me from being violent by taking out all my stress on things like the strogg in the Quakes, Killing hookers in GTA and lets not forget snapping people necks in Splinter Cell. If anything polticians should be praising games for being the ultimate stress reliever for some people and just grow up and face the fact that THEY CAN NOT ALWAYS GET IT THERE WAY.

    Thats just my two cents though.

  • eMOTIVeAPC

    Posted May 21, 2006 7:28 pm GMT

    I live in Minnesota, luckily I'll be an adult in a few years and have adult friends. And its only $25 who the hell cares? I can steal $25 from my bro when he comes home from work. Then again, I could also use that money to start my fund for a PS3.

  • MetalGearSimon

    Posted May 21, 2006 7:13 pm GMT

    is this a publicity stunt to build another rediculously large mall??? 8-)

  • sniperpenguins

    Posted May 21, 2006 6:33 pm GMT

    yep but now it will stop ppl from say the video game made me shot that guy

  • sam20vt

    Posted May 21, 2006 6:14 pm GMT

    glad i can buy them anyway. but doesn't this go against life liberty and the pursuit of happiness?

  • sancezz

    Posted May 21, 2006 5:20 pm GMT

    yay, another law that stops kids getting thigns they shouldn't have

  • Link_026

    Posted May 21, 2006 5:17 pm GMT

    I dont belive it is the kids faults for buying innapropraite games, but the parents faults. Some parents are so oblivious to gaming that when a parent goes with their kid to buy GTA and the box says "Extreme Gore. Sexual Themes, Nudity" etc The kid just says Oh it isnt as bad as the rating says, everyone my age buys it and its fine and guess what, the parents let them. Parents should be fined $500 everytime thier kid is caught with an M/Ao game. I remember a sepcific example of the GTA thing, One of my friends, back on the GTA bfore Vice City (cant remember name) He wasnt allowed to play M games, but somehow got GTA by saying to his parents "It is no worse than my 007 game, which is T, so I should be ble to get this" and they let him. This law could do a lot for everyone.

  • playwrite

    Posted May 21, 2006 5:14 pm GMT

    look, this is the best thing that we have heard so far. all they are doing is enforcing suggestions allready in place. it's not like they want to externally regulate!

  • XBSHX

    Posted May 21, 2006 4:40 pm GMT

    lol I live in minnesota but I dont care cause I'm 18

  • RSJediMaster

    Posted May 21, 2006 4:28 pm GMT

    I like the idea, but it would it worthless, kids would still be able to get their hands on violent games and the fine being 25? didn't really think that one through

  • middito

    Posted May 21, 2006 4:27 pm GMT

    1.ok so polictians can whip out 20billion dollars for a nation that wants us dead.
    2. They can police the world, but have clue to the needs and opions of their own people.
    3. They're are biased to a form of technology because they don't understand the gaming culture.

    (Reality Check) It's 2006 not 1945
    This law gives insight into the political morons that run this country, they're blind to the real problems in this world.

    We need REAL Leaders or another revolution!

  • Mei_von_Karma

    Posted May 21, 2006 4:09 pm GMT

    I agree that some people aren't ready for M rated games, but until there is proof that violent games spawn psychotic children, I don't believe the government has any right to do this sort of thing. Its different for everyone; there are children who can handle these sorts of things, and some who can't. Likewise, there are some adults who I believe shouldn't be allowed to play GTA. It really just seems like 17 is an arbitrary number pulled out of thin air. Driving is a good analogy for this. I see middle aged people driving frighteningly bad every day, and I know of some 15-year olds who can parallel park into the tightest space.

    I'm also concerned about the definition of an M rated game and what it will mean for the next-generation. With more "realistic" graphics come more realistic violence, despite it being the same exact thing we've already seen. The ESRB seems to be getting more strict as to what gets an M rating, and I'm sure violence in HD will mean even more M-rated games.

  • gameerkid

    Posted May 21, 2006 4:08 pm GMT

    i whis that kids colde buy any game they want to buy

  • Manatassi

    Posted May 21, 2006 4:03 pm GMT

    *sigh* whats the big deal? I mean seriously, kids under the recomended age should not be playing the games its that simple. If you are a parent letting your kid play an M rated game you are doing something WRONG.

    dumb dumb dumb

    oh well what do I care I dont live in america. thank god.

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