How do I convince my parents to let me play more mature games?

I'm 15 and my parents are still very strongly against me playing games with any appreciable amount of violence or mature content. Most of the games I play on Steam aren't really that violent at all (I play games like Unturned, Portal and Don't Starve which only really have cartoon violence that's not that excessive at all) but once recently when I was trying to play Team Fortress 2 (hardly one of the most violent games out there) my parents wouldn't let me play it because it was "violent".

I don't think they think games will make me violent but I would be unsurprised if they believed the studies trying to relate games to aggression.

They said that it would "affect my character development" which probably means something along the lines of inadvertently placing violent thoughts into my mind.

They also think it's "unhealthy" to play any games with violence.

Games that are rated 18+ (in the UK - basically the same as M17+) are played by lots of people far younger than 18 and it's not as though I am 7 so I don't need to be "protected".

How do I convince my parents that mature games are fine and won't have any negative effect on me?

I would likely support them in that choice so i guess I cant help

I mean, the rating system is there for a reason. There are plenty of games that you can enjoy that are rated T.

@redplayer: R rated games are for 18+ for a reason, you are still a child, I would say start by taking of the Green Lantern pyjamas, getting out of the basement and getting a job and showing you are responsible enough to handle adult rated games, your mind is still developing and is like a highly impressionable sponge and not ready for adult content. You could become damaged by the adult themed games, so stick to Mario cart and Cake Princess for a little longer

telling a child to take off their pyjamas... very inappropriate. better inform the mods about this. reported

Any serious responses please?

what's the world coming to when you can't get a serious answer from fanboy mc troll.

it's difficult to say without knowing your parents and what kind of characters they are. if they're the obstinate, pig headed type, you're kind of stuck unless you have your own source of income and can purchase and play games without their knowledge.

if you feel they'll respond to logic if it's compelling enough, try a diplomatic conversation with them and tactfully present them with evidence to the contrary of their beliefs. compound it with how you'll ration your time with games to reassure them time spent gaming is not at the expense of other important things at your age - education, socialising, exercise or whatever they think you should be doing instead. good luck!

@redplayer: Your parents house, their rules. Simple

show them videos on the game and try to exspain how it wont rot your brain

I played Doom as a kid like 25 years ago, in fact I played all the violent games (MK1-4, Soldier of Fortune 2, Carmageddon 2, Duke Nukem 3D etc), I became a nurse FFS :D

If anything one has to have a some kind of trauma or other mental illness that could get triggered when seeing violent content.

I got my brother (who was 18 at the time) to buy me GTA III as I was only 15, but my parents didn't say anything so I can't really say 'there's rules and ratings for a reason'. However, there's rules and ratings for a reason!

I definitely am of the impression that teenagers think they're untouchable when they're most certainly not. Maybe you're in this category and your parents are just looking out for you? As @mecha_frieza said, there's PLENTY of games out there that are within your 'age range'. The mature games aren't going anywhere, they'll still be around when you're old enough to play them and I imagine a lot cheaper too.

Well, your parents seem pretty dumb, but try to explain to them that you can handle it. If that doesn't work, play the games you want in secret (I would if I had dumb parents) or go by their rules until you're not living at home anymore. I don't think there is any other genius idea of how to make stubborn parents let you play mature games, sorry.

As long as you can't live on your own, you follow your parents rules. Simple as that. You might want to find out why they think you aren't mature enough, you might want to explain them WHY you want to play it (use arguments like playing with friends and not that you want to murder innocent people) and try to make sure they actually make an educated decission. But in the end it IS their decission.

Also remember, there is a reason the games have a rating. I understand that a topic like that can't be a universal truth and that some people mature faster than others. But if you want to be seen as a 18 years old, act like this. The first step would be to make up your own plan and not ask a forum what you should do.