On "kiddy" games...

I haven't posted on Gamespot in a while, and I haven't posted on System Wars in much, much longer... but I remember from a while ago that on this site, especially here on System Wars, a common argument was that certain games (or the consoles they were on) were "kiddy" and therefore not for adults. Why, exactly?

The main form I'd see this argument in was stuff like "look how many E-rated games Gamecube has, that console's obviously for kids, other consoles have more mature games"; but ESRB ratings are supposed to be a measure of how appropriate the games are for kids, not how inappropriate they are for adults. And why exactly would "appropriate for kids" imply that something is less mature? Would those who apply this to video games apply it to, let's say, movies, and imply that it's immature for adults to watch G-rated Disney movies too?

That particular argument, of course, since applied to Nintendo would seem to most often be put forth by fanboys of non-Nintendo systems, but even some Nintendo fanboys' counterarguments shared the same underlying flaw; such as the sarcastic "more kiddy kidtendo games" posts that showed screenshots of its most graphic, violent games... but does graphic violence really imply maturity? I'd think there's more to maturity than that...

There's plenty more to maturity than blood... but you don't see that in "kiddy" games, either. I mean, where's the Mario game where he finds that someone has manipulated his entire life specifically so that he'll kill Bowser? Where's the Zelda game that asks you to decide whether it's worth letting an entire ship full of people die so that he can stay undercover? Where's the Sonic game where you have to choose whether it's easier to kill a colony infected by mind-controlling spores to save yourself from being attacked by the colonists? You're just not going to see Nintendo go anywhere near those themes. And while they all involve life or death, it's not the blood and guts that makes them "mature".lowe0

To be honest I stopped caring about maturity and kiddy when I started realizing I game to feel young and have fun. I would rather have people peg E games with kiddy and be ignorant about it then try and defend the depth behind sonic. I don't really care. Also, if E rated stuff like Sonic (of old) and Mario are kiddy, then I'd rather be the guy who knows what he likes then is scared to look immature. I will continue to feel all fuzzy while playing SMG and let people judge my maturity on how I conduct myself. I no longer care.

Yes, unfortunately games are still bashed by ignorant fools as being too "kiddy".

I know that Xbox360 fanboys LOOOOOVE hating on both Ratchet and Clank and especially Little Big Planet for being too kiddy, even though they are both great games which can be enjoyed immensely by any age.

Yes, unfortunately games are still bashed by ignorant fools as being too "kiddy".

I know that Xbox360 fanboys LOOOOOVE hating on both Ratchet and Clank and especially Little Big Planet for being too kiddy, even though they are both great games which can be enjoyed immensely by any age.

Well, games that are "kiddy" can come across as "cartoony," and perhaps people above a certain age are not going to want to play those games, because they might seem like something that would be on a Saturday morning cartoon. It's not that a "kiddy" game is inappropriate for people above a certain age, it's that peoples' tastes change as they get older and so will their taste in games.uyiop0t

At which point we get into the western society's stigma of animation being good only for children's stuff and slapstick humor. If western animation in general is so stigmatized (and the stigma upheld by western cartoonists), it could pass over to video games. Frankly, you don't see western devs do stuff like Mario and Sonic and so on much at all. They're afraid of being colourful without the justification of humor (see Overlord).

The artstyle and storyline of videogames do not indicate difficulty, its actually the inverse that is the most likely indicator. I play games for the challenge, so it means nothing to me.

To be honest I stopped caring about maturity and kiddy when I started realizing I game to feel young and have fun. I would rather have people peg E games with kiddy and be ignorant about it then try and defend the depth behind sonic. I don't really care. Also, if E rated stuff like Sonic (of old) and Mario are kiddy, then I'd rather be the guy who knows what he likes then is scared to look immature. I will continue to feel all fuzzy while playing SMG and let people judge my maturity on how I conduct myself. I no longer care.

ActicEdge

I just enjoy games that are fun, don't care about about graphics or art sty1es. If the game isn't fun, then there is no point in playing it.

To be honest I stopped caring about maturity and kiddy when I started realizing I game to feel young and have fun. I would rather have people peg E games with kiddy and be ignorant about it then try and defend the depth behind sonic. I don't really care. Also, if E rated stuff like Sonic (of old) and Mario are kiddy, then I'd rather be the guy who knows what he likes then is scared to look immature. I will continue to feel all fuzzy while playing SMG and let people judge my maturity on how I conduct myself. I no longer care.

I don't care. The distinction means nothing to me. I still play Ratchet & Clank, Pokemon, Zelda and games like that that are aimed at a younger audience and more often than not they provide more pure fun and soul than many a "mature" title has failed to do. Silent-Hal

believe it or not, they still argue about that see? war doesnt changefunsohng

oh really. Solid snake says it does. :o

Made for teh kiddies

well i just like to bring up this thread when people talk about kiddy in gaming http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php?topic_id=26696581surrealnumber5

fixed

My assumption about the whole "kiddy" games argument is that a good amount of those who say that are immature kids who think that the bloodier games you play, the manlier you are.

I do not know if Mingebags are still present in system wars.

My assumption about the whole "kiddy" games argument is that a good amount of those who say that are immature kids who think that the bloodier games you play, the manlier you are.

flashn00b

[QUOTE="funsohng"]believe it or not, they still argue about that see? war doesnt change13C

oh really. Solid snake says it does. :o

And Ron Pearlman says it DOESN'T!

believe it or not, they still argue about that see? war doesnt changefunsohng

Sure, some games can be kiddy, but if it's a fun game with great gameplay and a blast to play, it's irrelevant whether it's kiddy or mature. I like playing GTA 4 as much as I like to play Mario or Pokemon, and does that make me more "mature"? As far as I'm concerned, I only care about playing a great game, rather than to boost my testosterone levels to hid my low self-esteem.hiphops_savior

I haven't posted on Gamespot in a while, and I haven't posted on System Wars in much, much longer... but I remember from a while ago that on this site, especially here on System Wars, a common argument was that certain games (or the consoles they were on) were "kiddy" and therefore not for adults. Why, exactly?

The main form I'd see this argument in was stuff like "look how many E-rated games Gamecube has, that console's obviously for kids, other consoles have more mature games"; but ESRB ratings are supposed to be a measure of how appropriate the games are for kids, not how inappropriate they are for adults. And why exactly would "appropriate for kids" imply that something is less mature? Would those who apply this to video games apply it to, let's say, movies, and imply that it's immature for adults to watch G-rated Disney movies too?

That particular argument, of course, since applied to Nintendo would seem to most often be put forth by fanboys of non-Nintendo systems, but even some Nintendo fanboys' counterarguments shared the same underlying flaw; such as the sarcastic "more kiddy kidtendo games" posts that showed screenshots of its most graphic, violent games... but does graphic violence really imply maturity? I'd think there's more to maturity than that...

matthayter700

Ironically, the only period in my life when I specifically desired violent games was when I was around 10 years old. For a kid, violence in games and movies was kind of a taboo, and we all know that forbidden fruits taste the best.

I think it's rather pathetic, though, that people seem to equal graphic violence with maturity. Maturity shines through in gameplay, not in how much blood you shed. In this sense, many M-rated games can actually be rather childish, as they offer mindless, cheap violence to cover up the lack of decent gameplay. Sophisticated gameplay will shine through despite of its cosmetics. Those cosmetics can also be deceiving. Obviously this goes for classic examples of cartoony fluff meeting violent outbursts such as with Conker's Bad Fur Day, but also for the Paper Mario games, which are seemingly cute, but contain incredible amounts of depth in terms of both gameplay and writing. Often these games will contain references or jokes which will only be understood by a more mature audience.

That being said, I think the connotation between violence and maturity has been constructed by teenagers who are in some way insecure about their own maturity, and look to compensate it by playing supposedly mature games. All in all, people who purposely avoid great games because they feature 'cartoony' graphics are only disadvantaging themselves.

I dont know, Zelda has played host to some of the most mature story telling in videogaming. The themes and concepts embedded in Majora's Mask give the game a melancholy atmosphere that develops into something quite chilling.lowe0

[QUOTE="lowe0"]I dont know, Zelda has played host to some of the most mature story telling in videogaming. The themes and concepts embedded in Majora's Mask give the game a melancholy atmosphere that develops into something quite chilling.matthayter700

but seriously a full on gory game does look pretty sweet...

The " to much Kiddy games " argument has now developed in the " to much crappy shovelware " argument , keep up will ya ?

When you're 14-17 years old, you think that maturity means "more blood". When you reach adulthood you realize that it's childish to think that "more blood" would be mature. A mature person isn't afraid to admit that he or she can be immature.