All points bulletin on under-aged criminality. It's probably fine.
THOUGHTS ON #2: AGE RATING AND WAITING AN AGE
When your gaming hobby is controlled by gatekeepers – usually parents, one is subject to their whims and viewpoints. They have all the money, and if you have some yourself, they often have the power of veto. Don’t waste your money on such and such, save it for something you really want… This can be a problem, especially if the game you want is eighteen rated and you’re definitely not eighteen. These issues dissipate with age, but at the time, can feel like an enduring and almost constant battle. My experiences in this regard were rather good for the most part however, and it was the general lack of funds that stymied my game buying. My parents were quite liberal in their views of games, and I was rarely advised against something for the age rating alone, and I’m thankful for it. My parents weren’t negligent in this regard, they just knew when it was ok to let it slide. My dad borrowed a VHS of the Matrix from our barber when it was released on home video in 1999 and would have made me four years too young for it then – if the ratings are to be believed. Bollocks, I think. It didn’t matter as I saw it anyway. Another such occurrence I recall around the same time is my mum recording both the Shining and Midnight Express off the telly, and us both watching them the next day. They would make me about seven years too young and again – bollocks. Very enjoyable films and no doubt influenced my interest in cinema, giving me good cultural context at an early age to boot. A year later, and after having had my PlayStation for quite some time, the PlayStation 2 came out - and with the new generation, a fresh batch of games were released.
It wasn’t long before a PS2 arrived at my house, courtesy of my parents’ generosity. Unfortunately, the dead days between receiving the console, and the shops opening was tortuous – having only access to the included demo to keep me amused. PSA: If you ever buy someone a console, buy them a game too. Anyway, clearly, I had no grounds for complaint, having been given exactly what I wanted, but a child’s mind deals with these things differently. I enjoyed playing the demos, don’t get me wrong, but running a full game is a console’s point of being. So, I played the demo disc to death over those days, and before I knew it, I was vising the nearest Electronics Boutique (or maybe it was GAME by then, can’t recall), HMV, and Virgin Megastore, browsing the shelves for my first PS2 game purchase. I picked up what caught my eye most, these being TimeSplitters and Star Wars: Starfighter. I’m not sure if I got both at the same time, or had to wait a while, but either way, they were a couple of my earlier titles. Skip ahead a little, and the one game that everyone I knew was most excited for was Grand Theft Auto III.
It was about a year after getting the console that GTA III was released. Again, the age rating of that was 18 – luckily this wasn’t a problem for me. The waiting I had to endure wasn’t years, I didn’t have to become an alcoholic, cigarette smoking, lottery playing, driving, sexually active legally recognised adult, I just had to bide my time until the next game purchasing window came by. I couldn’t get it immediately upon release, and the few months of waiting were filled with expectation and excitement. Those months weren’t too bad though, distractions were abound. The day I got it however, distractions were few and it was painful - an early lesson in ambivalence was delivered. I was out with my family for the duration, we visited the shops early on, and it was almost torturous to be finally holding the game in my hand – more so for not being anywhere near a PS2. My aunt worked in a patisserie in town and towards the latter half of the day we settled there for a few hours, my parents enjoying the relaxed conversation and the 100% family discount on coffee and cake. I wasn’t yet into caffeine, but cake was interesting enough. This kept me amused for a while, but as my cake became smaller with each mouthful, my eyes began to flit to the bag where the game box sat. Once the cake was eaten, I couldn’t help but pick the game out and turn it over in my hands. I was rather small for my age, and had my hair cut short. I have no doubt in my mind that I looked like Gollum, freshly killed fish in hand… The fish in this instance was GTA III, and I was in bliss (can’t you tell??). My eyes drank up the detail on the box, and after that, I peeled the cellophane off and clicked open the case. I can almost smell the freshly printed pages of the manual and the new plastic case… I was desperate to get home, but the bounty within the box wasn’t restricted to the disc. There inside was the map and the Welcome to Liberty City booklet, and what a treasure it was.
Looking over the manual and included map created an agonising excitement. The map opened my eyes to the vastness of the city – split across the three unique islands. This would have been enough to keep me occupied for hours on end, but the manual… It was unlike any other I had seen for a game. It had been designed within the context of a tourist information pack, and it gave me a palpable taste of what was to come. Along with the usual basic information about running the mechanics and the controls, the subsequent pages detailed the systems of the game – almost like adverts in a newspaper. Recruitment opportunities, places to stay, local amenities. These were all detailed therein, along with information on local figureheads and gangs. Mixed in with all this were adverts for in-world companies and services. The latter pages gave an insight into what would be on offer on the almost dozen radio stations and the modes of transport accessible to the player. Eventually we got home, and as soon as I could, I made for my room. The disc tray couldn’t open fast enough, and as the opening music began, I knew something was happening. What it was at the time, I wasn’t sure. It turns out that I was about to have my gaming sensibilities changed forever.
This experience wasn’t confined to the Grand Theft Auto series, although the same torment was replicated with the release of GTA: Vice City, GTA: San Andreas, GTA 4, and GTA 5. Not long until it happens again with the next release…
I had similar experiences with pretty much all the games I purchased new or had to save up for. Just before heading out to visit distant family members one Christmas, I was gifted Colony Wars on the PlayStation, and I had to wait until late that night before getting some space combat action. Again, my stupid child mind found this to be some kind of inconvenience. When I finally got my hands on one of my most beloved games, Knights of the Old Republic on the original Xbox, I had to endure my mum buying new shoes. Once again, the manual saved me from the tedium that time, and I suppose it was good to be prepared going in. I certainly knew exactly what the rules of Pazaak were by the time we got home, not that it made me particularly good at it when I finally found an opponent in the Taris Cantina, although the +1/-1 card saved me many a credit.
All in all, I have found the rating system to be little more than a killjoy. Clearly you wouldn’t want a child to be exposed to certain things too early, but if mature enough, I think flouting the rules is fine. Perhaps that would make me a bad father… As far as I can tell, it didn’t mess me up too much and running people over has never appealed to me in real life. All in all, my experiences in waiting for a game has rarely been in excess of a matter of months, and more often than not, the last few hours that delayed me were inconsequential (although usually the most difficult to wade through at the time). I'll forever recall the anticipation that came with GTA 3. If it weren't for my parents getting it for me, I might have had to wait six more years - thank god (or my parents I suppose) that didn't happen.
What was your experience in getting games when you were apparently too young for them? Were you allowed? Did you have to sneakily play them? Or did your parents not really care? I think GTA III is my most egregious example of playing an inappropriate game, but even then, it wasn’t that bad. The style was so cartoony, I can’t see why anyone would have a problem with a kid playing it, as long as their head was screwed on right. Anyway, thank you for reading, and if you enjoyed it, check out my previous post!
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