Violent electronic game vendors could face gaol, hefty fines

RETAILERS SELLING video games to youngsters after they're regulated in a new system next year could face big fines and even imprisonment, according to a report in Britain's oldest newspaper, The Observer, today.

A EU directive starting in April 2003 will classify games as 7+, 12+, 16+ and 18+, the newspaper said.

And ones which are so violent they evade the classification could lead to gaol sentences and unlimited fines for shops and others which sell the games.

The article quotes the secretary general of the Interactive Software Federation as saying that the multibillion Euro games industry should show a better sense of social responsibility.

In the last fourteen days (fortnight), an American ginger group complained that Grand Theft Autotrade: Vice City, a popular Playstation 2 game, promoted violence against women.

There will, apparently, also be a 3+ rating for games that don't have any anti-social content at all.

How the board will classify the Nvidia game "America Armies", used as a promotion video for people wanting to join US armed forces, remains to be seen. µ

The Observer .

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