Oblivion 'Hot Coffee'?

[Xelion]

"Oblivion is a sick new game in which your child can walk into a virtual church, murder the clergy and his congregation with their weapon of choice, strip them buck naked, then snort lines of substances off the altar. Ban this filth now."

Ask and ye shall receive:
http://www.gamespot.com/news/2006/05..._&subj=6148897
Well maybe not a ban, but along those lines. They bumped it up to an M for mature when they found out about the boobies that can be accessed through modding on the PC version. It's especially funny how they claim it's also because of the excessive violence, but then they end up only banning the version that has the boob potential.
I am getting sick to death of this kind of attitude in the ratings boards and the government in general. I realize the ESRB is only doing this to cover their asses when Hilary comes a knockin', but this is just stupid. The nudity is only accessible through 3rd party modifications! It is necessary to apply an after market mod to see anything! In the film industry this is like changing the rating of a movie based on photoshopped nude images of the stars appearing on the web! Only even that is not as bad, since you don't need to buy the whole film to see them.
I'm also sick of them being more offended by the nudity than the violence, but that's a whole other battle...

[NamelessPlayer]

Just another example of humanity's infinite stupidity. You can kill practically everyone in that game, but only up until we start seeing bare mammaries that have to be unlocked with the use of 3rd-party mods do they notch up the rating.

Add me to the list of people who are pissed about the ESRB and unattentive parents considering something as minor as a pair of naked breasts worse than any violence. Sure, sex can go way too far, but it's not much compared to those who murder in the most grisly ways possible.

Hell, why don't we up the ratings of Morrowind as well? Or even games like Quake and Unreal that have nude skins?

It's just skin, people. Just because someone glimpses a teat doesn't mean they're going to turn into sex-crazed rapists or anything like that...then again, humanity's pretty fucked up like that.

...Okay, so I basically re-iterated my points over and over. But I'm PISSED!

[SD]

Oh ESRB. I think that's the most pathetic thing I have heard all year.

[NeoPendragon]

They like to feel important. They're like Mall Security guards.

[PeeperStorm]

The ESRB raised the rating to "M"! It's the end of the world!

[RyushiBlade]

Peeper, the trouble is that raising the rating of a game can (potentially) lower sales. Don't you have to be 16+ to buy an M rated game? Or maybe fourteen... Regardless! Bethesda lost a large market of underagers.

Also, I want to see those boobies :erms:

[Fig455]

It's 17+ in USA, RB. And this is a lot bigger than you may or may not think. This is because Bethesda put nipples on the actual meshes, and all you have to do is remove the 'bra' thing. I have a feeling we haven't heard the last of this.

[Tej]

My European Collector's Edition box has the rating "15 - Contains moderate violence."

[AxTng1]

"Oblivion is a sick new game in which your child can walk into a virtual church, murder the clergy and his congregation with their weapon of choice, strip them buck naked, then snort lines of substances off the altar. Ban this filth now."

That kind of implied that the player has some kind of pinko free will.

As JT would have it: "...a sick new game in which your child walks into... murders... snorts..." not can, but DOES. I sometimes think that these people watch one video of a not-so-good player running amok and assume every gaming experience is like this. Like a MOTION PICTURE?

Like the MOTION PICTURE asshat association or whatever?
wtf are MPAA doing regulating games anyway? It's as if the ATF started prosecuting screencampers.

[Thirith]

Does anyone here think that this brouhaha because of breasts and nipples (where's Jeff from Coupling when you need him?) isn't utterly silly?

[Komag]

All the primary sources seem to indicate that the ratings change is more about the extensive blood and violence that they have further reviewed, and very little about the boobies

[RyushiBlade]

It's 17+ in USA, RB. And this is a lot bigger than you may or may not think. This is because Bethesda put nipples on the actual meshes, and all you have to do is remove the 'bra' thing. I have a feeling we haven't heard the last of this.

*sighs* I suppose so. Though the boobies don't actually look all too great. I think the nipples are actually the guy nipples stretched across the female mesh, though I may be wrong. I'm still fairly certain Bethesda didn't mean to do this.

But yeah, I have to admit, there is a good bit of violence in Oblivion. I think it's perfectly fine, but the less desensitized among may think this warrants a change in rating.

[dvrabel]

Wait? Bare breasts are fine provided they don't have nipples?

[Komag]

Wait? Bare breasts are fine provided they don't have nipples?

That's how Japan Manga comics work - big round nippleless boobies

[Fig455]

I was SHOCKED to learn it was rated Teen. Based on the Violence and Gore alone.

[Komag]

Yeah, I would say it's an M game from the get go, so this news is no big deal to me, but it is odd why it got changed, or was mis-rated in the first place

[PeeperStorm]

...raising the rating of a game can (potentially) lower sales.

Pfft. As if having an "M" rating ever stopped anyone from buying GTA:SA or Doom3.

[Komag]

Pfft. As if having an "M" rating ever stopped anyone from buying GTA:SA or Doom3.

Actually, yes, it has. All things being equal, harsher rated games (and movies) always sell less. It's just the market.

[Pisces]

That's how Japan Manga comics work - big round nippleless boobies

Mhm...Its kind of stupid. The entire ratings system is based on nipples. You may have noticed khajiit and winged twilights were bare chested in MW...but its ok because they don't have nipples I think the reason is that with things like Khajiit and winged twilights you can't actaully tell they are bare chested and the only way to determine that in a far manner is to check if they have nipples too. I wonder if nipples on guys raises the rankings too.

I think Bethseda should mock the ESRB by removing all female's bra's but make them nippleless so ESRB can't do anything about it.

In another article on the subject I read a couple of days ago it said that Bethseda had already ticked the highest level of violence on the ESRB application form, it sounds like ESRB just wants to feel big.

[Jenesis]

Wait? Bare breasts are fine provided they don't have nipples?

No-nipple rules are fairly common. The problem is that it's generally considered acceptable to have some of the breast showing (as the average bikini leaves uncovered), but it's difficult to draw up a useful rule on how much is too much. 'It's okay as long as the nipples aren't in view' is fairly easy to check and enforce, however. You then, of course, end up with workarounds, such as the nippleless breast or, in the case of the boarders at school who had to abide by such a rule in their houses, Blu-Tack.