Age restrictions on computer games.

[anonymous-user]

What age would fellow posters let their kids play war games like call of duty or modern combat?

My young son saw me playing cod and is now going on about the benefit of shooting people in the head compared to other areas.

[MK4 Slowride]

How old is he and how mature is he? Southendpier has some youngish kids he might have some useful advice for you.

Problems only arise when the kids use computer games as an excuse for bad behaviour. Then the mother who bought the 18 rated game for their 9 year old kicks off saying it should be banned, warnign weren't clear etc.

[S3_Graham]

Age ranges should be kept to IMO! Or certainly the online side of things.

The language and abuse that is hurled about is shocking.

[Norbury90]

At least a teenager IMO. It is the online language (Devilstreak.. ) that is the most adult aspect, offline isn't too bad.

[anonymous-user]

Cheers guys.

Assuming it's single player at home, what age would you all let your (or future) kids play a FPS like COD? So I guess it's a kind of graphic violence issue rather than perhaps swearing.

[130R]

There's plenty of swearing in some single player games too, I'd imagine once they have got to secondary school they have heard it all before though.

Edited by 130R on Thursday 6th October 17:06

[WeirdNeville]

Single player I wouldn't have much problem letting a sensible mature 13 year old play CoD for example.
Battlefield has worse language in single player - NPC's use some fairly obscene phrases but again there's nothing tooooo bad in there, and for some reason the violence being less casual and more visceral makes the game more meaningful and less desensiting - IMO.

Online is a whole different ballgame: 15 at least I'd say. You get racism, sexism, threats, personal abuse. It's pretty horrific to the uninitiated adult, let alone a younger kid. It annoys me deeply that people buy these games, which are clearly rated 18 ,then plonk Johnny the 12 year old down in front of them online and let them get on with it.

[james_gt3rs]

The swearing online only really happens on console, PC is usually OK.

[V100]

Norbury90 said:

It is the online language (Devilstreak.. ) that is the most adult aspect, offline isn't too bad.

[sparks_E39]

I purchased GTA in 2001 when I was 14. My Sisters and I were watching loads of 15 and a few 18 rated films under parental supervison at a very young age and it didn't bother any of us in the slightest. We all loved the Lethal Weapon and Die Hard franchise before we hit double figures. Name any profanity you like, I had heard them all in school by the time I was 6/7, I was just clever enough not to get caught using them

Online gaming is something I would restrict to kids under 13 though, there are some properly horrible people online.

[robmlufc]

sparks_E39 said:

I purchased GTA in 2001 when I was 14. My Sisters and I were watching loads of 15 and a few 18 rated films under parental supervison at a very young age and it didn't bother any of us in the slightest. We all loved the Lethal Weapon and Die Hard franchise before we hit double figures. Name any profanity you like, I had heard them all in school by the time I was 6/7, I was just clever enough not to get caught using them

Online gaming is something I would restrict to kids under 13 though, there are some properly horrible people online.

I grew up watching action films with my dad on a saturday night, was always taught never to repeat anything I hear or see and it will keep mum sweet. She did get a bit annoyed after we watched Alien when I was about 6 and didnt sleep too well for a week or so! 25 years later I still havent murdered anyone or got my money back from a hooker

Is there any parental features that just block voice chat?

[P-Jay]

Hmmm, well my 5-year-old has seen me playing COD, GTA4 and Red dead a few times, but he sort of takes the fun out of it. Soon as he arrvies (after jumping on me and giving me a few digs) I have to turn the sound off and we play ether walkign around the city on GTA "looking for stuff" or "riding Horses" on Red Dead, he wont even let me shoot animals! (bears and Montain Lions aside).

I won't let play them without supervision and he doesn't like shooting people anyway.

Frankly, the most swearing he hears in regards to video games is when I'm trying to beat Bowser for him on his WII. ha ha

[Riknos]

I have two older brothers. By the time I was 7 I had already watch The Terminator, Predator and Universal Solider (which I loved!) and I turned out okay It depends on the child I guess..


..Anyway, back to polishing my M16

[andrewrob]

P-Jay said:

Hmmm, well my 5-year-old has seen me playing COD, GTA4 and Red dead a few times, but he sort of takes the fun out of it. Soon as he arrvies (after jumping on me and giving me a few digs) I have to turn the sound off and we play ether walkign around the city on GTA "looking for stuff" or "riding Horses" on Red Dead, he wont even let me shoot animals! (bears and Montain Lions aside).

I won't let play them without supervision and he doesn't like shooting people anyway.

Frankly, the most swearing he hears in regards to video games is when I'm trying to beat Bowser for him on his WII. ha ha

Mine is the same with GTA. I'll only let him play if I'm with him and put it in a private multiplayer game with no police or pedestrians and have the sound turned down so he cant here the language.
He enjoys just driving around and attempting to fly helicopters. I don't mind him seeing me play battlefield as its not exactly a gorefest but I do turn off the automated player voices that the game puts in.
He seems to be quite good at F1 too so will probably be beating me soon!

He's 5 too.

[andyjo1982]

I can remember my mum buying me the original Mortal Kombat when i was 11. That was pretty much the first game to feature proper blood and gore. Also got the original GTA back in 97 i think it was, 96 maybe. Games have evolved a lot since then, i also think i depends on your kids up bringing and social surroundings. I'd suggest at least 14/15 to be playing COD and the like...

[CommanderJameson]

Children should be restricted to playing Operation Flashpoint online, so that they can learn that war is really about crawling up a hill for 20 minutes before being shot in the head by a sniper you can't see.

[OMNIO]

i remember playing the original 'postal' game - I think the object is to kill everyone to move on to the next map... When i was 8. My brother who was 5 at the time used to play as well. We used to laugh as the cops said 'kill me now' and you'd toast them with the flamethrower.

Then i played the GTA series, Carmageddon, Timesplitters and moved onto BF2142 & BC2

Thinking about it, I've spent most of my life killing people!

[Jasandjules]

Only you can decide if your kid is a nutter or not. As posters above have said, I've spent most of my life playing computer games, bombing things, shooting things and so on. Of course, these days it is far more realistic and there is the chance to hear other people talking/swearing.....

I guess the question is, what films do you allow him to watch? I watched (again, as per other posters) Commando and so on when I was 10 or so, still never picked up an M60 and ran around shooting people (though I am tempted at times.....)....

It is also possible (at least on Battlefield which I play on-line) to mute your team mates so if they are swearing too much......... And then finally, is it really anything which he won't hear in the playground? Be realistic about what he already knows, the question being do you think he'll suddenly start running around saying "take that muthaf***a" or what after playing on-line...

[jvl]

I was eleven years old when Doom came out and I was obsessed with it for several months. Never did me any harm though. Even at that age I knew the difference between what is acceptable behaviour in a game and real life.