With the Supreme Court about to consider legislation that would make it illegal for retailers to sell so-called "violent games" to minors, Charles Webb asks whether we're attempting to legislate protected speech.
Trevor Walker said: Fighting games have always been able to simultaneously experiment and innovate while staying true to their roots in the best of ways. Mechanics change, crossovers take place, and evolution occurs. One of the best examples of all three can be seen in the coveted guest character.
The fighting genre is full of mini-games, from Street Fighter's car destruction to Tekken Ball. Here's the best Mortal Kombat mini games.
Cultured Vultures: We've gone to the trouble of ranking the Mortal Kombat games across the series' history. Special Forces is clearly number one.
My favorite is always going to be Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. I know some people didn't like the addition of the run button. But, man that game is burned into my memory from childhood, lol.
That's the one I played the most as a kid. Fun times gaming on my Sega Genesis, the memories
MK2 will always be the best in the series. Been playing a lot of MK1 lately though. Definitely enjoying it more than any other NRS era MK game.
I will always have a special place in my memory for MK 1 and 2. You had to be there during that era at the arcades. Martial arts tournament fighting movies were still popular, and MK 1 was exciting. Real life motion captured characters done well (unlike Pit Fighter). A cast of characters we all liked like Bruce Lee(Lui Kang), Van Damme(Johnny Cage), the Lightning god(Raiden) from Big Trouble in Little China, and Ninjas, gotta have Ninjas. Goro was menacing as hell. The MK arcade had some of the best speakers similar to Killer Instinct as you could hear the loud crisp and bassy sound that was distinctly different than other arcades. MK 2 improved greatly on the controls and fighting mechanics
Limiting sales to minors does not limit the right to free "speech" (more accurately, freedom of expression). The person is still permitted to make the game, thus expressing themselves freely. All this does is add a tool to the belt of parents which makes it more likely and easier for them to make an educated, conscious decision about which games they may buy for their children.
Ultimately, it comes down to leverage the game industry can use when they are accused of polluting the minds of children and driving them to violence. We, as gamers, should celebrate laws such as these.
The intent of the legislation if to restrict to whom the speech can be directed (which is, itself, a form of limiting the speech). It's in turn legislating a thing already done by the industry in a way that sets an uncomfortable precedent not only for games but for other media. To concede (falsely) that games are pollutants devalues the products being created by game developers, and is frankly, a dangerous concession that would allow for games to be further marginalized.
The ESRB ratings act in the same manner as the MPAA ratings in terms of tools for parents: they have been effective during the lifespans of their respective industries and could/should be respected as such. I'm not sure how legislation will be a greater educational tool for consumers - it's more an unnecessarily punitive measure for retailers/renters.
Still, thanks for reading.