The concern that politicians and parents have about the effect of violence in media on children is a concern that has been around for a very long time. However it was only in the early nineties that video games became a target for protectionist groups. There seemed to be a lull in this concern when the ESRB was formed but there has been some doubt as to effectiveness of this rating system recently with the unlocking of the “Hot Coffee” mod in 2005.

Since then we have seen a multitude of city and state laws that have attempted to prevent the sale of violent or “Mature” rated games to minors through the use of fines for both the purchaser and the seller. These have all since been thrown down by the courts for various reasons including a lack of a clear correlation between violent media and violent acts and the laws’ infringement on the First Amendment. However when there is a comprehensive study, spanning at least five years, there could be a reversal of this trend. My fear is that there will be a study that is politically motivated and funded that will “prove” that there is a correlation between violent media and real life violence. I think that as long as the ESRB and ESA and other such organizations and users resist this, then we will not see State or Federal censorship on any media.