Games Too Sexual?

Yet another report regarding the possible ill effects of video gaming was released least week Friday, this time by the British Home Office. GamesIndustry.biz reports that the document, entitled The Sexualisation of Young People Review, recommends that video game consoles should be sold with parental controls switched on.

The report suggested tighter measures across a variety of media, including videogames, music videos, social networks, magazines and other media.

"Many games feature highly sexualised content and there is a notable lack of strong female characters," wrote Dr Linda Papadopoulos. "In a recent content analysis, 83 per cent of male characters were portrayed as aggressive, while 60 per cent of female characters were portrayed in a sexualised way and 39 per cent were scantily clad. The equivalent figures for male characters were 1 per cent and 8 per cent respectively."

"There has… been a marked increase in the number of games depicting various forms of sexual abuse. Many popular videogames effectively reward children for engaging in violent, illegal activity, albeit virtually."

"With advances in technology, games are becoming increasingly graphic and realistic. At the same time, children are more and more likely to play games without adult supervision: three-quarters of 12–15-year-olds have a games console in their bedroom," said the report.+