<cite>Newsweek</cite> to CNN: Not All Games Are for Kids

Newsweek's N'Gai Croal recently appeared on CNN to discuss the controversial Manhunt 2 and its inevitable (according to interviewer Kiran Chetry, anyway) effects on children:

CHETRY: It does seem shocking, actually if you're not in the world of gaming, to see this. I mean, it's so realistic. There's blood on the people and you're actually -- the kids are moving their hands in motions that simulate killing. How -- when do you cross the line? This fantasy world becomes so realistic that it can't help but be damaging.

N'Gai seems to think that Chetry is assuming that videogames are by definition aimed at children, but I suspect the source of her questions was the Wii's image as a "kiddie" console. Later in the interview,
Chetry references Nintendo's family-friendly image, pointing out the
Wii's parental controls and that only 7 of the Wii's 80 games are
M-rated.

The common public perception seems to be that the Wii is for kids, ergo Wii games are intended for children, end of story. One has to wonder if Manhunt 2 would have been considered such a dire threat to the psyches of children if there weren't a Wii version.

The Problem (and the Danger) of the Continued Infantilization of Videogames, Part 1 [Level Up]