Granny takes on Rockstar - 28.7.05

Yet another twist in the the 'Hot Coffee' saga. This time an 85 year-old granny has brought a civil suit against Rockstar seeking unspecified damages. 85 year-old Florence Cohen of New York bought 'San Andreas' for her grandson and the basis for the suit is that Rockstar and parent company Take-Two Interactive engaged in misleading and deceptive practices in both the packaging and selling of Grant Theft Auto: San Andreas.

When it rains it pours for Take-Two, who was notified only yesterday that the Federal Trade Commission was investigating the situation. The inquiry comes after the US House of Representatives voted 355-21 in favor of a resolution mandating the FTC to get their hands dirty with this.

The suit comes amid the discovery of a hidden sex mod in the popular game, although it is not yet known if the courts will consider the sex mod as part of the game, considering you need to download a special program in order to get your hands on the material.

There is, however, a logical side to this that's hard to argue against if we drop the drama for a minute. Ratings, be they for movies or for games, are as much about what is not in the game/movie as they are about what's in them. The ratings system moves from the "OK for everyone" side of the spectrum to the "OK for only a select few," establishing outposts (as it were) that dictate what can and cannot be in a movie or game. We can ask all kinds of sociology questions about what kind of society we live in when simulated violence is so welcome but sex isn't, but when we get back to Realpolitik, we see that she has a case. The rating justifiably told her what's not in the game as well (and we have no what of knowing if she actually looked), and Rockstar is going to have a tough fight on their hands with scores of angry parents. The big question on my mind is whether or not a civil court will consider the simulated, interactive sex minigame as part of the game or not, given the need to modify the game to get to the game's hidden content.

Grandma sues Rockstar Games

By Gary (Email: Gary at igniq dot com)

	« Igniq.com Gaming News Granny takes on Rockstar - 28.7.05 Yet another twist in the the 'Hot Coffee' saga. This time an 85 year-old granny has brought a civil suit against Rockstar seeking unspecified damages. 85 year-old Florence Cohen of New York bought 'San Andreas' for her grandson and the basis for the suit is that Rockstar and parent company Take-Two Interactive engaged in misleading and deceptive practices in both the packaging and selling of Grant Theft Auto: San Andreas. When it rains it pours for Take-Two, who was notified only yesterday that the Federal Trade Commission was investigating the situation. The inquiry comes after the US House of Representatives voted 355-21 in favor of a resolution mandating the FTC to get their hands dirty with this. The suit comes amid the discovery of a hidden sex mod in the popular game, although it is not yet known if the courts will consider the sex mod as part of the game, considering you need to download a special program in order to get your hands on the material. There is, however, a logical side to this that's hard to argue against if we drop the drama for a minute. Ratings, be they for movies or for games, are as much about what is not in the game/movie as they are about what's in them. The ratings system moves from the "OK for everyone" side of the spectrum to the "OK for only a select few," establishing outposts (as it were) that dictate what can and cannot be in a movie or game. We can ask all kinds of sociology questions about what kind of society we live in when simulated violence is so welcome but sex isn't, but when we get back to Realpolitik, we see that she has a case. The rating justifiably told her what's not in the game as well (and we have no what of knowing if she actually looked), and Rockstar is going to have a tough fight on their hands with scores of angry parents. The big question on my mind is whether or not a civil court will consider the simulated, interactive sex minigame as part of the game or not, given the need to modify the game to get to the game's hidden content. Grandma sues Rockstar Games Related: Did Rockstar damage the gaming industry? Games produce non-violent nation? Jack Thompson after Sims 2 'nudity' Rockstar Admit Percolating Hot Coffee Modder: "the scriptcode, the models, the animations and the dialogs by the original voice-actors were all created by RockStar" Discussion >> By Gary (Email: Gary at igniq dot com) Sponsored links: Concert Tickets Online skill games Play Online Bingo Gamer Social Networking Buy Wii Games Online Best prices: PS3 (60 GB) Console Place a link here