FoxNews.com ran a story accusing EA's upcoming game, Bulletstorm, of targeting children and causing violent, sexual crimes to rise. There's more to it than that, of course, and you can read the length of the article right here.
The general gist is that Fox News brands Bulletstorm as selling itself towards impressionable children, despite its obvious adult oriented content. They pulled in industry analysts and media psychiatrists to drag EA, People Can Fly and Epic's upcoming FPS through the mud as much as they could.
At the time of publication, FoxNews.com indicated that EA was unavailable for comment. Since then, however, Tammy Schachter, Vice President of Public Relations at EA, commented on the issue to Game Informer. Her response in full:
As you know, Bulletstorm is a work of entertainment fiction that takes place in the 26th century on the abandoned fictitious paradise planet Stygia, where our heroes fight mutants, monsters, flesh-eating plants and gigantic dinosaurs.
Epic, People Can Fly and EA are avid supporters of the ESA and believe in the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) rating system. We believe in and abide by the policies put in place by the ESRB.
Bulletstorm is rated M for Mature for blood and gore, intense violence, partial nudity, sexual themes, strong language and use of alcohol. The game and its marketing adhere to all guidelines set forth by the ESRB; both are designed for people 17+. Never is the game marketed to children.
Epic, People Can Fly and EA support the right of artists to create works of entertainment fiction for consumers of all ages, including adults who enjoy action adventures like Bulletstorm. Much like Tarantino's Kill Bill or Rodriguez's Sin City, this game is an expression of creative entertainment for adults.
EA's response, as one could have guessed, is pretty much in line with the basis of my previous story. And, honestly, it's in line with what gamers have been saying for years. Parents need to step up and control the types of media their children are ingesting. Those that take so much offense from games like Bulletstorm needs to actually participate in selecting their children's entertainment. By simply paying attention to the ratings of games, parents will know immediately what they contain. Then they'll be able to restrict ingestion as necessary.
