Put violent video games off limits for children

Put violent video games off limits for children
The decision by GameWorks to restrict children under 16 from playing certain games at its arcades should set an example to others in the business. Ron Benison, the company's president and CEO, acknowledges that keeping some games off limits for the younger set could hurt GameWorks bottom line, but that "it's the responsible thing to do." He's right.
Granted, GameWorks, as a joint venture of Universal Studios, Sega Enterprises and DreamWorks SKG -- Steven Spielberg's company, has a family-friendly reputation to uphold. But other video game makers and arcades might find themselves with more business, not less, if families could be more confident that their children wouldn't accidentally stumble on a particularly bloodthirsty, lurid "game."
V-cards: Instead of using coins or tokens to play the high-tech arcade games, GameWorks uses debit cards that can be used at any of its 20 locations -- there's one in Columbus. Under the company's new policy, employees will ask for identification before selling unlimited access cards to children, who will instead be able to purchase a "V-card" that cannot be used at games with mature content.
GameWorks is proving that the entertainment industry is perfectly capable of putting into place systems that make it easier for parents to monitor what their children are exposed to.
Vigilance: But it does take vigilance. Corporate policies have little value if employees don't enforce them and if parents don't take advantage of them. And in many small-scale game arcades, owners may see little incentive to hire the staff it might take to act in loco parentis.
Still, even shopping malls, whose video arcades serve as built-in babysitters for harried shoppers with kids, could sell "V-cards" at customer service desks.
And certainly, video stores can monitor the games they sell or rent to kids -- if owners make the effort to explain to their employees how important it is to keep children from video violence voluntarily.