Mature Content in cRPGs

by Martin Haller 

I have played cRPGs (console role-playing games) from the start. I played the Ultimas starting at Ultima 3, and all the NES RPGs: Dragon Warrior, Destiny of an Emperor, Legend of Scheherezade, and, of course, Final Fantasy 1. As time passed and I lost interest in the Ultima series, I moved to strictly playing console RPGs, as opposed to their computer brethren. All of this playing, from then to the present, has created in me a strong opinion on the matter of mature content in games.

Console RPGs have long been held to different standards than computer RPGs. If one compares Wasteland, a very popular 1980s computer game, to Final Fantasy 3, the differences are apparent. Wasteland featured an encounter with a prostitute, references to cannabilism, and a number of violent scenes. Final Fantasy was required to change "son of a bitch" to "son of a submariner." These differences continued as the systems evolved. Sega was called to task for Night Stalker, while pornographic games and the extremely violent Doom series existed on the computer. The reasoning is obvious. Console games appeal to children, while computer games appeal to "young adults" or even adults themselves.

I disagree with this distinction. Computer games are equally available for children -- rich children. Console games, while equally expensive, run on $150 machines. To run Final Fantasy 7 on the computer, one would need a two THOUSAND dollar machine. While console systems are more popular amongst children, the censorship of these games shouldn't be mandated by system manufacturers (such as Nintendo) or by the federal government, but instead by parents. This policy of self-governance has been illustrated in the handling of the motion picture industry, and is equally applicable to console games.

But that doesn't answer the fundamental question here. Should video games contain mature themes? I think it is a very, very touchy matter. I recently read a lengthy "debate" over the topic of the translation of Xenogears. I've never seen this game, nor played it, nor read portions of the script, but I am told it has "deep religious content." I read a petition demanding its translation. I have no real problem with religious content in games. The Ultima series was immensely religious, and very successful in the United States. Breath of Fire 2 centered around religious imagery, and while the game had a tedious plot and mediocre graphics, it wasn't particularly offensive. But I think that this matter is at the crux of video game censorship.

Religion is where you get into the most touchy aspect of American culture. I was mildly offended by the prescence of crosses and the like in Hexen. I am Jewish. But I was not alone in this matter. Numerous Christians were offended by the desecration of what is to them an important religious symbol. I was offended by the "power" suggested in the game. When a game considers religion, or any matter that could potentially offend, consideration is extremely important.

Would Final Fantasy 3 have been improved in Cyan had soft porn books in his cave? Heavens no! Their abscence was an improvement, in my opinion. Would a spell named Holy, on the other hand, have offended players? Of course not. There is a balance. One of the keys to this balance, is whether or not the suggestion conveys insult. Example: if Aeris had raised a cross over her head and said, "Lord Christ, protect us from Sephiroth", it would likely have offended. If Barret had said, "Yo, bitch, get yo' ass the f_ck over her," it would've offended. (Frankly, I was offended by the racist portrayal of Barrett anyway.) If Xenogears simply has an unidentifiable religion, even if it seem Judeo-Christian, it won't offend. But if it choses to advocate a religion, no matter WHAT religion, it threatens to offend gamers.

Why force the matter of censorship? Tact and self-restraint go a far way to alleviating this problem. FF7 managed to pull this off fairly effectively, and if Xenogears can do it as well as FF7 did, I advocate its translation completely. Console games will always be held under greater pressure than computer games, but if game designers proceed slowly, politely, TACTFULLY, they will find that society is willing to accept "mature" themes. RPGs appeal to mature audiences anyway, and should be allowed free reign. But with this free reign comes great responsibility. I hope that Square shows this in managing Xenogears, and I hope that our government, and our society, continue to give video-games the freedoms they deserve.