Grand Theft Auto. 5 games, a 6th scheduled (and has been for about ten years) A game famous for violence, sexual images and other pretty inappropriate themes. Should it really be an 18? Spoiler alert, yes, but we are going to delve into a few different arguments and explore some of the reasons for the infamous 18 rating.
Now in researching for this article I didn't find many convincing arguments. I started on GameFAQ's. I found many answers saying things like "I am 15 and I have been playing this game for years." and "Depends on your Child's maturity". While that is true for most games, I also believe GTA can be an exception. At the age of 15, with a mature child, you could argue that it is okay, but we believe that is pushing the limit. Then came a shock on Mumsnet. The report claimed someone's 9 year old child had asked for GTA for Christmas. She replied that Santa wouldn't bring something like that, but her son retorted that half his class had access to the game. This was a bit disconcerting, as the thought of half a class of 9 year olds playing GTA was unusual to say the least. All of the replies had the same feeling "9!!!, no chance." with most agreeing 15 year olds shouldn't be allowed the game.
Now, I apologise to someone who might not know anything about GTA. In a nutshell, it is a large open world game with a heavy focus on crime. You can drive, kill, fly and steal, and to be honest that is more or less the point of the game. The game contains violence, sexual content, blood, death and pretty high realism in the most recent version.
This isn't much of a debate. GTA is an 18 rated game and that is justified. There is very little that can make it appropriate for under 15's and even after that it could be frightening or disturbing. If they play 18's already or watch R rated films, then you can probably try it with them but we would not recommend. In short, unless 18 and R rated films, games and anything else are very regular to your child, stick with the age rating given on this one.
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