Widget helps parents find game ratings

By Tim Clodfelter
MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE
Published: April 30, 2008

Since 1994, the Entertainment Software Rating Board has been helping parents find out whether videogames are appropriate for their children—but parents often don’t know where to look to find the ratings of a game their kids want.
The rating board has just released a free “Rating Search Widget” that provides an easy way for parents to get the rating—and the reason behind the rating.
Take, for instance, next week’s highly anticipated release of “Grand Theft Auto IV,“ the latest installment in Rockstar Game’s popular franchise. Type in the game name and you get the systems it is available on (Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3) and a rating of “M for Mature,“ with the list of reasons for that rating: “Intense violence, blood, strong language, strong sexual content, partial nudity, use of drugs and alcohol.“ Phew. Type in “Super Mario Galaxy” and you get an “E for Everyone” rating and a description of “mild cartoon violence.“
The widget can be embedded into personal Web pages, blogs and social network pages. It can also be downloaded to your computer’s desktop and run on Mac Dashboard, Vista Gadget, Yahoo! Widget, or by using the new Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR) desktop application.
Response to the widget has been favorable since it was released April 1, said Andy Allen, a representative of the Entertainment Software Association.
You can find out more information or download the widget at www.esrb.org/widget. The site also provides a link to download Adobe’s AIR application if you need that.