Computer Game Developers' Association Endorses RSAC Game-Rating System

June 23, 1995 -- Palo, Alto, California -- The Computer Game Developers'
Association has formally endorsed the video and computer game rating
system devised by the Recreational Software Advisory Council. The system
provides a standardized set of labels for entertainment software,
indicating the product's level of violence, sex or nudity, and strong
language. Each is shown on a 0-4 scale. Products with a zero in all
categories receive a special "All Audiences" label.

The decision to endorse the RSAC rating system was taken after a formal
vote of the membership of the Computer Game Developers' Association, a
professional society for the interactive entertainment industry with over
1000 members. The CGDA plans to contact all major game developers,
publishers, and software retailers to encourage them to use and support
the RSAC labels. They hope that in time, the system will become as
familiar to computer game players as the movie rating system is to
moviegoers.

Ernest W. Adams, the Association's president, said, "Game developers have
always been in favor of giving their customers honest information about
their products. We believe the RSAC labels provide that. Unlike the movie
ratings, which have just one letter grade and no explanation of how it was
derived, the RSAC label describes the product in three ways and gives the
level of intensity plus brief descriptors in each one. This gives parents
a much better idea of what they're buying.

"I like to think of this as being like the nutrition labels on food," he
added. "Nobody likes to be told what they should and shouldn't eat, but
they do like to know what they're getting. The RSAC labels work the same
way."

Adams stresses that the system is voluntary and does not require any
expenditure of taxpayer dollars. "As creative people, we remain firmly
committed to our freedom of expression under the First Amendment and will
vigorously oppose any effort to censor our work. The good thing about the
RSAC system is that it leaves the value judgments where they belong --
with the consumer. It gives our customers the information they need to
decide whether they want to buy the product."

The Recreational Software Advisory Council is an independent, non-profit
organization which defines labeling standards for interactive
entertainment products. Contact:

Stephen Balkam
Executive Director
RSAC
1718 M Street NW, Suite 139
Washington, DC 20036
phone: 202-293-3055
fax: 202-293-3056

The Computer Game Developers' Association is open to people with an
interest in the interactive entertainment or educational software
industry. Memberships are individual, and cost $75 per calendar year ($85
for non-USA members). Contact:

Ernest W. Adams
President
CGDA
555 Bryant St, Suite 330
Palo, Alto, California 94301
phone: 415-948-CGDA (2432)
fax: 415-948-2744
E-mail: ewadams@netcom.com
 
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