ESRB Prototyping

OVERVIEW

This blog is to serve as a hub for review and critique of my Senior Final Design Project. The goal is to improve on the ESRB's intent to inform parents of the severity of content in video games by redesigning the content warning labels on game packaging and creating a short commercial encouraging awareness.

Research indicates that we are facing the largest gap in 10 years between parental awareness of the ESRB and parental use of the warning system.  Also, investigation shows very little changes in the design since its implementation despite the rapidly advancing nature of the gaming industry. Children under 18 account for only 19% of gaming revenue in a multi-billion dollar industry, and may be overlooked as content is shifting towards a more adult audience.

By utilizing colour coding and visual indicators instead of just text, I hope to provide a less vague indication of the content in video games and encourage parents to take an active role in overseeing the media children intake when still minors.

Content Descriptors

The following is a list of content descriptors currently used to identify the content in video games. Note the number of descriptors that are vague, or seem to mean the same thing. Do you think customers can easily distinguish from the game box the difference between a game with Sexual Content, Sexual Themes or Suggestive Themes? Can Crude Humor be Mature Humor and vice versa?

• Alcohol Reference - Reference to and/or images of alcoholic beverages
• Animated Blood - Discolored and/or unrealistic depictions of blood
• Blood - Depictions of blood
• Blood and Gore - Depictions of blood or the mutilation of body parts
• Cartoon Violence - Violent actions involving cartoon-like situations and characters. May include violence where a character is unharmed after the action has been inflicted
• Comic Mischief - Depictions or dialogue involving slapstick or suggestive humor
• Crude Humor - Depictions or dialogue involving vulgar antics, including “bathroom” humor
• Drug Reference - Reference to and/or images of illegal drugs
• Fantasy Violence - Violent actions of a fantasy nature, involving human or non-human characters in situations easily distinguishable from real life
• Intense Violence - Graphic and realistic-looking depictions of physical conflict. May involve extreme and/or realistic blood, gore, weapons and depictions of human injury and death
• Language - Mild to moderate use of profanity
• Lyrics - Mild references to profanity, sexuality, violence, alcohol or drug use in music
• Mature Humor - Depictions or dialogue involving "adult" humor, including sexual references
• Nudity - Graphic or prolonged depictions of nudity
• Partial Nudity - Brief and/or mild depictions of nudity
• Real Gambling - Player can gamble, including betting or wagering real cash or currency
• Sexual Content - Non-explicit depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including partial nudity
• Sexual Themes - References to sex or sexuality
• Sexual Violence - Depictions of rape or other violent sexual acts
• Simulated Gambling - Player can gamble without betting or wagering real cash or currency
• Strong Language - Explicit and/or frequent use of profanity
• Strong Lyrics - Explicit and/or frequent references to profanity, sex, violence, alcohol or drug use in music
• Strong Sexual Content - Explicit and/or frequent depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including nudity
• Suggestive Themes - Mild provocative references or materials
• Tobacco Reference - Reference to and/or images of tobacco products
• Use of Drugs - The consumption or use of illegal drugs
• Use of Alcohol - The consumption of alcoholic beverages
• Use of Tobacco - The consumption of tobacco products
• Violence - Scenes involving aggressive conflict. May contain bloodless dismemberment
• Violent References - References to violent acts

Organising Content Descriptors

I organized the content descriptors into 9 categories, and tried to best match the content to colours. I struggle with a colour for gambling and a put asterisks near the descriptors that don't currently exist, but I think are relevant to a parent, ie. sexual solicitation and gambling game mechanics.

I think that colour will differentiate the different issues from each other, and I experimented first with a design that used individual colour bars to represent each descriptor. It looked ok by itself:

But once I tried in on a back cover, it looked REALLY ugly and really out of place. It didn't match the style of the busy back cover, and definitely required some updating. I don't like the big white block background, but I do think the white and red draw your eye, which is important.