The United States isn't the only country where government officials worry about the effects of video games on minors.  BetaNews reports that over in Japan the government of the state of Kanagawa has banned the sale or rental of Grand Theft Auto 3 to anyone under the age of eighteen.  What's especially unusual (at least from my American point of view) is that the new law requires game shops to segregate GTA3 from the other games for sale and shops must place a big bright scarlet letter of a sticker labeled "Harmful" on each box.

I realize that the separation of this one game from other games is so that children won't be drawn to the box's candy-like colors, but I can't help but think that the reason for the quarantine is so that GTA3 won't infect safer games with its "harmful" gameplay.  "Dang, the hookers got into Super Mario Sunshine again!"