Game Over For "Game Over", Please!
July 28, 2005
Can we all please agree that the use of the words "Game Over" in an article about violence or sexual content in a video game should be stopped immediately? I swear, every mainstream media source that I've seen cover the ongoing debate behind the ESRB ratings system, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas's Hot Coffee, and the FTC investigation into Take Two uses the words "Game Over" in the article title.
I can just picture each journalist behind these pieces smile and chuckle to themselves when they fit the "Game Over" wordplay in their articles, gleeful that they have to be the first person to ever think of using the term in respect to the proposed end of the line for a game company. And yes I know that I used the term in the title of this entry, so don't even bother pointing that out.
It's a petty thing, but it bugs me just the same. This is as close to gaming culture as some of these journalists will ever come and they think they're being so original and humorous. Do modern games even say "Game Over" anymore? In my experience they tend to say things like "You Are Dead" or "Would You Like To Try That Level Again?".