By this same principal, Halo, which is played heavily by every single age group, should be labeled as a Family/FPS. If you show me a 7-year-old who hasn't played Halo, you are either showing me one who lives under a rock or who's parents are so discerning about what their children see, that the "T" rating on the front of Portal would scare them off regardless.kingmob said:I think you are missing the point. It is not important who the game is marketed to or intended for, what matters for a family game is if it can be enjoyed by everyone.Harry Mason said:Here's a good example... Dr. Strangelove does not have anything in it that is inherently bad for children to see or hear, but it was written, conceived, filmed, and marketed to adults. It is not, by any FAR stretch of the imagination, a Family Movie.
Dr. Strangelove is therefore a bad example, since it has little slapstick or similar humour. If it did it would've been extremely family friendly. Darkness for adults and kids mean very different things, a kid will be absolutely not bothered by the films premise or even the ending.
All Portal has is a nice sounding evil robot who's parts you disassemble in the end.
Ah ha! Well spotted. And 10 points for the reference. Much better than that awful Red Alert 3...Alphacron said:You've most likely heard him asking for more pictures.KwaggaDan said:Can someone please tell me why the narrator sounds so familiar?
Pictures of SPIDERMAN!
(J. Jonah Jameson (forgive me if I spelled that wrong, Graham and Paul aren't the only ones behind on their Spiderman Research) from the three new Spider Man Movies)
yes you can get into the "publishers club" and gave all the adds go awaygigastar said:As expected of Valve.
Also cant you do something about making those stupid Homefront adverts skippable? Im sure everyone who cares about it has one by now.
If it makes you feel any better, the game is labeled as action adventure on Steam.Harry Mason said:While I'll agree that kids have always been and will always be exposed to dark material (Grimm Fairytails being the best and oldest example) and that being exposed to those things is not necessarily bad, Portal is not a Family game.Andy of Comix Inc said:Kids have always been exposed to dark, dark entertainment. Don Bluth movies, Disney films, the Simpsons, Pixar films - all meddling with dark, adult themes, and all a hit with the kids. I think you're right, kids do pick up on these things - but I say, as long as there's a happy ending, kids won't care. Kids like to be scared more than they let on, and I say Portal is the perfect mix of "kid-friendly" jokes under a mask of pitch-black absurdity that defines the "family" genre.Harry Mason said:You are held captive by a malevolent A.I. attempts to murder you at every turn and forces you to burn alive the only friendly thing in your environment. Take it from someone who works in an Elementary school, NEVER underestimate children's ability to pick up on complex themes and innuendo. They are much more intelligent than you are giving them credit for, and I've seen first hand the way that traumatizing material effects the psyche of a child.
Here's a good example... Dr. Strangelove does not have anything in it that is inherently bad for children to see or hear, but it was written, conceived, filmed, and marketed to adults. It is not, by any FAR stretch of the imagination, a Family Movie.
Every book ever published by Roald Dahl is full of danger, violence, abuse and trauma. And the books were written for children. Though dark, they are "Family" books.
Portal was written for adult minds. An adult story coupled with a few off colour events and themes makes Portal and adult game. Just because a child CAN see something, doesn't mean it's meant for them.
And you say there are "kid friendly jokes," can you remember one?
Was it the one where you are confronted by a puzzle and told the penalty for failure is a painful death? Is it the part where you tear apart a mechanical mind piece by piece, removing personality traits like childlike curiosity until only mindless, furious aggression is left? Or was it the part where the A.I. reveals that it turned a highly populated laboratory into a giant gas chamber? I'm trying to think of "Family Friendly" jokes in this game, but I'm just drawing a blank.
Beyond Good and Evil is a dark family game. Portal is not.
No, by the same principal Halo should not, since you shoot people in the face (many times). I feel like you are disagreeing for disagreement's sake.Harry Mason said:By this same principal, Halo, which is played heavily by every single age group, should be labeled as a Family/FPS. If you show me a 7-year-old who hasn't played Halo, you are either showing me one who lives under a rock or who's parents are so discerning about what their children see, that the "T" rating on the front of Portal would scare them off regardless.
Could you imagine if Halo were labeled as a "Family/FPS?"