The document discusses potential influences of violence in video games like Borderlands 2 on audiences and regulatory bodies that rate games. It describes how violence in games could promote accepting violence in reality and gives an example of a mass shooter claiming the game Call of Duty influenced his skills. It also notes Borderlands 2 includes options to toggle gore and language. Two regulatory bodies that rate games for age-appropriateness are described: the Video Standards Council (VSC) that uses the PEGI system and considers factors like violence, language, and criminal activity when rating games. Borderlands 2 receives a PEGI 18 rating for its violence, blood, gore, swearing, and sexual references.

1. Unit 1: Task 9
Legal/Ethical Issues and Regulation
Borderlands 2

2. Possible Influences on Audiences
Violence:
Using violence can promote violence to be
something that is acceptable in reality,
examples of this are people such as Anders
Behring Breivik who killed a total of 77
people, 8 in a bomb explosion of a
government building in Oslo and 69 deaths on
the island of Utøya where Breivik posed as a
police officer claiming he was there for
security following the explosion soon after
began shooting individuals. During his court
sentence that his attack was planned over a
nine year period and he trained himself in gun
skills by playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
2 improving his skill with a holographic sight
similar to the one he used in the attack he
also claimed that he used the game World of
Warcraft to cover his isolation from the world.
Other examples of this have been brought up
recently through the media linking the use of
violent video games to violent outburst.
Within Borderlands 2 the game developer
have inserted a toggle gore option where
blood etc are removed from game play.
Bad Language:
By using bad language within a video game
can lead to premature learning of explicit
language to younger players who either play
the game or are around during someone else.
In Borderlands 2 the toggle gore option also
removes most the explicit language from the
game.
Spreading of Slander:
Within Borderlands 2 it is a fantasy world so
therefore all companies within the game are
made up ones designed by the game
developers

3. Regulatory Bodies
VSC
Video Standard's Council are responsible for the rating of
video games they have been responsible for the since 1994.
The VSC has a Code of Practice designed to ensure that
both industries show a duty of care in their dealings with
customers and the public generally. The VSC were part of
enforcing the PEGI system 2001-2002 from here video
games were rated using this system the VSC have rating for
video games this creates a second part of the PEGI system
which consists on descriptors which say why the game has
this rating for example a PEGI rating of 16 would include
violence (or sexual activity), more extreme language,
encouragement of the use of tobacco and drug and
encouragement of criminal activity. The VSC review
games before they are published and give the game
A final PEGI rating to inform people of what is in the
game and what the recommended age range for the
game is.
Rating a Video Game
video games are rated using
the PEGI (Pan European
Game Information) which
gives a age rating to the game
highlighting what age
someone has to be to buy the
game as well as the
recommended age a person
has to be to play the came
based on its content.
Borderlands 2 has a 18 PEGI
rating the reason for this is
because the game includes
violence scenes of people
dying and/or being injured,
motiveless killing as well as
containing blood and gore
the game also includes bad
language including swearing
and sexual innuendo’s