Call For Computer Game Ban

The British press was yesterday once again accused of trying to stir up outrage over yet another computer game. Despite computer games being around now for well over thirty years and, consequently, the people who are now parents - and even grandparents – are very familiar with computer games, the press still tries to demonize the games into new folk devils that are corrupting the nation’s youth.

This week’s controversy – inevitably enough - centres a round what has become the best-selling computer game of all time: Call Of Auditing: Modern Accountancy III, with the Daily Timewarp, in particular, calling into question the game’s suitability for children, despite the game itself having a very prominent 37+ Only age warning and several stickers detailing the adult nature of some of the very realistic accountancy action in the game.

[A SAS (Special Accountancy Service) operative setting out on the audit trail in the video game: Call Of Auditing: Modern Accountancy III]

In an editorial yesterday, the newspaper asked whether the explicit, hyper-realistic use of Cash Book reconciliation featured in one particular scene within the game was taking it a bit too far, especially when it is the player who has to reconcile the available receipts with the figures in the cash book using only a basic calculator and a single biro.

As it says on the game box:

Call Of Auditing: Modern Accountancy III is a very intense fully-realistic up-to-date accountancy experience, with the player having to go out on the audit trail where they will have to be adept with not only a calculator, but able to cope with a spreadsheet too, especially in the online version when other players will be in the same office, often talking to each other about what was on TV the previous evening, whose turn it is to do the tea round and who was the last one to use the stapler.

A prominent Rent-A-Quote MP who the Daily Timewarp has on speed-dial, responded with the usual cliché: ‘Must we fling this filth at our kids! I demand a full public enquiry!’ before going on to say: ‘What is it I’m meant to be outraged about again…? Oh, a computer game… right. If you’re sure it will get my name in the papers, I’ll certainly call for them to ban it.’

One allegedly concerned educationalist, eager to get her outrage into the media said:

There is a time and a place for children to learn about accountancy, but that must be when they are old enough to have a job of their own. Learning about such things as double-entry, invoice reconciliation and so on at too young an age could cause all sorts of problems later in life, especially when it comes to meeting members of the opposite sex who are not in the habit of keeping all their receipts.

Actually, if you could just mention in your article that – completely by co-incidence – I have a new book out, called: How Evil Computer Games Are Turning Our Children Into Psychopathic Brain-Dead End-Of-Level Monsters, that would be great. Thanks. I’ve known computer games are evil ever since I got stuck on the first level of Halls Of The Things on the Spectrum and my brother, and all his mates, laughed at me.