Michigan: Federal Court Strikes Down Law Restricting Sale of Violent Video Games

^{Category: Free Speech}

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In a victory for civil libertarians and gaming geeks alike, a federal judge has struck down a Michigan law regulating the sale of violent video games to minors. As Justice George Steeh stated in his ruling:

Video games are a form of creative expression that are constitutionally protected under the First Amendment. They contain original artwork, graphics, music, storylines, and characters similar to movies and television shows, both of which are considered protected free speech. The defendant concedes that the First Amendment fully protects the expressive element in video games but argues that the interactive functional element, which is not present in other forms of electronic media, can be distinguished and should not be considered protected speech ...

The interactive, or functional aspect, in video games can be said to enhance the expressive elements even more than other media by drawing the player closer to the characters and becoming more involved in the plot of the game than by simply watching a movie or television show. In video games, it is the player who controls the actions of the character and often determines the outcome of the game. With the rapid advancements of video game technology and new innovations, such as online gaming, video games are becoming more open ended with more possibilities to interact with other players and control the fate of the characters and the worlds they inhabit. It would be impossible to separate the functional aspects of a video game from the expressive, inasmuch as they are so closely intertwined and dependant on each other in creating the virtual experience. For these reasons, this Court finds that video games contain creative, expressive free speech, inseparable from their interactive functional elements, and are therefore protected by the First Amendment.

This doesn't mean that there aren't any constitutionally valid means of restricting sale of video games to minors. It just means that any such schemes will need to be more similar to the voluntary rating system used by the Motion Picture Association of America, which relies on cooperation from retailers instead of direct government censorship, thereby avoiding the kinds of First Amendment violations that eventually doomed the Michigan statute.