New ESRB Ratings Tread Into Spoiler Territory

This week, when the ESRB reported new ratings guidelines, and two senators seem pleased, but if you're curious how a game like Fallout 3 gets treated in the more descriptive write-ups, be warned, because they can be so specific they give away huge parts of the story.

In the rollout of the new ratings, we gave a Call of Duty: World at War writeup that completely described most everything that someone might find objectionable about it, without giving away the story. (Besides, I think we know how World War II turned out, right?) GameSpot, however, notes that:

The ESRB write-ups can also include details of plot twists and other spoilers. One line from the Resistance 2 write-up omitted in the quote above reveals a significant plot detail from a climactic moment of the game. Fallout 3 is another title with a key revelation included in the summary.

It's at this point where my interest as a gamer triumphs over my responsibility to you as your weekend editor. I have both, I intend to play both, and I don't want to ruin the big reveal of a $60 title. But like Brian, I do wonder who is going to be handling these writeups and how, if at all, publishers will try to manage spoilers that are of a nature that must be revealed under the new rules.

http://kotaku.com/5088749/new-esrb-r...iler-territory