How important are the ratings on video, computer, and internet games? For those of us who are not expert gamers, the ratings are important because they provide an initial clue to the game's content.

For example, the industry group that rates internet games has a category called "Wanton, Gratuitous Violence." The definition itself is eye-opening ... and it applies to a whole group of games available on the internet. This category is defined as "intentional aggressive violence" against "helpless" victims and includes acts such as torture and "attacks on or damage to corpses, (including) dismembering or eating a corpse," according to the Recreational Software Advisory Council for the internet (RASCi).

Compared with this level of violence, it is easy to shrug at the definition of "Mild Animated Violence," which merely refers to "characters in unsafe or hazardous acts or violent situations."

Mild animated violence is considered acceptable for children ages six and up, according to the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB), the industry group that rates computer and video games. (Such a game would be labeled E for Everyone.)

ESRB's "Realistic Blood and Gore" rating, however, might include "depictions of mutilation or dismemberment of body parts in realistic or photographic-like detail." This type of game can gain a rating of T, appropriate for children ages 13+.

While these definitions are quite alarming, they are also widely ignored. A recent survey by the National Institute on Media and the Family found that even though every video and computer game box now carries an ESRB rating, only 40 percent of parents routinely look at industry ratings before buying or renting a game. The ratings system has not yet become widespread on the internet, and very few game sites carry the RASCi ratings.

How accurate are these ratings?

Lion & Lamb disagrees with many of ESRB's ratings for specific games, especially those given the E rating for younger children. We do not agree that "mild animated violence" or "mild realistic violence" is appropriate for six-year-olds.