Is the system THAT inaccurate, and would the inclusion of more descriptors "flood" the box with descriptors as the ESRB claims?
Or would the inclusion of too many descriptors overwhelm those who use the ESRB as a guide? Would parents be tuned out by seeing "sexual conduct" on every box, if it was used to describe everything from mild innuendos to full blown Leisure Suit Larry type stuff?
How useful would you find a system where the "major" content descriptors get put on the front of the box, and the "minor" ones get put on the back, as well as a short description of what each means.
For example, GTA:SA (decaffeinated version)
Front: M 17+, Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs
Back:
Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language.
Blood and Gore - Depictions of blood or the mutilation of body parts
Intense Violence - Graphic and realistic-looking depictions of physical conflict. May involve extreme and/or realistic blood, gore, weapons and depictions of human injury and death
Strong Language - Explicit and/or frequent use of profanity
Strong Sexual Content - Graphic references to and/or depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including nudity
Use of Drugs - The consumption or use of illegal drugs
Should all this information be on the box? Or should the box merely list the descriptors, and then point the consumer to the website for descriptor information? Should retailers hand out an ESRB flyer with each purchase, that details what all the ratings and descriptors mean, so that parents (the ones who care, let's be realistic here), can have at hand the information needed to decipher exactly what the ESRB considers "Strong Sexual Content"... (sort of like what some pharmacy chains do with prescriptions...)
Would moving the descriptors to the front make them more visible? Expanding the ESRB label to accomodate all the descriptors?