Illinois Battles Video Games

The video game industry is filing suit to prevent an Illinois bill limiting the sale and rental of computer and video games.

The Entertainment Software Association announced today that it will seek legal action against the state of Illinois to prevent bill HB 4023 from taking effect.  The ESA claims that the proposed measure has a chilling effect on free speech.

The bill has been called the “Violent Video Games Law” and would prohibit the sale of state defined ‘adult’ games to minors.  The ESA claims such a law is not only unconstitutional, but that virtually identical laws proposed in St. Louis, Indianapolis, and Washington State have been struck down already.

The debate on adult material and video games has heated up with the finding of an adult easter egg in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.  The ESA contends that the rigid self policing and rating system the video game industry has voluntarily put in place offers much more protection and information than the law proposed.