[...] Not again… [...]

[...] Explains Raph Koster: "You pretty much have to include a nude or near-nude model in order to have a good clothing system, because anything drawn onto the base model will show through when you do certain clothing types. You could, of course,go to the extra lengths to have alternate underwear sets drawn onto alternate base models, so that there’s always a base model to choose from that works with a given piece of clothing, but what an asset nightmare." [...]

[...] With regard to violence, Bethesda advised the ESRB during the ratings process that violence and blood effects were “frequent” in the game – checking the box on the form that is the maximum warning. We further advised that the game contained occasional torture, vulgar acts, and gore. We gave accurate answers and descriptions about the type and frequency of violence that appears in the game. We submitted a 60-page document listing the explicit language, acts, and scenes in the game. Oblivion packaging already contains warnings for “Violence” and “Blood and Gore. To be fair, Bethesda may not have ever intended such “skins” to be used for the purposes of titillation. Indeed, they may have been the dreamchild of some 14 year old hacker who wrangled access to base model skins from the game’s code. Explains Raph Koster, design guru:You pretty much have to include a nude or near-nude model in order to have a good clothing system, because anything drawn onto the base model will show through when you do certain clothing types. You could, of course,go to the extra lengths to have alternate underwear sets drawn onto alternate base models, so that there’s always a base model to choose from that works with a given piece of clothing, but what an asset nightmare. Indeed, but do skin mods regularly include fully-realised nipples? Bethesda may not be as innocent as they make themselves out to be, as evidenced in the ESRB’s response:When we brought the topless female images to Bethesda Softworks’ attention, they confirmed that the art file existed in a fully rendered form in the code on the game disc. The ESRB’s investigation found that the mod allowed users to change the filename for the female character mesh in order to access the art file that was created by Bethesda. While true that a modification was required to access this file, the changes we implemented last year – expanding our disclosure rules to include locked-out content – were made to prevent these kinds of situations Modding a game is not something most people would have the first clue about, so we’re talking about a very small minority of PC users who would be able to access these so-called dirty pictures (I’d love to see how the conservative right in America would respond to Page 3). The Xbox 360 version of the game is (supposedly) unalterable). So should we blame the modders for once again dragging the reputation of the games industry into the gutter in the minds of US politicians? John Romero, the man who has famously released code to most of his titles to the modding community, suggested that modders had better watch out:That modders are now screwing up the industry they’re supposed to be helping. In 1993 we opened up all our data to the industrious and ambitious folks out there who want to see what it’s like to be able to make their favorite game a little more like what they’d want…..and get a taste of being a semi-game designer in the process. The most awesome example of what this philosophy has brought is CounterStrike. [...]

[...] [...]

Amen. I’m not into heavy-handed regulation (particularly of my beloved games), but this is one where I agree that the ESRB got it right.

I just hate that this incident is going to be turned into another painted bullseye on our hobby and industry by fear-mongers looking to further their careers.

From the IGDA forum thread concerning the same topic: The message that the ESRB sends with each rerating to the interactive entertainment industry’s critics is that this industry can competently and capably regulate itself in terms of ethical product distribution.

The "fear-mongers", namely Hillary Clinton and Leland Yee, are woefully misinformed and are desperately attempting to spin the issue any which way they can. They’re failing miserably. The fact that the ESRB caught the nondisclosure of nude content and acted immediately to rerate the product is indicative of successful regulation, not a lack thereof "warranting" governmental intervention.

However, it could be that both parties are wrong, and they’d both be kinda embarassed by what the document would reveal if disclosed to the public.

I just hate that this incident is going to be turned into another painted bullseye on our hobby and industry by fear-mongers looking to further their careers.

Imagine my surprise when I installed the 1.1.425 patch and Bethesda discovered that removed the nipples from female body textures in the textures archive. Sigh. So if I want the nipples back, I have to reinstall the damn game and extract the model and texture files by hand before applying the patch. Thanks for nothing, Bethesda.

Isn’t it great that to try and appease the ESRB, Bethesda has deliberately deformed the once-anatomically-correct torsos to try and protect some 14-year-old kid who can surely figure out how to download (or just make) a topless patch anyway. I think the voluntary rating system is a great thing, but from time to time the ESRB really drops the ball, and I think this was one of those times. I mean, do they think teenage kids have never seen a nipple before?

The politicians — well, after seeing how drastically my local congressmen LIED and feigned ignorance even when public record shows they knew they were lying and not simply ignorant of the facts — I’m pretty much of the opinion that almost every single one of them is rotten to the core.

Bethesda Softworks did not disclose all pertinent content as required by the ESRB submission requirements; issued a press release in which they falsely claim several "facts" in an attempt to spin the issue in their favor; and misinformed many people regarding the ESRB’s actual conclusions. These behaviors demonstrated negligence, dishonesty, and deceit. By the logic you presented, you should also consider Bethesda Softworks "rotten to the core".

I don’t think Bethesda Softworks is "rotten to the core". I think a) Bethesda Softworks should require that employees attend ethics training and provide tuition for optional enrollment in a business law course; b) Bethesda Softworks should work more closely with the ESRB to clarify title submission requirements (e.g., learn what "all pertinent content" means); and c) discard any public relations strategy provided by Take-Two and employ a more professional public relations approach. A more professional approach would have included working more closely with the ESRB to ensure that the press releases issued by both organizations were consistent and researched.

There’s a nice discussion in the Grimwell forums concerning this issue.