Feature
How the Grand Theft Auto scandal changed videogames and the state of digital intimacy, with thoughts from the developers of God of War and Heavy Rain.
“No wonder these games are falling into the hands of our children, and no wonder so many parents feel everyday like they are fighting this battle with their hands tied behind their backs. We need to do better. We need to do everything we can to make sure that parents have a line of defense against graphic videogames and other content that go against the values they are trying to instill in their children.” So said Hilary Clinton, then senator of New York State, in an impassioned speech wherein she decried the Electronic Software Ratings Board (ESRB) as incompetent, and declared that she would author a bill to make the sale of Mature-rated videogames to minors a federal crime. The speech was made on July 14, 2005, just two weeks after the “Hot Coffee” mod for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas started blazing its way across the internet, making headlines as it went.
Of course, the term “mod” is somewhat misleading, as “Hot Coffee” didn’t add new content to Rockstar Games’ sandbox hit. Dutch hacker Patrick Wildenborg’s patch for the PC version of the game altered just the tiniest bit of code, making accessible a whole new minigame built into San Andreas by Rockstar North. For those who don’t remember, here’s what unlocking “Hot Cofee” gave you access to: Player character CJ Johnson can date a variety of a women in San Andreas’ fictional Californian cities. In the retail version of the game, these dates end with CJ dropping off his lady friend at her house. Depending on how close you are with that girlfriend, she may invite CJ in for coffee. The camera shifts to the exterior of the house while CJ and his girlfriend get audibly amorous.
