Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Main / RatedMForMoney

Go To

1%% Image removed per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1593690431068708400
2%% Please start a new thread if you'd like to suggest an image.
3%%
4->''"Babble babble, bitch bitch, rebel rebel, party party\
5Sex sex sex, and don't forget the violence."''
6-->-- '''Music/MarilynManson''', "This Is the New Shit"
7
8When video gaming first started, almost all of the games created were playable by children. Not to say that early games weren't enjoyable by many adults (they were), they just lacked the mature themes that would be unsuitable for younger audiences -- because, let's be honest, it could be pretty hard to get graphic on some of these older systems ([[OldShame though not impossible...]]). Some of this was due to the CensorshipBureau imposed by Creator/{{Nintendo}} in the late 1980s; when Nintendo dropped this and backed an industry-supported ratings system, developers became free to develop whatever they desired, and thus began making games that were more realistic in their depiction of violence, and along the way, containing DarkerAndEdgier themes than previous titles.
9
10But thanks to the success of a few specific M-rated titles, the [[FollowTheLeader clones and copycat titles]] that followed them, and the media attention that followed ''both'', today there is a public perception that developers focus solely on extremely violent titles targeted at "hardcore" gamers (that is, those who believe [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating "G" rated movies]] and "E" rated games are "for kids only" and consider those who do watch "G" rated movies and/or play "E" rated games to be [[NoTrueScotsman "casuals"]]), because hardcore gamers are supposed to be the most profitable demographic. This results in even more attention from {{Media Watchdog}}s and MoralGuardians alike, and if those titles are successful, ultimately [[NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity reinforces the notion of M-rated titles being the best way to make a top-selling title]], if not a [[CashCowFranchise license to print money]] outright -- in other words, they're just Rated M For Money.
11
12"M" rated games are not, in fact, guaranteed hits -- only an average percentage of titles sell enough copies to be commercially successful, not at all much different from any other rating or genre in the market. Furthermore, general industry wisdom actually claims "T" for Teen is the most profitable rating, for the same reason that many movies target the PG-13 ratings bracket -- these are the highest ''unrestricted'' rating of their respective scales, combining the most creative freedom with the broadest possible (if not potential) audience; some developers or publishers have actively restricted levels of violence and/or sexual content in their games in order to achieve this rating. Indeed, in 2010 [[http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/15/esrb-breakdowns-say-5-percent-of-games-were-rated-m-in-2010/ only 5% of video games released had an M rating.]] However, this small minority was the focus of more hype than the rest, largely because many of them are AAA games, thus receiving the most attention of any video game. Indeed, according to the same survey, 7 of the top 20 best-selling video games of 2010 are M-rated.
13
14The larger amount of hype M-rated games tend to get than E, E10+ or T rated games can probably be attributed to the ongoing public perception that [[DiscreditedTrope Video Games are for kids]]. Granted, this perception has significantly diminished since [[MediaNotes/TheFifthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames the mid to late 90's]], but it's still prevalent enough (mostly among MoralGuardians and [[MediaWatchdog Media Watchdogs]]) to cause quite a stir with the gaming community. Thus, it makes sense that many would perceive M-rated games as the key to breaking video games free of this stereotype and, thus, gaining them more respect as an entertainment medium. However, many of these games still contain vulgar and/or over-the-top humor that brings them down to a "drunk" level of maturity.
15
16UltraSuperDeathGoreFestChainsawer3000 and MurderSimulators are what you get when this is the issue of a VerySpecialEpisode.
17
18Complicating the issue is the rise of games with sex scenes (sometimes plot-related, often not) and other mature non-violent content such as language that superficially ''appear'' to be put in for "M for Money" reasons, but are actually there because of the game-makers' desire to reflect the current state of popular films and TV shows, many with large teen fanbases, which have become more sexually explicit. Defenders of games such as ''Witcher III'' which contain nudity and erotic scenes have said that people expect to see such scenes in TV shows and films so they expect to see them in games, too. Defenders also point out the perceived hypocrisy of people having no problem with scenes of extreme violence, yet having issues with sexual content and language.
19
20It's worth mentioning, however, that this attitude ''has'' declined within the gaming sphere since about 2007. Thanks to a number of factors:
21
22# The enormous success of relatively family-friendly gaming consoles like the Platform/NintendoWii, Platform/NintendoDS (it had a total of 11 M-rated games despite having 673 games officially released in North America, which is about 1.6% of the entire DS library in the continent), Platform/Nintendo3DS and Platform/NintendoSwitch.
23
24# Family-friendly video game series and genres that were once popular in previous decades seeing a resurgence in popularity thanks in large part to online vendors such as Xbox 360's Platform/XboxLiveArcade, the Wii's Platform/VirtualConsole, alongside remakes, [[CompilationRerelease Compilation Rereleases]], and [[MilestoneCelebration Milestone Celebrations]].
25
26# [[VindicatedByHistory Critical reappraisal]] of games that were once criticized for averting this trope, in particular ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' and much of the Platform/NintendoGameCube library.
27
28# The success of non-violent indie titles like ''VideoGame/StardewValley'' and ''VideoGame/CandyCrushSaga'', as well as genuinely mature (ie. not overtly vulgar or violent) games like ''VideoGame/Journey2012'' and ''VideoGame/GoneHome''.
29
30# People becoming fatigued with [[MissionPackSequel copy-paste sequels]] present in a lot of M-rated AAA franchises (most notably VideoGame/CallOfDuty).
31
32# The number of gamers who are now parents and want something they can play with their children.
33
34# Controversies bringing to light concerns about problems such as sexism in video games.
35
36# The growth of the East Asian market (particularly China, South Korea, and Japan) as the largest video gaming market in the world, where games perceived to be rated M for Money are [[AmericansHateTingle deeply unpopular]] or [[BannedInChina banned]], mainly due to ValuesDissonance. The Rated M for Money trope is very much [[DiscreditedTrope discredited]] in East Asia as a result.
37
38# The general consensus that gratuitous sex, violence, profanity, and other taboo in a work are actually signs of immaturity and adolescent mentality. Admittedly, prior to adulthood, it was like ForbiddenFruit, but becomes banal after you've grown up to appreciate more sophistication and substance over style. Hence the common sentiment: "We all thought it was the coolest thing back when we were 13".
39
40And so on.
41
42Despite the decline, [[https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-04-09-gta-v-is-the-most-profitable-entertainment-product-of-all-time according to this 2018 article]], the most profitable media property of all time, even when adjusted for inflation, was the M-rated ''Grand Theft Auto V'', proving that this trope is far from discredited in the West, though it has led to [[ItsPopularNowItSucks the game being hated by fans of more niche games]]. However, ''GTA V'' has been dethroned by the more comparatively family-friendly ''VideoGame/DungeonFighterOnline'' as the most profitable media property of all time in 2019, even when adjusted for inflation. In fact, ''[=DFO=]'' earns almost twice as much as the entire ''[=GTA=]'' franchise as of 2022. This is mainly because ''[=DFO=]'' is hugely popular in its native East Asia, and the ''[=GTA=]'' franchise is [[AmericansHateTingle deeply unpopular]] or [[BannedInChina banned]] in the larger East Asian gaming markets due to the franchise being [[OvershadowedByControversy much more controversial]] than in the West (the aforementioned ''GTA V'' is given the Z rating in Japan, equivalent to the high M or AO rating in North America).
43
44Compare AvoidTheDreadedGRating and AmericanKirbyIsHardcore. While there are no direct ties between this and RatedMForManly, it's not uncommon to see an "attempt" at both tropes employed at the same time (since manly men will swear, shoot people in the face, and bankroll big sales figures as a result). Note the emphasis on the "attempt" as the fixation on DarkerAndEdgier and "sex and violence" has increasingly been associated with [[ManChild immaturity]]. Also see AnimatedShockComedy and ExploitationFilm, which pile on shock value to increase age ratings. For comics, this frequently happened in MediaNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks.
45----
46!!Examples
47[[index]]
48* RatedMForMoney/VideoGames
49[[/index]]
50
51[[foldercontrol]]
52
53[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
54* Funimation's GagDub versions of ''Manga/SgtFrog'' and ''Manga/CrayonShinChan'' added strong language and mature humor to otherwise tame series, mainly to appeal to older anime fans.
55[[/folder]]
56
57[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
58* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheKillingJoke'' was widely criticized for this. Based on a [[ComicBook/TheKillingJoke comic book]] that was infamous for its boundary-pushing violence and sexual content in the 1980s (but is generally regarded as [[OnceOriginalNowCommon fairly tame by today's standards]]), the creative team behind the film heavily advertised the fact that it would be rated "R", as if to assure adult fans that they wouldn't be toning down the racier aspects of the source material. But upon actually seeing it, many people noted that the filmmakers went out of their way to justify the R rating by ''adding'' racy content that wasn't present in the source material, most of which struck fans and critics as gratuitous (like adding profanity to lines quoted from the comic that didn't have any originally). Most controversially, the film adds in a subplot involving a sexual relationship between Batman and Batgirl, which (considering their age difference and power dynamic) was near-universally viewed as unintentionally creepy.
59[[/folder]]
60
61[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
62* ''Film/SweetSweetbacksBaadasssssSong'' was "Rated X by an all-white jury." The X rating in this case was a default judgment by the MPAA since Van Peebles couldn't afford to submit the film for a proper rating. (That the MPAA allowed the "X" to appear on films it never reviewed explains why it became synonymous with pornography, since once the MPAA realized they could not claim it as a trademark they stopped using it as an official rating and now like to pretend that it never was one. [[note]][[TooDumbToLive This is not exactly what they'd intended when they deliberately neglected to trademark the X rating]]. They were hoping for edgy, boundary-pushing content like ''Film/MidnightCowboy'', which would be the only X-rated film in history to win a Best Picture Oscar. Not wanting to waste everyone's time and money in reviewing films that would merit an X anyway, the MPAA intentionally left it free for filmmakers to self-apply. This decision backfired on them hard, as before the decade of TheSeventies was out, X-rated was synonymous with porn. Hence the NC-17 rating, which has fared little better outside of being trademarked.[[/note]])
63* Creator/EddieMurphy[='s=] comedy ''Film/ComingToAmerica'' is a rather quaint tale of an African prince wanting to experience life in America and meet a woman there to marry for love, instead of being wed off to an arranged bride back home. The topless scenes (which are only at the start, during the bath sequence, and never seen again after) and swearing only seem to be there to bump up the rating to R, as the plot itself is rather tame.
64* ''Film/Deadpool2016'' is a curious case in that director Tim Miller and actor Creator/RyanReynolds both wanted the R-rating to really draw from [[ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} the source material]]--which is a franchise aimed at adults. Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox actually [[SubvertedTrope didn't think an R-rating would be profitable]], based on the performance of previous R-rated comic book adaptations on top of the box office successes of the PG-13 counterparts. They gave Miller a relatively small budget as a countermeasure, expecting a box office bomb--or at least the film underperforming in terms of profit. The total opposite happened, and ''Deadpool'' became one of the highest-grossing R-rated movies of all time.
65** The following year, ''Film/{{Logan}}'' made sure to be R-rated to fully exploit the violence usually caused by title character Comicbook/{{Wolverine}}, as well as a plot with more dark themes than just the racismprejudice prevalent in the X-Men series. It worked not only box office wise (only ''Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast'' and the Deadpool movies made more money) but earned the most positive reviews of the franchise, with its script even nominated for the Academy Award.
66* From Marvel to DC, ''Film/{{Birds of Prey|2020}}'' could be considered a DistaffCounterpart to ''Deadpool'', following an insane protagonist while not dialing down regarding its violence and profanity. However, the box office intakes were nowhere as impressive - some analysts felt that higher content ratings actually hurt the film, given a very large segment of the fanbase for main character Harley Quinn is young girls. It opened atop the rankings, only to fall to third the following weekend behind two family-friendly productions.
67* The creators of the film adaptation of ''Film/{{Doom}}'' said that they were aiming for a "hard" R, and as a result, included all sorts of adult content that was never in the game, including nudity and F-bombs.
68* This is the selling point of every "UnratedEdition" DVD or Blu-Ray ever, even if the unrated content is actually pretty tame and was cut for reasons that had nothing to do with rating.
69[[/folder]]
70
71[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
72* This is especially odd with period-set series, such as ''Series/BoardwalkEmpire''. Sure, prohibition-era America had its fair share of mob influence and shadiness, but ''Boardwalk Empire'' litters every other scene with a ClusterFBomb and to call the sex and nudity "gratuitous" would be putting it lightly. Case in point: a corpse is laid out on the morgue, a corpse belonging to a beautiful young woman. The corpse is not covered in a sheet, and not only can the audience see everything, they can also see the Y-shaped stitches running down her torso and abdomen.
73* ''Series/SpartacusBloodAndSand'', as with most Starz series, is full of sex, nudity, violence, and language.
74* HBO's ''Series/GameOfThrones''. Anyone who has read [[Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire the source material]] knows what to expect, yet HBO somehow managed to add in ''more'' sex and nudity than what was in the book. (That said, the sexual content of the series actually decreases as it progresses, and in fact the show's most controversial sexual scene--[[spoiler:the rape of Sansa Stark in Season 5]]--takes place completely off screen). Ditto with the SpinOff ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon''.
75* TV in general is more sexually explicit than in the old days, particularly any show made for broadcast after what certain broadcasters refer to as "the {{Watershed}}". Even productions such as the 2016 BBC version of ''War and Peace'' have had sex scenes added because, per WordOfGod, this is what viewers want.
76** Averted, however, by the 12-rated [[note]]For ages 12 and up, equivalent to a PG-13 rating[[/note]] ''Series/DoctorWho'' which has zero sexual content (despite featuring romance), rather minor violence, nothing stronger than "damn" and "hell" in the language, and is consistently BBC Worldwide's biggest money-making series; however, at the same time, it is not a series produced for airing post-watershed and spinoffs that were (''Series/{{Torchwood}}'' and ''Series/Class2016'') were more explicit and violent. A better example might be the historical drama, ''Series/{{Victoria}}'' which, despite being produced for broadcast in a post-watershed timeslot in the UK, is (some kissing and minor dialogue aside) considered a family-friendly series.
77[[/folder]]
78
79[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
80* Wrestling/{{FMW}}'s two founders and top star were quintessential {{garbage wrestler}}s, but the same could not be said of its number two star, Megumi Kudo, its number three star Wrestling/MasatoTanaka, or its number four star Hayabusa, or... you get the idea. FMW showcased a wide variety of wrestlers and styles. Furthermore, the name "Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling" come from the fact that [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness it started]] as a showcase of martial artists against pro wrestlers before the garbage became more and more central. Yet even during Kodo Fuyuki's LighterAndSofter "World Entertainment Wrestling" era, FMW never really lost it's garbage wrestling reputation, largely because of how hard it promoted it's [[GoryDeadlyOverkillTitleofFatalDeath no rope barbwire, double hell thumbtacks exploding ring death]] matches.
81* This trope is largely behind Big Japan Pro Wrestling's roster split. With the "Strong BJ" half rejecting the idea they are a bunch of scarred up delinquents swinging buzz saws at one another and "Hardcore BJ" openly embracing it, not caring about those who doubt their athleticism or technical prowess. Both halves like to think themselves RatedMForManly.
82* The core stars of Wrestling/{{ECW}} were technical wrestlers like Wrestling/ChrisBenoit, Wrestling/EddieGuerrero and Wrestling/DeanMalenko, with guys like Wrestling/LanceStorm, Wrestling/PerrySaturn, Wrestling/JerryLynn and Super Crazy up and down the card. But when people think of ECW the first things that come to mind tend to be Wrestling/NewJack diving off of tall things, [[Wrestling/JimFullington The Sandman]] downing a beer before beating himself bloody with the bottle, Wrestling/TerryFunk wrapped in barbed wire, Wrestling/{{Sabu}}'s triple jump moonsault, Wrestling/RobVanDam kicking folding chairs, Wrestling/TheDudleyBoyz putting someone through tables or maybe some woman stripping in front of a {{crowd chant}}ing "Show Your Tits". The loss of technical wrestlers to Wrestling/{{WCW}} played a major role in ECW's decline, yet they are criminally under remembered compared to the "extreme" elements of the show.
83* Whenever Wrestling/{{CZW}} secures dates for talented technical wrestlers like Wrestling/YoshihiroTajiri, Wrestling/ChrisHero, Wrestling/ClaudioCastagnoli, Wrestling/AdamCole, Drew Gulak, even if they are rookies who merely have a strong amateur background like Wrestling/LioRush, CZW tends to quickly make them the focus of angles and give them title belts to defend. Despite this, there are no dedicated technical events the way there are garbage events like Tournament Of Death and Cage Of Death. Even accounting for their athleticism based "Best Of The Best" annual event, it still isn't promoted as heavily as the use of light tubes and lighter fluid.[[/folder]]
84
85[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
86* White Wolf's Black Dog imprint, for ''TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness'' RPG sourcebooks deemed "For Mature Audiences Only." It most likely caused gamers to buy titles they might have overlooked but saw the Black Dog logo on the back and said "I have to get this!" The line was canceled during the 3rd Edition, when White Wolf's general titles started getting darker than the Black Dog stuff. In fact, the only book that truly deserved its Mature rating was ''[[TabletopGame/WraithTheOblivion Charnel Houses of Europe: The Shoah]]'', which dealt with the Holocaust.[[note]]The author of ''Charnel Houses...'' [[OldShame later said]], "...it was a [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone really dumb idea]]". Yet it's often considered the best source book made for the ''TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness'', in no small part due to the tasteful and respectful way the event was covered, featuring real-life history in addition to new game material.[[/note]]
87[[/folder]]
88
89[[folder:Visual Novels]]
90* When mature-rated stories first appeared in ''VisualNovel/ChoicesStoriesYouPlay'', this is the perception of most fans, as the game is targeted towards straight female romance fans, and these stories include considerably more sexual content than other stories, which garnered criticism from some fans, especially non-romance fans.
91* While not as in-your-face as most examples, a good chunk of visual novels are {{Eroge}} even when sex isn't the main focal point the story. This is done mainly because they tend to sell better among players, and tend to be outsourced if it’s not involved with the plot, which it rarely is. Incidentally, this trope becomes inverted if the game sells well enough that an all-ages version is made.
92* Nukige (games made for smut; not to be confused with nakige[[note]]crying game[[/note]]) tend to be built specifically for this, with lots of sexual encounters. While there are some that do put a lot of emphasis on story such as Clockup’s infamous games, or even allow them to be ignored altogether like ''Monster Girl Quest'', they nonetheless carry the tag due to the sheer levels of sex they have.
93[[/folder]]
94
95[[folder:Web Animation]]
96* ''WebAnimation/LoboWebseries'' is the very first [=DC=] adult cartoon and uses the advantages of the TV-MA rating such as strong language, sex and graphic violence.
97[[/folder]]

Top