In what was very likely the most impactful legal decision ever to face the video game media, the US Supreme Court struck down a California law which attempted to make it illegal for retailers to sell ultra-violent video games to minors. The law was created by the California state government and Leland Yee, a child psychologist, with the undermining principle that exposing minors to video games would cause metal harm. The Supreme Court, in a 7 to 2 ruling, determined that the law "does not comport with the First Amendment," and that "Video games qualify for First Amendment protection."
The ruling is extremely important to video games, as it says explicitly that the medium should not be considered to be separate from movies, books and music with regards to limiting its free speech rights. California's argument was that the interactive nature of video games suggested that they should be held under different expectations, but the Supreme Court disagreed.
The opinion, which can be read in full here, was delivered by Justice Scalia, with Justices Kennedy, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan, and Chief Justice Roberts concurring. Justices Thomas and Breyer filed dissenting opinions.
In Justice Thomas' dissent, he wrote that the constitution allows for certain types of speech to be limited: "In my view, the 'practices and beliefs held by the Founders' reveal another category of excluded speech: speech to minor children bypassing their parents." His primary argument: "I am sure that the founding generation would not have understood 'the freedom of speech' to include a right to speak to children without going through their parents. As a consequence, I do not believe that laws limiting such speech—for example, by requiring parental consent to speak to a minor — 'abridg[e] the freedom of speech' within the original meaning of the First Amendment."
The decision of The State of California vs. The Entertainment Merchants Association and the Entertainment Software Association brought to a close a six year legal battle and heralded ensured rights for game developers and publishers, who needn't worry that new laws or cases may question their First Amendment rights.
