Violence Under the Tree: Family Media Guide Identifies Top 10 Ultra-Violent Video Games of 2005.

LOS ANGELES -- At the start of this year's holiday shopping frenzy, parents should be prepared to check their kids' gift lists very carefully. Because this year, some of the most ultra-violent video games ever created are being made available.

Family Media Guide (www.familymediaguide.com) has prepared a list of the Top 10 Most Violent Video Games released so far this year based upon information supplied by PSVratings. Utilizing a proprietary audit process, the PSVratings trained video game analysts capture and document instances of profanity, sex, violence, and substance abuse using a database-driven technology employing approximately 4000 rules and algorithms governing millions of potential rule combinations. This data is then analyzed to generate an objective rating, superior to the existing ESRB (Electronic Software Ratings Board) industry association-based review approach which assigns ratings based upon the subjective opinions of three individuals who may not even play the game.

Here's the list, with games in no particular order:

2005's TOP 10 ULTRA-VIOLENT VIDEO GAMES

--Resident Evil 4 -- Player is a Special Forces agent sent to recover the President's kidnapped daughter. During the first minutes of play, it's possible to find the corpse of a woman pinned up on a wall -- by a pitchfork through her face.

--Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas -- Player is a young man working with gangs to gain respect. His mission includes murder, theft, and destruction on every imaginable level. Player recovers his health by visiting prostitutes then recovers funds by beating them to death and taking their money. Player can wreak as much havoc as he likes without progressing through the game's storyline.

--God of War -- Player becomes a ruthless warrior, seeking revenge against the gods who tricked him into murdering his own family. Prisoners are burned alive and player can use "finishing moves" to kill opponents, like tearing a victim in half.

--Narc -- Player can choose between two narcotics agents attempting to take a dangerous drug off the streets and shut down the KRAK cartel while being subject to temptations including drugs and money. To enhance abilities, player takes drugs including pot, Quaaludes, ecstasy, LSD and "Liquid Soul" -- which provides the ability to kick enemies' heads off.

--Killer 7 -- Player takes control of seven assassins who must combine skills to defeat a band of suicidal, monstrous terrorists. The game eventually escalates into a global conflict between the U.S. and Japan. Player collects the blood of fallen victims to heal himself and must slit his own wrists to spray blood to find hidden passages.

--The Warriors -- Based on a 70's action flick that set new standards for "artistic violence," a street gang battles its way across NYC in an attempt to reach its home turf. Player issues several commands to his gang, including "mayhem," which causes the gang to smash everything in sight.

--50 Cent: Bulletproof -- Game is loosely based on the gangster lifestyle of rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. Player engages in gangster shootouts and loots the bodies of victims to buy new 50 Cent recordings and music videos.

--Crime Life: Gang Wars -- Player is the leader of a ruthless street gang, spending time fighting, recruiting new gangsters, looting, and of course, more fighting. Player can roam the streets and fight or kill anyone in sight for no apparent reason.

--Condemned: Criminal Origins -- Player is an FBI serial killer hunter in one of the first titles for the Xbox 360. Game emphasizes the use of melee weapons over firearms, allowing players to use virtually any part of their environment as a weapon. The next generation graphics provide a new level of detail to various injuries, especially "finishing moves."

--True Crime: New York City -- Player is a NYC cop looking for information regarding the mysterious death of a friend. Player can plant evidence on civilians and shake them down to earn extra money.

About Family Media Guide

Family Media Guide (www.familymediaguide.com), a division of Media Data Corporation (MDC), is an online resource for parents and entertainment researchers. Family Media Guide features PSVratings for all listed titles. PSVratings content analysis is based on an extensive database-driven technology which utilizes approximately 4000 rules and algorithms governing millions of potential rule combinations. An independent board of educators, child psychologists and psychiatrists, all of whom are parents, assigns ratings to each of the rules. Auditors are trained to recognize the rules (not the ratings) and record instances of Profanity, Sex and Violence in various media, including films, DVDs, video games and TV programming. The data then goes through three independent stages of validation. Proprietary technology then analyzes the data and generates a rating; thus ensuring objectivity. The PSVratings auditing system is superior to existing industry association-based review approaches which assign ratings based upon the subjective opinions of a select group of individuals employed by their respective industries. PSVratings data is available free of charge at www.familymediaguide.com.