In the time that's elapsed between my last column and now I've encountered two major events that have made me recognize the privileged position we are in as independent game developers.

The first was when I received the March issue of one of my favorite video game magazines. I noticed that one of the major game systems they reported on wasn't listed on the cover and, after opening it, I found out why.

According to a letter from the editor, the magazine has a temporary injunction against it, initiated by the game company in question, that stops it from reviewing or even discussing the game company or its products. The details are still unclear but, for right now, the magazine can't cover one of the four major game systems.

The second event was when I interviewed a game designer about a new game, dubbed a mature interactive movie. The action/adventure features a great deal of violence and, more importantly, was intended to show the sexual relationship between the two main characters.

Upon playing, however, I realized how muffled the portrayal of the relationship was in the game. Unfortunately, as the game designer admitted, there were some pressures from the game distributor because it was concerned about selling to conservative America.

Both of the above situations show the growing pains in an industry that needs to grow up. Video games are no longer a child's medium, and it is doubtful that most of the $11 billion spent on gaming last year came from kids harassing their parents into purchasing products.

Still, there are very few other industries where a company has even attempted to sue a magazine to stop them from reviewing its products, presumably because of freedom of speech and the company's assumption that adults have minds of their own. And there are very few industries where, even with the highest maturity rating, there are restrictions on content.

This is where we come in.

Over the past couple of years I've seen some of the most fun, most disgusting and most brilliant game software on the Internet; things that I know I wouldn't be able to get anywhere else. I'm sure that you have, too.

The beauty of it is that we don't have a ratings board, nor a budget, nor a big company watching us (sans our webspace provider). We can do anything.

It's our job to create software that pushes the envelope and, hopefully, pushes game design into a recognized artform. And, maybe ten years from now, video games will be treated with respect, as with comparable industries.

It seems like something worth fighting for.

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Written by Damon Brown.