Kotaku - ESA: Obama Seems Gamer Friendly - E3

"President Barack Obama's administration seems video game friendly, Entertainment Software Administration president Mike Gallagher said during an E3 luncheon.

"We were in contact early with the transition team and they invited us into those sessions," Gallagher said. "So we've had very good dialog with the administration."

Gallagher, who served as the chief telecommunications and policy advisor to the George W. Bush Administration , said he stayed close to friends of his in D.C. trying to figure out who would be handling what as the new administration took form shortly after Obama's election.

"Right now the administration is very correctly focused on a lot bigger issues than whatever issues we might represent," Gallagher said. "I personally think we represent zero issues because we're doing a great job of entertaining American families."

Gallagher said he isn't concerned about the possibility of universal ratings or the administration getting involved in the legislation of video game ratings.

"We are very encouraged about all of the meetings we've had," he said. "We've met with the chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, he's very pleased with the work we have done. We've had great meetings on the Hill, probably among the best we've had.

"It's very hard to take something off the table completely and say that it can't happen, but I think it's a low likelihood," he said. "And that's for a good reason. The ESRB is doing a great job, people know, they trust the disclosure that's included as part of the packaging of a game."

Gallagher said that increasingly video games are becoming an accepted part of everyday life and culture. He pointed to the success of Grand Theft Auto 4, both financially and critically, as a major turning point for the industry.

"It was reviewed like a movie, as a movie, like a piece of art," he said. "We received accolades for that, that was a big transition for us. That turned out to be a very positive step forward for us."

It also helps, he said, that Obama's family owns a Wii.

"For the first time we have a console in the white house," he said. "We understand the president has a Wii and we're very excited about that. Having a degree of exposure to the technology is very, very positive." "