Video Games Violence
... According to Marshall McLuhan, games are extensions, not of our private but of our social selves . ... For many kids video games have become a large part of their first educational, social and cultural experience. Games offer early experiences of fortune, achievement and leadership. ... Kids perceive the games not only as a source of companionship, but also as a possible substitute for it. ... Video games are one of the few settings in which children can be teachers if grown-ups take the time to participate. The violence in videogames is now so widespread that some titles have been described as "kill-for-fun murder simulations". If there is a high degree of violent content in many computer games, does this mean that frequent players will be more inclined to aggressive and violent behavior in their daily lives? Although people rarely admit it, we all enjoy watching violence; before we could see or participate in virtual or simulated violence, we watched real violent acts. ... Computer games offer a way to commit and view violence without actually hurting anyone. ... But youth violence in The United States has fallen dramatically at the same time that game sales have skyrocketed. ... The role of violence, censorship and regulation in videogames are then analyzed and identified. The accusation that videogames influence negative behaviors will be discussed, as well as the differences between TV and computer game violence. The contradictions of studies on negative and positive effects of video game usage will be examined. ... When parents stopped buying soldiers and fake guns, children created their own weapons and continued to play war games. ... Videogames displace violence. ... Video games preserve many aspects of traditional play spaces and culture that motivate children to learn about the environment that they find themselves living in. Video games present the opportunity to explorer and discover, as well as to combat others of comparable skill… Video games play with us, a never tiring playmate. ... Where the NO children policy has not been adopted, surely there are notices forbidding playing ball games or making loud noises. ... What is it that gives games their appeal? ... Games are superior to traditional means of escaping such as movies, books and music because the player is directly involved in the action. Games like Majestic go beyond the usual game playing boundaries getting to the player through email, fax and telephone. ... Many of early videogames such as Pong and Pinball where reproducing actual games on screen. ... Fairground games in general are another set of predecessors to modern videogames. ... British videogames market already grosses 40 percent more than total cinema box office receipts and 80 percent more than video rentals. ... [9] "The games industry is an important part of the economy and the government is determined to play its part in helping it towards a successful future, said e-Minister Stephen Timms. [10] Commenting on the government decision to sponsors the UK pavilion at E3, the games industry trades show in Los Angeles. ... 5 million games were sold for Sonys PlayStation 2 in the year to March 2002. ... Production of games has moved from being a lonesome activity in the garage to involving 100 people, with costs up to $15 million, as much as a Hollywood blockbuster movie. ... But games franchises from Tomb Raider to Duke Nukem have all been adapted to blockbuster movies; games come with built-in audience of millions of people. ... VIOLENCE Every time a new medium is found, the demand for violent content is insatiable. Violent videogames have been said to desensitize children to violence and lead kids to violent behavior, like the recent outbreak of schoolyard shootings. ... And this is why a game can be much more abstract than a movie or a novel, because games involve the player in a direct way. ... Emotional engagement is what makes computer games so addictive, Real life is the thing that happens in between Myst . ... [20] And it is what makes games such an easy target for politicians and censors. Senator Sam Brownback, a Kansas Republican, said, " We cannot expect that the hours spent in school will mold and instruct a childs mind but that hours spent playing violent games will not ." [21] The element of violence in computer games is a marketing tool; it engages and excites people. ... The result is an overload of violent shoot-em-up games. In the 1990s Nintendo tried to start an educational game market but Sesame Street Learning Games and Donkey Kong Math were complete failures, kids do not want to do math with their Nintendo. ... On the other hand, the catharsis theory argues that observing violence release the individual of the desire to act aggressively. Television presents real acts of violence, as in the news, and detailed simulation of violence. While videogames represent violence in a more abstracted level. ... If film, a spectatorial media has effect of altering behavior is only justifiable to worry about what interactive games might lead to. ... Health in games is often traded for other benefits concerning the games outcome. ... The army has a different name for this games: they are called Fire Arms Training Simulators (FATS) and are used to desensitize soldiers to the act of shooting and taking lives. ... If we are to blame videogames for childhood violence, then there is to blame martial arts, laser and paintball shooting games, and even body building. ... The majority of videogames players are minors and is not uncommon to read advertising messages of games rated suitable for teenagers that promote murder as fun activity: "More fun than shooting your neighbors cat. ... Hollywood is defending from accuses of marketing violence to children arguing that they market artists, not violence. ... Bill Clinton in 1999, criticized the video game industry for advertising and selling violent entertainment to children… after reading a video-game advert urging potential buyers to get in touch with their gun-toting, cold-blooded, murdering side [31] . ... An official Chinese newspaper says family breakdown, computer games and violent films are contributing to a rise in the number of crimes committed by young people . ... All the most popular games have multiplayer online worlds whose growth depends entirely on the human players interactions. Multi-player games offer never predictable gaming environment but the main reason why people join these world is interacting with real people. ... [33] Computer games have also been accused of being marketing tools to attract new customers for the gun industry, is not surprising when the games studied by the Violence Policy Center, a Washington-based gun control group, where founded by Remington Arms Company and Colt Manufacturing Company, as well as Guns & Ammo magazine. One of the first games, Pong was non aggressive. Violence and videogames have always been matched since Space Invaders it became killing or be killed. ... Violence took a more fantastic form with Super Mario when to kill the enemy you have to jump on their heads. It becomes more personal with one to one fighting games such as Street Fighters and Mortal Kombat . ... According to John Romero, Doom s designer, only a minority of unstable individuals are affected by videogames violence for all the other normal people, games have the effect of providing a release valve for repressed anger and tensions. ... Louis County, US, are attempting to strike down a county ordinance that criminalizes the sale or display of violent video games to minors . ... Violent games accounts for only 6 percent of all the videogames sold in the UK, ninety percent of the best-selling games in 2002 are appropriate for everyone over age 6. 1% of games are classified as suitable for over-18s, while 90% are suitable for children under 15 . ... With no fast action, shooting, sex or violence. ... The Sims , the most popular videogames of all time, does not contain any violence either. American games tend to contain a lot of guns, grit, gore and sex: Doom, Resident Evil, Hexen, Quake, Mortal Kombat. Japanese and European games tend to favor futurist scenarios, games like WipeOut, Final Fantasy, Tekken, G-Police . Moreover Japanese games split between manga influenced fighting games and cute cartoon figures such as Sonic; Mario. ... A decade ago research showed that video game junkies were highly intelligent, motivated and achievement-oriented individuals. ... [38] In 1990s it was board games, the manufacturer of Dungeons & Dragons was accused of being responsible for a young customers suicide. ... [39] There have been more than 1,300 studies on violence and media, but researchers have not proven a direct link exists between playing violent games and real-world violence. It has just been proven that violent children prefer violent games, not that one causes the other. Young men who are habitually aggressive may be especially vulnerable to the aggression-enhancing effects of repeated exposure to violent games , [40] Dr Cumberbatchs, [a psychologist and expert in media violence] research showed that some people were stimulated simply by the fast pace of action films, rather than their violent content. ... This gender difference was attributed to the fact that girls are generally less exposed to violence and is less experienced in playing violent videogames. ... Several other studies have argued that playing violent games is actually a healthy release for natural feelings of aggression. ... Most recently, a four-year study supported by the Australian Federal Government found that computer games could actually help young people build self-esteem, encouraging them to take risks. ... What lots of studies had in common is the point that long amount of time spent playing video games is associated with poor academic performance; obviously, if you play eight hours a day you will not have time to do home work. ... You cannot simulate in a laboratory the complex social problems that people are concerned about, and overall the actual evidence supporting a link between media violence and real violence is very weak. ... [46] One 1997 study argues that video games increase childrens IQ, others… point out that the communal activities of video game hint-swapping among children aid socialization . ... Working out your game strategy involves understanding the logic of the game and the intent of the games designer. From videogames can be learnt more than hand eye coordination, a study on air traffic controllers in 1997 discovered that regular games players were better at their jobs. ... According to doctors, playing videogames require so much concentration that they distract the brain from everything else and the highly excited state achieved playing games causes a flow of endorphins into the bloodstream. ... In board games you are given all the rules in advance. Part of the excitement of games lies in this process of transforming randomness into order through induction. [50] Video games also require players to make sense of all the visual information that comes to them at the same time. ... [51] Action games like Castle Wolfenstein and Doom challenge spatial skills, these games involve complex labyrinths that spread through many levels connected by stairs, memorizing the intricate floor plans is essential for survivor. ... On the other hand simulation and strategic games allow some time for planning and reflection. Simulation games allow players to live historical eras (as in Pirates! ... UK study concluded that simulation and adventure games where players create societies or build theme parks, developed childrens negotiation, planning, strategic thinking and decision-making skills [52] The same investigation also found that far from being a solitary activity, children preferred to play games in pairs or in groups. And that there is a lot to learn from games in terms of producing content that really challenged and engaged children, rather than reproducing textbooks on the screen. Who would not want to play Dantes Infernal Sin Sim City © [53] Flight simulations and driving games are used to teach people skills, and some professional racing drivers use games to help them learn the tracks. ... Historically based war and strategy games help teach history, there are simulations of most of the great battles, where you can try to win with either side. ... The research found that youngsters learned more effectively from information presented in audiovisual form such as a video game than from facts on a printed page. ... Jacquie Disney, director of the Parents Information Network says there have been successful games with educational value, such as Broderbunds Where In The World Is Carmen Sandiego where children learn geography without realizing it . ... When the children produce the right sort of brainwaves the joystick becomes more responsive reinforcing the behavior…because children are happy to play computer games the treatment is proving popular and effective . [56] A similar research in Dublin is developing games to help people relax. One of games is a two-player dragon racing game called Relax To Win. ... [57] Teenagers playing with video games may help unlock the secrets of how memory works and help discover a cure for the UKs most common brain disorder. Studying epileptic teenagers as they play with video games is part of research to study the causes of epilepsy, which affects around 400,000 people in the UK. ... [59] Are video games that addictive? Recently a South Korean twenty-four year-old man has been found dead after playing computer games, non-stop for 86 hours, without eating or sleeping. ... There is no way to think about anything but the game or its all over … [61] "The video games of the 21st Century may in some ways be more psychologically rewarding than the 1980s games in that they require more complex skills, improved dexterity, and feature socially relevant topics and better graphics . ... Almost all games are pointless relative to most educational, social, and cultural needs. ... Historic simulation games such as Civilization might assist students in understanding social studies, but playing the game is not necessarily participating in historical, political, or geographical analysis. ... Goals in games are designed to let you gain the most satisfaction and enjoyment; games are very aware of their own learning curves so you do not encounter things until you are ready to experience them or learn from them. ... As a non-dangerous activity, the games demand must always be slightly higher than the player skills. ... Players are not so much addicted to videogames as they are unwilling to quit before they have met their goals, and the games seem to always set a new goal, inviting players to the next level. ... [64] First-person action games like Doom tend to be fast paced and more immersive. ... Third-person games such as Tomb Raider allow the player to see his character in action.