Violence In Video Games

A huge controversy in today’s society is violent video games and their behavioral effect on the children and adults who play them. Violent video games have been blamed for bullying, school shootings, and even violence towards women. Many have fought that violent video games desensitize players to real-life violence, and that they are teaching the youth that violence is an acceptable conflict-solving strategy. Other sources have stated otherwise. The 2004 Secret Service has stated that only one-eighth of attackers have exhibited interests in video games. Violent Video games do not cause violent behavior or behavior problems because it has not been proven that there is a link between violent video games and behavioral issues, playing video games provide a safe outlet for aggressive and angry feelings and reduces violence in young children, and violent juvenile crime has actually gone down since the violent video game popularity has increased.

As the level of violence in video games increases, so does the level of concern for those who play them. Some people are quick to blame school shootings on games just because the kid played a “violent” game. “The topic of videogames and violence can be compared to the chicken or the egg question, which came first, violent games or violent behavior”(Violence and Videogames). However most kids in mass shootings tend to have easy access to guns and are mentally unstable.

Columbine High School events that happened in 1999 was two of the high school teens who were a lot of time exposed to violent video games. Due to this incident 12 students and one teacher were killed (Vastag 1822). As this incident suggests that which is also observed, with regard to the sale of video games with a loud voice, one side is also supported it or opposed, there is not explain to virtual violence does the impact for children. (Vastag 1822)“Little kids do imitate video games, but the question is whether it leads to real world violence,” (Vastag 1822) said Juliet Van Eenwyk, PhD, who studies the issue for the Washington State Department of Public Health, Seattle. 2001 literature review by Dr Van Eenwyk and colleagues Lillian Bensley

Violence in video games, more specifically where the whole violent video game controversy came up, was a game called Death Race. This game had you running over gremlins but ended looking like “looked a lot like humans, since all that could be rendered was a blocky stick figure” (Luke Plunkett, Death Race, the World's First Scandalous Video Game, Kotaku). Death Race got a spot on 60 Minutes “looking at the psychological impacts” (Luke Plunkett, Death Race, the World's First Scandalous Video Game, Kotaku) of the game, was protested and was covered by National Enquirer and the NBC's Weekend Show and even “The National Safety Council said Death

The focus of this essay will be on the controversy of violent video games and their effect on youth behaviours. The goal is to examine the two different arguments presented in the case of the video games and compare and contrast them to form a critical analysis. The two views being discussed in regards to violent video games are as follows: authors who have researched and found evidence to support the claim that violence in video games encourages violence in youth. In the opposing side are the authors who have researched and found evidence that opposes the idea of violent video games creating violent youths. The conclusion will focus on analysing the sources used and relating the research back to course material to create a detailed and critical

In recent years there has been a significant increase of shooting incidents, specifically in America. When there is a shooting event the media is quick to question if the suspect had a history of playing violent video games. There is already the initial connection between video game violence and aggression; but is this connection scientifically correct? This topic interests me because of the increase in school shootings and violence. I have personally heard many times that video game violence has led to many adolescents to extreme forms of violence. Through what has been said in the media I decided to research the topic myself. This is a current event issue that is a present reality for many college students. Does video game violence directly relate to human violence?

The evolution of video games has taken a drastic change since the 1970’s when video games were first introduced. Since then every decade video games have become more violent in nature with strong language and realistic to suit society today. Craig Anderson states that with more violence in video games they would sell better than games with less violence (Anderson, Gentile, and Beckley pg.5). Violent video games really became popular when the first person shooter games were invented so that we could see through the eyes of the player, as if we were really experiencing it. Society wanted better graphics and games as time went on new technology was invented and society matured in electronics. This meant that for game creators would have to come up with something better selling than the last. Creators would make the games more violent and more realistic each time so that way they can keep the interest of their consumers. Each game would increase in blood or gore slowly, but what really got consumers to buy their games would be the update of graphics in the consoles or games. This is due to the drastic changing of technology and the maturing of consumers wanting better and newer violent video games. Violent video games can cause children to behave violently if not correctly supervised.

In the article from Thom Gillespie states that Grand Theft Auto (GTA) is the latest video game to be known of demeaning our society’s youth in the U.S. He states though however, video games such as GTA are “art” and deserve protection. Moreover, those games just mirror humanity's violent instincts; they do not provoke violence, Gillespie argues. These games also offer chances for debates about ethical issues and the costs of actions. It is known from his writings that Thom Gillespie is a professor of telecommunications and a director of the Masters in Immersive Mediated Environments program at Indiana University in Bloomington. (Gillespie). He mentions in his article that:

“Head shot! That guy was destroyed!” These are just some examples of the dialogue spoken between children who play video games like “Call of Duty” or “Halo.” Children brag about the number of people they have killed in these games. Playing violent video games may cause children to act violently. First, violent video games train players to act aggressively by repeatedly killing an enemy over and over. Second, children mimic what they see, whether it’s in real life or on a video screen. Third, being exposed to the violent behaviors of the game, dead bodies, and blood, make the players insensitive to violence. Because the violence from video games affects the behavior of children, violent video games should not be available for purchase by anyone under age eighteen.

“Recent contents analyses of video games show that many as 89% of games contain some violent contents” (Gentile, Lynch, Linder, Walsh 3). More than half of video games being sold around the world contain some form of violence. All of the violence involved in the video games being played by children is a pattern leading to aggression. Aggression can be caused by many things; however, violent video games are the main cause of aggression in young adults. “If a child began playing violent video games at a young age, then he might think that violence in real life is the same as the game violence and that it doesn’t have a real impact on others” (Gilad, Alto 1). Thinking that violence in the virtual world is the same as in the real world is the first step to showing aggression. Aggression in children caused by video games is the biggest effect parents and researchers worry about. Violent video games teach children that shooting and killing people are

To a lazy onlooker, violence in art has no other meaning than that of a primal nature. The use of violence in abstraction is akin to the use of color in a painting. Video games and films in particular are subject to such scrutiny as the use of violence is common in these mediums. The point of art such as these is to express ideas, provide entertainment, and persuade the audience to think. Therefore, it is absurd to think that video games and movies could invoke violent feelings onto someone.

Video games became a boom in 90's and keep on going becoming more complex and considered by many as a form of art. Important theme raised by many critics is violence in video games and what happens when a person has lost the border between video games and reality.

Violence in media is not a recent development. Prior to television, citizens across the country glued themselves to the radio listening to the broadcast of popular crime dramas. Before radio, books and newsprint fulfilled society’s craving for dramatic violence. Prior to the days of technology, live stage performances served to sate man’s desire for thrills. With the recent advent of technology along with an ever-increasing human desire for blood-pumping entertainment, children now are much more exposed to media violence than ever before. Gauthier, Zuromski and Gitter write, “Media coverage of violent killings (e.g., the Columbine High School shooting in 1999) has cited the potential role of violent media exposure in fostering aggressive behavior, especially because some of the perpetrators have a history of violent media consumption” (513). Children spend hours on end watching television shows and movies filled with violence or playing video games where they can play the role of a character and act out the violence themselves. This can lead to children eventually playing out these fantasies in real life or, more likely, not reacting humanely in the face of violence. Overindulged by the violence in media and video games, children are losing the capacity for compassion and developing the capacity to harm others without feeling guilt for their actions. To help curb these harmful effects,

Does violence in violent video games or role-playing games increase violence and aggression in the real world? Undoubtedly, violent role-playing games nowadays are more intense than ever. These role-playing games with simulated violence are perilous for kids. In a simulated role-playing game called “Killer”, students play by shooting each other with water guns to win money. Games like Killer and other violent video games encourage violence. Not only do they encourage violence, but they can actually harm the individual playing and distract teens from more important things like school.

Perhaps there is prosocial behavior in a relationship when there is a couple that plays video games. In theory, couples who play video games together could have a stronger relationship since they have something in common to bond over. In another study, 1,333 couples ranging from the ages of 18-79 years old were asked a series of questions about video games. Some question examples are: how long they played them, what kind they played, if their partner did, and other personal relationship status. It turns out that there are conflicts with both male and females, however the females playing video games were less likely to cause the conflict. However, the most important part noted, is the reaction made from males in their relationship. The amount of time spent playing video games leads to this conflict. The author says “Specifically, the more time men spent playing video games, the more often they argued with their romantic partner about the amount of time spent consuming media and its content.” (392). Turns out that in a relationship with video games is more toxic than it is positive, with the males being a big contributor.