Video Game Bashing

[cherokeesam]

Well obviously nobody ever shot anybody else before they invented 3D FPS games. No school-based spree killings before video games no sir. No spree killings in other places before 3D FPS video games, no siree bob.

It's an idiotic assertion, and is oddly used in conjunction with the "personal responsibility" argument (that our society attempts to remove personal responsibility from mass murderers by attempting to figure out what made them go crazy and kill people), even though they are blatantly contradictory. Anything to get people away from talking about guns.

Holy crap --- that Bath Township bombing in 1927 pretty much shoots (pun) down EVERYBODY'S current scapegoating arguments. Dude made Newtown, Virginia Tech and Columbine look like walks in the park. Dynamited an elementary school and killed 44 kids and injured 58 others. Where's the video game/ violent television/ gun control/ no prayer in school blame-lobbies stand on THAT sum*****....?

 

[Paradoxium]

Malays have a term for it. It's an old term for good reasons.

 

[ChrisBaleBatman]

I think when it comes to things like these, and censorship being a prospect, it's important that the line be held. Like Pat said, every facet of entertainment has either gone through it or still is. Rock was considered satanic music when I was growing up, Rap music supposedly creeped into the minds of youth and gave them the will to murder. Or something. Half the time it sounds like people are just pulling things out of their ass to blame someone or something.

As long as what happened to the comic book industry doesn't happen, it's all cool. The comic book industry shoved it's tail between it's legs and has paid the price for it in pounds of flesh ever since. They're uniquely, as far as I know, the only ones that ever punked out, actually.

 

[Mrs. Sawyer]

Holy crap --- that Bath Township bombing in 1927 pretty much shoots (pun) down EVERYBODY'S current scapegoating arguments. Dude made Newtown, Virginia Tech and Columbine look like walks in the park. Dynamited an elementary school and killed 44 kids and injured 58 others. Where's the video game/ violent television/ gun control/ no prayer in school blame-lobbies stand on THAT sum*****....?

They were probably blaming Hemingway.

 

[cherokeesam]

They were probably blaming Hemingway.

It was clearly jazz music on phonograph records, Western shoot-em-ups in silent movies, and those evil parlor games like whist and bridge that drove him to madness. Ban 'em all!

 

[Piper Maru]

Dang whippersnappers and their hip hop beep bop!

 

[X Knight]

I think video games make easy scapegoats. it's easy to blame them instead of bad parenting. it's easy to blame them instead of admitting some people are just plain evil and ******* crazy.

if video games were such poison, then all of us ( or certainly the majority ) who play these games or watch these movies would turn into violent mass killers. there would be a LOT more instances of these mass shootings.

but, that's not the case. and that's because it's not the games or the movies. it's the person......and how that person was raised ( parenting ).

I'm almost 30, and I've been playing games all my life. I've watched the games evolve from simple 8 bit fair to the ultra realistic stuff we have now. My parents also let me watch violent movies and horror movies when I was little.

However, they also taught me right from wrong. They taught me to treat others with respect and respect life. They made sure I knew that the movies and games were fantasy and not real life. And they made sure they kept me engaged in other activities, besides just letting the games babysit me. I'd never be able to get away with sitting in my room playing games all day, except for on Holidays.

I don't have any violent, killing desires. I feel bad killing bugs. I don't have desires to hunt animals for sport. And a lot of the movies I watched growing up had drug and alcohol use. Yet, I never did any of those and I choose to follow a straight edge lifestyle.

And there were several things I found ironic with that NRA guy's news conference. Most of the movies and games he cited were "old," and "past their prime." Mortal Kombat, Splatterhouse, etc. The 1 game he showed, Kindergarten Killer, is some obscure, 10 year old, internet flash game that was never sold in any retail store. In fact, I'm pretty sure most people hadn't even heard about it until he brought it up ( I didn't ).

Also, he mentioned that the best way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun. Well, ironically, isn't that the premise of most "violent" games, including FPS games? You're the good guy with a gun shooting up bad guys with guns in order to rescue someone, save the world, etc.

And NO MAINSTREAM GAME ENCOURAGES YOU TO KILL UNARMED, INNOCENT CHILDREN!!!

only an evil monster, and a coward, would do that. and that's exactly what that school shooter was.

it's not the games.........it was him........and him alone.

 

[cherokeesam]

I certainly agree with you that video games don't cause people to turn violent and it's absolutely absurd to even imply it, X Knight, but I think you're overly sugarcoating the good guy vs. bad guy aspect of gaming. There's *plenty* of gaming that encourages you to be downright evil --- I love GTA games, but there's no redeeming social value taught in those whatsoever....in fact, the opposite. And, while even GTA makes sure to steer well clear of allowing the possibility of killing children in games, there *are* instances out there, including Bioshock.

 

[the_ultimate_evil]

Maybe when the game makers stop making video games so realistically violent and more fun like classics such as Pac-Man, Super Mario Bros, Zelda.

******** the content has very little. if i ran your choices alone through the bias view of the media

pac man: obesity and drug use
mario:drug use, vandalism, war, and murder
zelda: stealing, vandalism, dictatorships, murder

games do not cause violence, same way movies, rock and roll and every other scapegoat these jumped up ***** use rather than look at the real problem.

if parents actually did there job and explain the difference between what happens in a game/movie and what happens in life you know fiction vs reality then we might actually get somewhere

 

[Paladin-Hoss]

If playing action games turns you into a gun toting psychos...

Then playing that supid mini games on Facebook should, in theory, turns you into a farmer...

 

[runawayboulder]

Call of Duty is rated M for mature but yet when I play online I hear 11, 12 and 13yr olds on it with custom emblems of a chick with her legs spread. Either the stores don't ID people or the parents buy the game for the kids to shut them up for a few hours. Hell, I hear parents all the time thru the Bluetooth mic yelling at their kids online threatening to take away the game.

Here's a thought......

Step 1 - Ban guns in real life

Step 2 - Start punishing the parents for not being responsible

 

[Soapy]

I certainly agree with you that video games don't cause people to turn violent and it's absolutely absurd to even imply it, X Knight, but I think you're overly sugarcoating the good guy vs. bad guy aspect of gaming. There's *plenty* of gaming that encourages you to be downright evil --- I love GTA games, but there's no redeeming social value taught in those whatsoever....in fact, the opposite. And, while even GTA makes sure to steer well clear of allowing the possibility of killing children in games, there *are* instances out there, including Bioshock.

There's no redeeming social value in GTA if you take them at face value, but for the most part they're satire...

 

[Spider-Who?]

Holy crap --- that Bath Township bombing in 1927 pretty much shoots (pun) down EVERYBODY'S current scapegoating arguments. Dude made Newtown, Virginia Tech and Columbine look like walks in the park. Dynamited an elementary school and killed 44 kids and injured 58 others. Where's the video game/ violent television/ gun control/ no prayer in school blame-lobbies stand on THAT sum*****....?

Alcohol and pot were the scapegoats of the time.

 

[Shemtov]

For older folks Video Games are the unknown. Any new (that is, developed after they were 30) tech is, nd thus it is scary, and will be blamed for something, if possible. It's not so much looking for scapegoat, it's more looking for something to blame VGs for.

 

[Lemonhead]

The notion that video games are violent because we are violent won't sell in the mainstream media. They dig into anything they can without tackling the real issues because it's an easier concept to digest for the people they want watching: Video games foster violent behaviour! Discussions about gun control, security, mental illness are boring. Nothing new. The most you can do in situations like this is spread awareness whenever you're met with an ignorant **** who believes that video games, music or films are the big culprit of every tragedy.

 

[Fading]

There's already a few statements that sum up how I feel very nicely. So I'll try not to tread over new old ground. What I will say is that those who blame games should simply inform themselves about the genre, because they are woefully ignorant about the topic.

How many parents take their 5 yr old to R-rated, or NC-17 rated films? Now how many of those same parents have bought their child a game with a big M (Mature) stamp on the front of the box? I'd wager far more have bought the games. Why? Lazy parenting. Too many parents think video games are childrens toys, and don't take 5 mins to educate themselves on the product they're buying.

I'd imagine most politicians who attack gaming are much the same way. They never played, or "got" video games, so no skin off their back if they're banned. Problem is, most other countries get the same games we do, and by far the majority of gamers are not violent serial killers. Much like with Rock music, pot, comics, ect, it's just an easy scapegoat to bury in order avoid the harder, real issues. Not even counting a lot of games aren't violent, or bloody. Of those that are are usually rated Teen or Mature, and even then the killing is of "bad guys" in order to save innocent people.

Personally, I just enjoy popping in a game rather than flipping through TV channels. It's just my chosen form of entertainment I use to wind down after a hard day of work. If others don't get that, great. Like with music, we all have our preferences. However, if we're (as a country) determined to unjustly ban something because a soccer mom bought her 6 yr old child a copy of God of War, and freaked out when she saw it in motion. Then maybe we should can the fake rage, and look at the parent who bought the game, or store clerk who illegally sold a mature rated item to an underaged child.

 

[Baramos]

Call of Duty is rated M for mature but yet when I play online I hear 11, 12 and 13yr olds on it with custom emblems of a chick with her legs spread. Either the stores don't ID people or the parents buy the game for the kids to shut them up for a few hours. Hell, I hear parents all the time thru the Bluetooth mic yelling at their kids online threatening to take away the game.

Here's a thought......

Step 1 - Ban guns in real life

Step 2 - Start punishing the parents for not being responsible

I was glad when I was playing Red Dead Redemption online that I figured out how to mute people because man the teenagers on there are annoying to listen to.

 

[Mrs. Sawyer]

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/01/03/connecticut-town-will-collect-destroy-violent-games

I'd but a cheap game from EBgames and give it to them.

 

[the_ultimate_evil]

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/01/03/connecticut-town-will-collect-destroy-violent-games

I'd but a cheap game from EBgames and give it to them.

wow anyone else terrified by this, seriously this is just a nicer version of book burning

 

[Mrs. Sawyer]

Nah, it's going to take a lot to ban video games. The ECA has done a great job defending video games and a law has yet to be passed in any states. The ECA is essentially undefeated in court.

Because despite everything, it's incredibly hard to pass a law banning violent video games because the courts agree that the notion is stupid.

 

[the_ultimate_evil]

Nah, it's going to take a lot to ban video games. The ECA has done a great job defending video games and a law has yet to be passed in any states. The ECA is essentially undefeated in court.

Because despite everything, it's incredibly hard to pass a law banning violent video games because the courts agree that the notion is stupid.

fair enough its not a ban, but to quote a movie

A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals

if this gets a large crowd behind it and gets a hold of the more stupid parents it could end up with some weight behind it

 

[GENERAL RAAM582]

I don't care if they ban games to minors since I'm no longer one. But banning games completely? Come on!

 

[grout]

Yup lets just Ban everything... that will do the trick.. You know the USA was almost built in trying to get away from all this stuff. What liberties will even be left before long.

 

[Victarion]

Yup lets just Ban everything... that will do the trick.. You know the USA was almost built in trying to get away from all this stuff. What liberties will even be left before long.

I'm starting a micronation if this happens. You're all welcome to it.

Games have RATINGS for a REASON. Do your jobs, parents. For those here who are parents and pay attention to these things, keep being awesome.

 

[Mrs. Sawyer]

fair enough its not a ban, but to quote a movie

A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals

if this gets a large crowd behind it and gets a hold of the more stupid parents it could end up with some weight behind it

...And the research will be revealed to prove that there are no effects and no correlaton between video games and massacres and the courts will turn any potential ban down.