Violence in Video Games

I recently did my English speech on this. Your views helped a lot.

This is just a rough draft...

Code:

The English Speech

Violence in Video  Games : Does it Really Affect us.

Video Games. They have came a long way from the likes such as Pac-man and his pals. Experts are now questioning what this point of almost reality is doing to our minds? Can it be a potential factor to our chance of grabbing a gun and seeing how many officers can gun down, or seeing how many pedestrians you can hit in your stolen car? Or are they having the opposite effect?

Good-morning fellow ‘I-excelers’ and almighty Miss Robinson. Today my speech will be about Violence in video games, and the potential effects they can have on the people of use these. This topic really sparks my interest as I guess in some ways I can relate.

Video games have come a long way since the famous ‘pong’ game. (A 2bit Table-Tennis simulant). This was released in late 1972, and in the three and a half decades since then, they have developed into an ‘almost realistic’ simulation. Only starting with simplistic visual simulation, games now are rated on their attempt to achieve the most realistic simulation possible, implementing visual, audio and now haptic peripherals ( such as Vibration in controllers). With new technologies such as ‘Virtual Reality’ being developed, video games are only going to get more real.

Can playing video games really alter your thoughts, your emotions and your actions? This has really been the question between experts. 

Many experts blame many of the recent ‘mass killings’ or ‘murders’ to be influenced by video games. Many may argue that ‘violent movies and music influence it just as much as games’. They are actually much different, in a video game YOU control your actions, and you feel as if you’ve taken the role of your hero and his fate is in your hands.  It really depends on the game which you are playing. Games based in past times are less likely to make you to grab a samurai sword and look for dragons to slay, then grab a pistol or knife and look for some police. 

Sound familiar? The not-so-long-ago release of the ‘Grand theft Auto’ game series, especially the ‘Vice City’ version has sparked much controversy. For those who are in the dark, GTA is a console game where the user must take the role of various criminals and perform illegal operations such as murder and robbery. As well as the violence and realistic sense of the game, it repeatedly uses bad language. The game tries to show that you get punished for your actions (after you murder many innocent civilians, the easy-to-escape cops come after you). Many may have very low IQ levels, and believe that if it takes five minutes on here to escape the cops, I’m going to have no trouble at it out there.

In February 2005, a lawsuit was brought upon the makers and distributors of the Grand Theft Auto series claiming the games caused a teenager to shoot and kill three members of the Alabama police force. I don’t want to go into too much detail, but the silly 17 year old grabbed a pistol off an officer ( when they were questioning him about other matters ), shot him and another officer dead, jumped in the police car to flee. I haven’t had much experience with this game, but from what I’ve played, I can recall doing this more then once. Funny enough, the 17 year old excessively played the GTA series. Another mass murder from another GTA addict, Cody Posey (who murdered his whole family while sleeping, at the astonishing age of 14) sparked great controversy once again.

There is a large difference between fact and fiction and I guess it really depends on you on where to draw the line. These two boys were probably not the most intelligent guys around, but they were just normal teenagers like us.
The controversy of this game really didn’t do any favours, sales increased rapidly and the developers are now releasing more and more versions of the game.

Don’t get me wrong, the GTA series is not on its own, they are just one of the many violent games out there which seem to be the more popular games, as the youth are curious of what the fuss is all about, and want to join the trend.

Violence in video games is not a one way street; many claim it’s absolutely stupid to blame such violent acts on video games. It doesn’t take much intelligence to draw the line between a fictitious world and reality. Just like movies, games have ratings as a guide-line to indicate which audiences are suitable for playing the game. Although rarely enforced, they are there for a reason, so it’s a parent’s responsibility to watch over what the children are doing.

Video games can really effect us, but in a positive way. I’ve had incidents where I am overwhelmed with anger so I sit down and grab my control and let my anger run through them. (I’m sure you can all relate). Surprisingly those millions little pixels on my screen have made me feel better and more relaxed. Anger is a natural thing and Video games are a great outlet to let your anger freely flow into things that don’t exist. 

Video games can change out emotions; make us happy/frustrated/relaxed ect. But they cant influence to anywhere near the point of mass murders. Quoted from Marcus Brigstocke, "If video games had affected us then Pacman would have made us run round in dark rooms, munching pills and listening to repetitive electronic music."

While researching for this, I found many people who blamed the developers of games for the increased violence of today’s youth. I think this is completely ridiculous. Games come with ratings which give purchaser an outline of what age the game is suitable for. Many people have tried suing the developers for games claiming they did such and such to their children. You play the game, the game doesn’t play you. 

Although I have only skimmed the surface of this Video game violence thing, I have come to a steady conclusion. Playing video games comes with responsibility. Firstly the responsibility of your parents/guardians for allowing you to use these games, also the responsibility and maturity in yourself to realise that a game is a game. If you are in some way mentally unable to determine the difference between what’s on your screen and what’s out your window, then your guardians should not allow you play these ‘games’. There are other factors involved like how much your potential killer plays, a game can’t turn anyone into a maniac within 30 seconds of buying it. Although most violent crimes are committed by people who were brought up in times where there was no boredom-breaking consoles to pass the time, researchers do expect to soon be seeing the effect of the current youth’s generation when they are older. If such claims are true and the games are turning 1 in every billion or so children into criminals, capable of mass murders, with the new technological age approaching, we can only watch these statistics increase.

 

The coorilation between movies and video games should be more direct, i do agree, but in the majority of games, such as counter strike, there isnt like any gore... just a few bloodstains when you shoot someone. No guts pouring outta the body.

 

Thumbs up for GTA!