Connecticut State Senator Proposes Arcade Game Ban

[StewShearerOld]

Connecticut State Senator Proposes Arcade Game Ban

Lawmaker seeks to stop minors from playing arcade shooters

In the wake of last years horrific shooting in Newton, Connecticut the predominant question on the minds of many was "why?" As often happens in the wake of such tragedies, more than a few immediately pointed at videogames. The NRA highlighted violent media as a root cause of shootings. The United States government included games in a wide review of the causes of violence in America, and several groups even attempted game buyback events with the intention of collecting and destroying violent videogames.

Joining this latest round of videogame detractors is Connecticut Senator Toni Harp who has put forward <a href=ftp://ftp.cga.ct.gov/2013/tob/s/2013SB-00328-R01-SB.htm>a motion that would ban minors from playing arcade games that use anything resembling a firearm. The motion, submitted to the January session of the state's legislature, follows a separate attempt by another Connecticut state representative to instate a special tax on violent videogames. Harp's law would make it illegal for the "owner or operator of any public establishment or amusement arcade [to] allow any individual under eighteen years of age to operate a violent point-and-shoot videogame on the premises of such establishment or arcade."

Disregarding the fact that the link between videogames and real world violence has been several times disproven, you have to wonder what Senator Harp hopes to achieve with this law. Arcade games have not been a big thing since the 90s when home console games started getting good enough to make driving to the mall and spending all your quarters pointless. The vast majority of gaming done today, especially of the violent headshot variety, takes place at home and well away from the Chuck E. Cheese's of the world.

Ironically, this bill follows the recent opening of the Sandy Hook Arcade Center in Newton, Connecticut. The non-profit arcade was named after Sandy Hook Elementary, the site of December's shooting and was built to promote family fun in the community.

Sources: <a href=http://gamepolitics.com/2013/02/06/connecticut-state-senator-pushes-bill-prohibit-use-point-and-shoot-video-games-minors#.USUjgVfxlQK>GamePolitics, <a href=http://www.polygon.com/2013/2/15/3993408/sandy-hook-arcade-center-newtown>Polygon



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[Mr. Omega]

Real guns good, fake guns bad. 'MURICA!

And seriously? Arcades? Good lord, we've stepped back in time a good couple decades, haven't we?

 

[Doclector]

Please can't these people shut up? Or at least, can they keep their unproven, unbased accusations out of, y'know, the fucking law?

Things such as point blank could be banned for this.

Things such as time crisis could be banned for this.

TIME CRISIS. Sweet jesus, that brings back such memories. All of which are innocent.

 

[Brainstrain]

There are at least five thousand state senators in this country. If you start counting mayors, DAs, ADAs, and running candidates, there are an infinite number of people saying dumb stuff.

It doesn't matter; it's the equivalent of OPRAH BREAKS GAYLE'S HEART: SHOCKER on tabloid stands. Even if it's true, it doesn't matter.

 

[Zombie Sodomy]

Things such as time crisis could be banned for this.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Seeing as I don't leave my dorm long enough to go to the arcade, which now that I think of it is right across the street, this isn't especially relevant to me. Time Crisis however is the first of these plastic gun games that I actually finished, I never had many quarters, and will always hold a special place in my heart.

 

[N3squ1ck]

Wow, we got German-polititian-levels of stupidity there. (arcades are effectively banned here, with too high taxes, so you actually can't reasonably make an arcade work)

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

How is this even news anymore? It's old man x trying to get publicity by ragging on games.

This will never get traction for the same reason that no-one recognizes Wetsboro Baptist Church as a representative of Christianity.

 

[Doclector]

Oh, and let's not forget;

Real guns good, fake guns bad. 'MURICA!

Somehow I knew it'd happen. I thought it'd be nerf, but still. We've gotten to the point where people are looking to put more restrictions on FAKE FUCKIN' GUNS, than on real, functional killing machines.

I'm out.

 

[Andy Shandy]

I mean, when you've come to putting restrictions on arcade guns, before the real ones that actually kill people, I can't do much but laugh.

 

[Therumancer]

I can't say I'm surprised actually, I think you guys are underestimating the whole "Arcade" culture as it stands now. Granted tweens and teens aren't heading to the malls to blow tons of quarters anymore, and it's not a social hub like it used to be, but Arcades DO exist in places like oh say... Casinos (like where I worked, which happen to be in Connecticut) where irresponsible parents like to dump their kids for hours upon hours at a time while they go and gamble (despite posted and live warnings to not leave kids unattended). A lot of what I say about child molestation and such comes specifically from having worked around places where kids are left unattended for long periods of time.

At any rate, most "violent" games wound up being voluntarily weeded out for security concerns, due to not having them giving creepy dudes less of an excuse for hanging out in locations largely inhabited by unattended children. Some 40 year old dood can't claim "Well, I'm here to play that game" and pop in the occasional quarter while waiting for oppertunities.

That said kids do want their action games, and things like "House Of The Dead", "Time Crisis", "Operation Terror" (which involved shooting digitized actors with a light gun... I think I have the name right), and others do periodically return, after all they are among the types of games that will get kids to beg for more money (and it is a business) and these kinds of games not only look fancy, but are one of the few types of games that arcades can still do better than home consoles.

Add to this that your dealing with a fairly major tourist area in SE Connecticut (Mystic Village/Seaport, Sailfest in the summer, etc...) in addition to the casinos, your dealing with a bunch of hotels and motels that all have their own arcades and game rooms where kids wind up being dumped for prolonged periods.

Now this guy is wrong about tying the games to violence, my simple point is that he's not quite as out of touch as those dissing him might want to think. There are far, far, more of these machines out there than people are considering, and they are also in places where kids tend to be left unattended... even if by definition kids should not be being dumped in arcades while the parents go off and do other things (it happens, constantly).

 

[emeraldrafael]

wonder if the NRA will jump in to say its wrong.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Once again we've got the American government trying to do the parenting for American parents everywhere and I assume many American parents are perfectly ok with this.
You know, just once I'd like to see one of those shootings carried out by someone whose never played a video game in their life beyond say Angry Birds or Bejeweled. Like to see them try and blame it on video games then.

 

[CriticalMiss]

I wonder if they will ban Action Man and GI Joe toys, or those plastic guns that pretty much every little boy will have at some point in their childhood. But they aren't videogames so they aren't bad. Thinking back to all those hours I spent playing Duck Hunt with a light gun I now know I must go sleep-hunting because I've never once shot a duck, but politicians clearly have access to some secret knowledge that the rest of the world doesn't because they KNOW video games make you do stuff.

Remember how that guy who was really good at Guitar Hero became the greatest guitarist in the world? Or when the world champion at Cooking Mama opened that critically acclaimed 3 Michelin Star restaurant? I think that if I play Skyrim for about 1000 hours I will get a magic dragon voice. Because games can do that right?

 

[Dark Knifer]

Snip

That sounds like a pretty good reason to me, I just wish politicians could be honest about it and say that instead of pushing baseless accusations :/

Though that is not entirely their fault, If they did I bet quite a few people would just say they are banning them because they think its makes them funny. Which is slightly ironic.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

For fuck sake! If you're so terrified of people shooting each other, do something about actual guns. No guns = no shooting. It's not rocket science.

 

[RaikuFA]

Could we ban the fighters instead? Those are the ones that cause actual problems in arcades.

Though I've never really played an arcade game so this really dosent affect me.

 

[Sylveria]

Real guns good, fake guns bad. 'MURICA!

And seriously? Arcades? Good lord, we've stepped back in time a good couple decades, haven't we?

Well most of the people who are blaming video games still think we're living in the 1980s, if not the 1950s, so I can't say I'm surprised.

 

[Sylveria]

I can't say I'm surprised actually, I think you guys are underestimating the whole "Arcade" culture as it stands now. Granted tweens and teens aren't heading to the malls to blow tons of quarters anymore, and it's not a social hub like it used to be, but Arcades DO exist in places like oh say... Casinos (like where I worked, which happen to be in Connecticut) where irresponsible parents like to dump their kids for hours upon hours at a time while they go and gamble (despite posted and live warnings to not leave kids unattended). A lot of what I say about child molestation and such comes specifically from having worked around places where kids are left unattended for long periods of time.

At any rate, most "violent" games wound up being voluntarily weeded out for security concerns, due to not having them giving creepy dudes less of an excuse for hanging out in locations largely inhabited by unattended children. Some 40 year old dood can't claim "Well, I'm here to play that game" and pop in the occasional quarter while waiting for oppertunities.

That said kids do want their action games, and things like "House Of The Dead", "Time Crisis", "Operation Terror" (which involved shooting digitized actors with a light gun... I think I have the name right), and others do periodically return, after all they are among the types of games that will get kids to beg for more money (and it is a business) and these kinds of games not only look fancy, but are one of the few types of games that arcades can still do better than home consoles.

Add to this that your dealing with a fairly major tourist area in SE Connecticut (Mystic Village/Seaport, Sailfest in the summer, etc...) in addition to the casinos, your dealing with a bunch of hotels and motels that all have their own arcades and game rooms where kids wind up being dumped for prolonged periods.

Now this guy is wrong about tying the games to violence, my simple point is that he's not quite as out of touch as those dissing him might want to think. There are far, far, more of these machines out there than people are considering, and they are also in places where kids tend to be left unattended... even if by definition kids should not be being dumped in arcades while the parents go off and do other things (it happens, constantly).

So your counterpoint to people claiming he's stupid is "This needs to be done because parents are irresponsible." Seems to me that we should be arresting and throwing fines at parents rather than blaming the device they use as a surrogate and depriving people of appropriate age and responsibility from having access to something.