Moral Kombat Documentary On Game Violence Comes to Hulu

[vansau]

Moral Kombat Documentary On Game Violence Comes to Hulu

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If you haven't seen Moral Kombat, Spencer Halpin's documentary about the debate surrounding violent videogames, now's your chance to do so for free.

Violent videogames are still a pretty hot topic, and it's difficult to remain objective on the subject. Spencer Halpin, brother to the <a href=http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=hal+halpin+site:escapistmagazine.com>ECA's Hal Halpin, created the documentary Moral Kombat to examine the entire debate without taking sides. If you haven't watched it yet, the movie is now available to watch for free (with commercial interruptions, of course) on Hulu.

Halpin's film is just as relevant as it was when it was first released in 2007, especially since the Supreme Court is going to be reviewing a controversial California law that was designed to ban violent games from being sold to kids. The 85-minute documentary manages to not take sides and provides a fairly even-handed look at the debate.

Back in January, Moral Kombat was <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/97851-Games-Violence-Doc-Moral-Kombat-Free-For-30-Days>made available for free on Babelgum, but that offer was only good for a month. I really recommend watching this film if you're at all interested in violent videogame debate, no matter which side of the fence you sit on.

Source: <a href=http://www.hulu.com/watch/167833/moral-kombat>Hulu




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[Not G. Ivingname]

Moral Kombat Documentary On Game Violence Comes to Hulu


...created the documentary Moral Kombat to examine the entire debate without taking sides.

I haven't seen it, but it looks like it is a little less then "unsided."

 

[Soxafloppin]

You'd think a documentary called Moral Kombat would have at least one reference to MORTAL Kombat in the ad!

 

[Nincompoop]

"You are what you pretend to be". Wrong. Absolutely wrong.

 

[Proteus214]

According to the ad, it doesn't appear to be unbiased at all; talking about a countdown to another Columbine, references to 9/11, Jack Thompson, Joe Lieberman, ominous language, tension music. Looks more like right wing propaganda than a documentary.

I will however be watching it after I get home from work today.

EDIT: I just finished watching it. It really is a great documentary. The trailer doesn't do it justice at all. Show it to your family and friends, but just make sure they know that Jack Thompson is a crackpot before you do.

 

[ZeroMachine]

"You are what you pretend to be". Wrong. Absolutely wrong.

Not entirely. Yeah, they stretch it big time, but think about it- have you ever taken any value, even miniscule, from a character you played as in a game, whether it be a video game or playing with friends as a child?

As for the documentary itself, not only was it rather boring, but what I watched of it before I stopped seemed incredibly one sided. The gamers had their say, but it felt like the thing with Fox News and the "SeXBox" scandal. They said a couple things about trying to be excepted, then ten negative points were made to push them back. I'm sure some other points were made later on in the film, but it just didn't hold my interest nearly long enough for me to wait until the end.

Ah, well. I know my stance either way.

 

[Canadian Briton]

"you are what you pretend to be" dosen't that run counter to the entire point of what pretending is meant to be?!

 

[Nincompoop]

"You are what you pretend to be". Wrong. Absolutely wrong.

Not entirely. Yeah, they stretch it big time, but think about it- have you ever taken any value, even miniscule, from a character you played as in a game, whether it be a video game or playing with friends as a child?

Not in that sense no. My real-life character reflects in the game, and sometimes I pretend to be something, e.g. evil. But I have never drawn anything from a game to reality. But maybe that's just me. Maybe that isn't the case for other people.

 

[imnot]

"we are entering a world so realistic we forget that its not real"

well, only if your a complete reatard.

 

[Xocrates]

I haven't seen it, but it looks like it is a little less then "unsided."

I have. And if it's not unsided, then it's actually in videogames side.

Overall it's an interesting and fairly unbiased watch, though the trailer is a bit misleading.

 

[ZeroMachine]

"You are what you pretend to be". Wrong. Absolutely wrong.

Not entirely. Yeah, they stretch it big time, but think about it- have you ever taken any value, even miniscule, from a character you played as in a game, whether it be a video game or playing with friends as a child?

Not in that sense no. My real-life character reflects in the game, and sometimes I pretend to be something, e.g. evil. But I have never drawn anything from a game to reality. But maybe that's just me. Maybe that isn't the case for other people.

Yeah, some people do takke inspiration from fictional characters. But hell, to each their own, you know?

"we are entering a world so realistic we forget that its not real"

well, only if your a complete reatard.

The irony in this post could spawn another documentary.

 

[Earthbound]

I haven't seen it, but it looks like it is a little less then "unsided."

According to the ad, it doesn't appear to be unbiased at all; talking about a countdown to another Columbine, references to 9/11, Jack Thompson, Joe Lieberman, ominous language, tension music. Looks more like right wing propaganda than a documentary.

As for the documentary itself, not only was it rather boring, but what I watched of it before I stopped seemed incredibly one sided. The gamers had their say, but it felt like the thing with Fox News and the "SeXBox" scandal. They said a couple things about trying to be excepted, then ten negative points were made to push them back. I'm sure some other points were made later on in the film, but it just didn't hold my interest nearly long enough for me to wait until the end.

Ah, well. I know my stance either way.

You all have committed the fallacy of judging based on incorrect or incomplete knowledge. Similar to Mr. Lieberman, no? I'm in the process of watching it right now, and the film is fantastically made. Yes, it begins mainly on the "protect our children" side of the arrangement, with more conservative viewpoints. If you continue watching past the twenty minute mark, you will notice that the other side has a turn to debunk everything that had been presented before. Both sides present good points. One man even starts off with the philosophy that games are terrible, based on the correlation between his brother's unfortunate violent death to gunfire. As the film progresses, he speaks of how he came to realize the difference between reality and fantasy, which was what his anti-game sentiments relied on the lack of.

You all should take care to not judge something that you have little knowledge of. That's how weak points in documentaries are made.

 

[ZeroMachine]

I haven't seen it, but it looks like it is a little less then "unsided."

According to the ad, it doesn't appear to be unbiased at all; talking about a countdown to another Columbine, references to 9/11, Jack Thompson, Joe Lieberman, ominous language, tension music. Looks more like right wing propaganda than a documentary.

As for the documentary itself, not only was it rather boring, but what I watched of it before I stopped seemed incredibly one sided. The gamers had their say, but it felt like the thing with Fox News and the "SeXBox" scandal. They said a couple things about trying to be excepted, then ten negative points were made to push them back. I'm sure some other points were made later on in the film, but it just didn't hold my interest nearly long enough for me to wait until the end.

Ah, well. I know my stance either way.

You all have committed the fallacy of judging based on incorrect or incomplete knowledge. Similar to Mr. Lieberman, no? I'm in the process of watching it right now, and the film is fantastically made. Yes, it begins mainly on the "protect our children" side of the arrangement, with more conservative viewpoints. If you continue watching past the twenty minute mark, you will notice that the other side has a turn to debunk everything that had been presented before. Both sides present good points. One man even starts off with the philosophy that games are terrible, based on the correlation between his brother's unfortunate violent death to gunfire. As the film progresses, he speaks of how he came to realize the difference between reality and fantasy, which was what his anti-game sentiments relied on the lack of.

You all should take care to not judge something that you have little knowledge of. That's how weak points in documentaries are made.

I was more commenting on what I saw than the whole thing. What I saw was INCREDIBLY biased. I fully admitted that other points were probably made later on. I just found it obnoxiously boring so I didn't feel like watching the whole thing when I already know both sides of the argument and when I could be playing a violent game or something

Think about it. Is there really a point to you pointing out our logical fallicies, especially when we seem self aware of them as is?

 

[imnot]

"You are what you pretend to be". Wrong. Absolutely wrong.

Not entirely. Yeah, they stretch it big time, but think about it- have you ever taken any value, even miniscule, from a character you played as in a game, whether it be a video game or playing with friends as a child?

Not in that sense no. My real-life character reflects in the game, and sometimes I pretend to be something, e.g. evil. But I have never drawn anything from a game to reality. But maybe that's just me. Maybe that isn't the case for other people.

Yeah, some people do takke inspiration from fictional characters. But hell, to each their own, you know?

"we are entering a world so realistic we forget that its not real"

well, only if your a complete reatard.

The irony in this post could spawn another documentary.

is that a good thing, i dont mind as long as i get to be in it, and get money's.

 

[Jared]

According to the ad, it doesn't appear to be unbiased at all; talking about a countdown to another Columbine, references to 9/11, Jack Thompson, Joe Lieberman, ominous language, tension music. Looks more like right wing propaganda than a documentary.

I will however be watching it after I get home from work today.

It does feel like that...the sides seem to have been choosen quite firmly. And, unless it goes into more depth I see it as just more of a chance to slate things which have yet to cuase harm...aside from individuals who make us look all bad

 

[ZeroMachine]

"You are what you pretend to be". Wrong. Absolutely wrong.

Not entirely. Yeah, they stretch it big time, but think about it- have you ever taken any value, even miniscule, from a character you played as in a game, whether it be a video game or playing with friends as a child?

Not in that sense no. My real-life character reflects in the game, and sometimes I pretend to be something, e.g. evil. But I have never drawn anything from a game to reality. But maybe that's just me. Maybe that isn't the case for other people.

Yeah, some people do takke inspiration from fictional characters. But hell, to each their own, you know?

"we are entering a world so realistic we forget that its not real"

well, only if your a complete reatard.

The irony in this post could spawn another documentary.

is that a good thing, i dont mind as long as i get to be in it, and get money's.

You spelled "retard" wrong. I was more just having a laugh at that.

 

[maddog015]

Yeah, that preview did a poor job at showing both sides of the debate. They could've at least thrown in something against the anti-violent gaming culture.

 

[Crimson_Dragoon]

"Since the Supreme Court is going to be reviewing a controversial California law that was designed to ban violent games from being sold to kids." Violent games shouldn't be sold to kids anyway, same as violent movies. I do not think its controversial. If anything its parents that are still in the "video games are all Mario" mindset that is at fault. No law is fool proof. And as a kid i still watched violent horror movies. You can only do so much to stop kids getting hold of this type of material. My brother has seen parts of horror films (not the really gory stuff) but i made him aware that they are actors and he has watched behind the scenes stuff where you see the makeup and FX being applied.

You can not protect everyone, and there will always be a few people that take things to the extreme. Until 50% of people who played GTA are arrested for shooting and robbing people due to the effects of the game then the issue of "games cause violence" is invalid.

There is a lot of controversy to it, because the law will make it illegal to sell mature video games to children rather than simple store policy (like how movie theaters have a policy of not selling R-rated movie tickets to children, but its not illegal). Now, while this seems fine and dandy, this means stores can be sued or heavily fined if a kid gets a hold of a mature game from the store (it doesn't even have to be directly bought-the law is wonky like that from what I hear), so many big "family stores" (Walmart, Target, etc.) may end up saying "screw it" and not carry mature games at all. But really, the big problem with this law is that it's just plain unconstitutional, what with free speech and all that. If parents don't want there kids viewing this media, then they should just not buy the games. It shouldn't be illegal.

 

[imnot]

"we are entering a world so realistic we forget that its not real"

well, only if your a complete reatard.

The irony in this post could spawn another documentary.

(ME)is that a good thing, i dont mind as long as i get to be in it, and get money's.

You spelled "retard" wrong. I was more just having a laugh at that.[/quote]
i wrote that origanly but it looked wrong! i really am a retard! yay!