Has videogame violence affected you?

[JET1971]

Actualy I feel it makes me less prone to use violance in real life as a means to "solve"(escalate) an issue like someone pissed me off or something is broken. and i know it ceartainly does that with my cousin that would punch someone at the slightest provocation. whatever hormone that causes violant behavior gets used up playing the games might be the reason why. but then again 30 years ago watching violant R rated movies full of violance, gunfights murder and lotsa sex didnt turn me into a crazed killer/rapist that shoots up a mcdonalds and rapes the girl at the counter because they didnt hold the onions! why would i think a kid playing GTA4 would?

An issue with violant video games is they are not meant for children so the whole "makes kids into violant adults" is a moot point. instead of telling us adults or parents of mature 16-17 year old teens what we can or cannot have for our entertainment they should concentrate on informing parents how the rating systems work and if your child is begging you for Duke Nukem forever to go online and google it before buying(though i think its humour is of the 14-15 year old variety). the problem is not the games but the parents who do not realize that the average game player is over 30 years old and many of them enjoy adult themes in the games such as violance, foul language, and full frontal nudity/sex. it works the same as any other media. if the game isnt rated E or equivelant rating then its not for your 10 year old, violant video game issue solved!

 

[VanityGirl]

Yes, because of the excessive Mortal Kombat playing I did as a child before the ESRB, I now continuous rip out the spine's of people after I win 2 rounds on them.

 

[Flare Phoenix]

The problem is people make connections to video games and violence where there may not be any. I think Yatzee said in one of his reviews something about how if a mass murderer had, at some point in their life, come in contact with a Sega Megadrive people would start believe Sega causes murder.

Personally I'm hoping all of this blows over eventually. Film and books had to go through stuff like this I believe. The thing that annoys me the most is when people pick up an MA5+ rated game and still express concern that it is not suitable for their children. It's hard to argue that when we're already agreeing to it... I've honestly seen some people who fully believe video games are played only by little kids.

 

[Belated]

I play video games almost all day long, shooting, impaling, detonating. And I'm one of the most sensitive people I know. I cry during episodes of "Halo Legends" (I find myself overcome with emotion when people sacrifice themselves to save others) and various anime like FMA or Elfen Lied, or even Shuffle!. Hell, I cry during video games too, like Persona 3.

Now if all of that time spent in Starcraft or Grand Theft Auto or Halo was really enough to desensitize me and render my empathy skills all but dead, I don't think I'd be able to cry so easily.

 

[ShatterPalm]

People who say that are just idiots who haven't actually played a game they consider violent. No More Heroes, Mad World, Batman Arkham Asylum, and Red Steel 2 are all games that are fairly violent in their own right, and I find them more cathartic than anything else. I would never try to do any of that stuff, because I don't want to hurt anyone, but it helps me vent, I'll say that.

 

[Vault101]

my mum askes me this when I was younger playing halo on the xbox

nope I dont think of violent....

 

[Vault101]

People who say that are just idiots who haven't actually played a game they consider violent. No More Heroes, Mad World, Batman Arkham Asylum, and Red Steel 2 are all games that are fairly violent in their own right, and I find them more cathartic than anything else. I would never try to do any of that stuff, because I don't want to hurt anyone, but it helps me vent, I'll say that.

thing is though In Batman he never actually kills anyone, he just bashes the shit out of them,.....which they deserveed

 

[yuniesan]

Has videogame violence affected you?

Yes it's stopped me from Killing Stupid People...

I just really wanted to answer the question. I've worked retail for way too long

 

[Fanta Grape]

I'm a vegan who doesn't even kill ants.

I spent all of yesterday playing TF2 making people go boom.

 

[Bobbity]

Oh definitely yes. You know, San Andreas once inspired me to go to a strip club, beat fifteen hookers to death and then have a three hour stand off with the military, sniping soldiers from the top of a crane that I'd found. And don't even get me started on all the deliciously violent changes CoD has worked on me...

Seriously though, video games are, at very worst, capable of de-sensitising us somewhat, but that's the worst of it. From there, it's really up to the person as to how they react to that change.

To be honest, I think that violent films and the media's insatiable desire to publicise violence has just as much to do with that change as video games do.

 

[z3rostr1fe]

Nope. Violent Videogames is actually my Anger and Evil outlet. So it helps me not to become cruel to others.

 

[Plurralbles]

Power rangers back in the day affected me much more than stupid video games.

 

[rekulnats]

Ever since I played Halo: Reach, I've been desperately wanting to assassinate someone.

But otherwise, no.

The people who run Bungie? BOOM!

But OT, I don't believe there are any links between violent games and real life violence, any more than with TV, films, books and news stories. In fact, news stories are the most shocking because they are REAL (unless you're watching FOX).

It's all played up by the media, the best example (although not about violence) was Mass Effect. A brief and tasteful sex scene in which nothing is seen and the scene is necessary to the plot.
Kevin McCullough: "Mass Effect can be customised to sodomise whatever, whomever, however, the game player wishes," and "with its ?over the net? capabilities virtual orgasmic rape is just the push of a button away".
Martha McCallum: stated that the game "leaves nothing to the imagination" and features "the ability for players to engage in full graphic sex" where the player gets to decide what happens.

Both completely wrong, NEITHER HAD PLAYED THE GAME.

My point is, although this example is about sex and not violence, the media and politicians are happy to jump on the game-bashing bandwagon because it gives them easy fuel to get popularity from concerned adults. If anyone took a moment out to actually experience gaming properly, they would understand the truth.

Also people complain about violence in games affecting children. Yeah, there's the classic "they'll play it anyway" response, but kids SHOULD NOT BE PLAYING GAMES THEY ARE NOT OLD ENOUGH TO. Yeah I did (Dino Crisis when I was 7? Fuck that) but the parents are ultimately responsible.

TL;DR Video game violence is not an issue other than for misinformed/ignorant people.

PS This is my first post

 

[Jodah]

No more than any other outside influence. Movies, television, books, magazines, friends, family, video games, the internet, the squirrel in the tree three miles down the road all these things can make a person violent.

The whole basis for this argument is that every aging generation needs something to blame for the change in the new generation. Everything has been blamed when its new, music (several times), television, movies, clothes, hair styles, college, drugs, alcohol, sex, etc have all gone through the same thing.

 

[CobraX]

I`m much more desensitized to violence then was before I was a gamer. Although I was a kid back before I was a gamer, so maybe It`s just that I`m older now.

 

[Skops]

I will admit, every now and then walking down the street; I feel the slight urge to shoryuken someone.


does this make me violent? No, not yet. But I feel sorry for that person that eventually feels the bottled up wrath unleashed one day... It'll happen! Likely when i'm in an old folks home, in a wheelchair. SHORYUKEN out of of that shit. No one sees it coming.

 

[iDoom46]

It's desensitized me alright; violence in video-games has desensitized me to violence... in video-games.

It's certainly much easier for me to kill in video-games than it used to be. But in regards to real life... no. Not even slightly.

I don't even like killing large insects in real life.

I'm exactly the same way. Even if its the creepiest looking little fucker in existence, I'll still refuse to just squish them and opt to gently grab them in a napkin and set them free outside.
I'm such a softy.
But dammit, I don't care if you're the cutest virtual puppy ever, I will set your polygons ON FIRE!

 

[Asuka Soryu]

Hasn't effected me. (sitting a top a pile of dead, demons as I toss a gernade and blow up a Centaur)