I Just Had a Video Game Debate With my Parents

[conmag9]

My parents are...Well, my mother's not very interested most of the time, but she has no real objections to me doing it during my childhood (and certainly not NOW). My Father, an individual who has never really accepted the whole "aging" thing, has, on many occasions, ordered me to play video games (he's particularly fond of Metroid Prime) as a sort of "chore".

So yeah, I've had it pretty good with parents and video games.

 

[LogicNProportion]

I've been watching stuff like Rambo and Predator when I was in diapers. One of my dad's favorite babysitting techniques was playing the Nintendo with us, and a few years alter, we would watch him play Command & Conquer Red Alert and the early (good) Medal of Honor games.

My parents have always respected video games as an art form, or at the very least, a good way to relieve stress. They figure it's better than me doing drugs or going out partying, and I agree.

My dad still plays his old PS1, mom likes puzzle games, and watches me when I play on the big screen downstairs, asking questions, making references, you know, trying to get into it.

The only time my dad said no to a game at the store was DOA: XTreme Volley Ball...and he wasn't angry or anything, he was just laughing too hard, having seen a commercial for it...he bought me Halo instead. I only really wanted it anyway because I just hit puberty, and EGM's famous April Fool's article about making them topless seemed very...appealing.

Bottom line, my parents see nothing wrong with them, if anything, they make me laze around the house at times, or procrastinate. It all started with Mario and Duck Hunt, and now my old man even gave Reach a try a few weeks ago.

I love my parents.

 

[Theron Julius]

Ask them if they liked comic books or rock music as a kid in a seemingly unrelated topic. Ask them how they felt when people tried to keep those away from children. If they think that those people were ridiculous immediately compare them to those people. Are they really that different? They're just old people scared of a new entertainment medium.

 

[ShotgunSmoke]

My mom doesn't care at all what I'm doing on my computer. Hell, she gave me GTA:Vice City when I was 9. Obviously, it turned me into a psychopath.

Not so long ago she saw a thing on TV about cinematic games and it made her respect games as something equivalent to films.

 

[Roxas1359]

My parents never wanted me to be around video games when I was young and refused to buy me any. But when I was young I would go to my God-Parent's house and they had video games there. Ironically they let me play games but never drink soda so now whenever I drink soda I get sick. Well one day their son, my cousin, got a PS2 and they were getting rid of one of the consoles and gave it to me; the console was a Sega Genesis that still works. Well when I returned home with it my parents had the biggest fit ever, but after a while they decided to let me keep it. Thus began what many other children and teens went through with video games: limitations.

My parents started limitations with just allowing me to play only 2 hours a day and nothing rated M. As time went on though they became more lenient about the time limits since I continued to get good grades, much like today. They still didn't let me play M rated games until I turned 16 in which they checked out what the game was first and were notified about its content. I myself still buy all my consoles and my games myself, except for M games which I don't really buy that often in hindsight. Now the rules for video games for me are that I can't play past 10:00 p.m, must continue getting good grades-I do that on my own because I'm a tad OCD about getting only A's-, and that it is not a very bad game. Mainly they're more lenient now because they play computer games now and my mom and dad did grow up with some video games, but they didn't want to expose me to them.

 

[Caligulust]

My parents are kind of into video games. My dad used to play a lot of them, now he just sticks with World of Warcraft. My mom got into Quake 2 so long ago. She also played both Maximos.
They haven't ever really had issues with games. Though my dad was very opposed to GTA, and my mom was too.

 

[Nouw]

They were fine with gaming as a whole but not restricted games even though I've played them before

Also, what's wrong with Starcraft? It's bloody uber-pixellated violence! (Mind the pun)

 

[Thedayrecker]

I actually turned my parents liberal. Granted my dad is still against gay marriage, but I once hinted I liked men (I'm not gay, but consider myself open. I'm more Bi), and my mom was cool with it..... What was this thread about?

EDIT: Oh ya. Anyways, seeing how they have liberal tendencies, they're pretty lenient with games.

 

[Baron von Blitztank]

Both my parents are ok with videogames.
It was from my mom playing the Gameboy that I got into playing videogames in the first place, she doesn't have the time to play them now but she does like watching me play them (and really likes Assassin's Creed for some reason) and she still plays a few on the DS (Professer Layton and Scribblenauts mostly). She doesn't really mind what I play as she knows I can handle the content and that I'll get my schoolwork done on time.
My dad doesn't really care about videogames and probably considers them a waste of time, but he hasn't openly complained about them so its not all bad.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Starcraft?

Yeah, 'cause that'll turn you into a murderer -_-

Given Korea, it's possibly one of the most likely to turn you into a murderer, sadly.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc

/eyebrow

Whatchu talkin' about Willis?

Oh, the logical fallacy of "after this, therefore because of this". Not really, given how much money is associated with being a GREAT Starcraft player in Korea, there has already been deaths due to the pressure. Probably not the game per se, but definitely because of playing it.

 

[ImprovizoR]

My parents bought me my first Nintendo 64 and GoldenEye 007. How do you think they feel about video games? Anyway, I'm 21 so it's not like they can tell me not to play games. I did educate them and they pretty much know that games are more and more like movies and books. I mean more serious with real stories etc. My mother was amazed when she saw me playing GUN once and even more amazed when she saw me playing Mass Effect. She was genuinely interested. She's a huge sci-fi fan.

 

[CheckD3]

Now a days they don't care since I'm 20, but I know my mom isn't a hardcore game fan. She's a casual player, playing Bejeweled and Super Collapse, but not a fan of hardcore games, mostly because of the content.

Growing up though, she did limit me, but mostly based on age. I couldn't play M rated games when I was younger, and my time was limited. It wasn't to the point that I was NEVER allowed, but I could only play if I had did my work, and if it wasn't too late, and not to the point of obsession. Both my parents aren't big gamers, my dad saying that he doesn't like it because he'd have more fun using a joystick or motion controls rather than just pushing buttons and such.

I usually avoid talk w/ them since they don't have much experience, and I think while my dad doesn't like it, he doesn't feel as strongly about his points. My mom doesn't support my playing, but doesn't oppose it either, and since it doesn't effect them, they don't have strong opinions on it

 

[LightningBanks]

My parents always blamed my games when I was late. It was all' YOUVE BEEN ON THEM GAMES AGAIN' to which Id reply ' IM LATE BECAUSE MY ALARM CLOCK DIDNT GO OFF'

They also say im addicted to it, to which I reply 'IT KEEPS ME AWAY FROM SUICIDE' and I dont play games THAT much

 

[thenamelessloser]

My parents were never really bothered by the fact I play video games. Hell, my mother back in the 90s played a decent amount of computer games. I think playing games like Monkey Island and King's Quest opened her mind to the fact that video games can be many types of things, they are fun, and how they can even have decent writing/stories.

 

[badgersprite]

Well, my Dad was the one who introduced me to game as a kid. I'm pretty sure the first games I ever played were the DOOM-style FPSs on PC, and one of the first games I had on PlayStation was a fighting game, so I guess that tells you they don't really think that much of censorship in my household.

Ironically, I had a backwards problem. If anything, my Dad would be more concerned about not letting me see mature movies as a kid than letting me play mature games. I remember arguing with him once about trying to get an MA15+ movie (Australian ratings here. Don't know what your equivalent is) when I was thirteen, and he said no. I think that was because he was more concerned about, say, foul language or sex than the ridiculously cartoonish video game violence that nobody in their right mind could take seriously. I mean, the gore in something like Mortal Kombat was hilarious rather than upsetting.

I think maybe the only game we ever even had to talk about was Grand Theft Auto, but my parents still bought it for me; they knew the controversy about Vice City was stupid. So, I guess I'm lucky that I have parents who respect me and always trusted that I was mature enough to respond to material like this appropriately, if there was ever even a concern in their minds at all. Having a Dad that plays games helps, I guess. He knows there's nothing there that he wouldn't have liked at my age.

Funny you should mention StarCraft. My Dad introduced me to that game when I was about eight or nine. I used to play it with him and my cousin. Explains why I grew up to love the Alien movies.

 

[ThreeDogsToaster]

The court has to decide if games are art. Some are, some aren't. If the game invokes an emotional or mental stimulation (and no, "shoot shit" doesn't count), then it's art. For example, Unreal Tournament isn't art (fun as hell though), but Mass Effect is.

My opinion is that it should be treated like every other media medium. There shouldn't be censorship, but culturally the makers should know what will sell in the US. For example Rapeplay might not cut it; Gears of War would.

I'm glad you are so confident in your and the supreme courts' ability to judge weather or not a thing is art for other people.

 

[ModReap]

My dad is pretty good about games, so long as it doesn't look like an extreme gore fest.
My mom however.... *cringe*

 

[FrossetMareritt]

I'm looking at this thread now seven pages long, so I'm not going to read every page due my own time constraint.

I will say that Adam Sessler did a really good video on his Soapbox that Tuesday since he was there in the courtroom watching this whole thing unfold. Check it out if you have a chance about this law and the possibilities of it snowballing out of control in other mediums since the law in question is super vague.

 

[Ashcrexl]

doesnt really sound like a debate. more like a row.