"Games 'permit' virtual war crimes "

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8373794.stm

With MW2 out and it's section of gunning down civilians, there's been a lot of hype over this.

I was wondering what you guys thought about this whole subject of violent video games and their influence upon the player. Does it, really? Your opinions?

I really hate these stories because when someone goes and kills someone else after playing a game it doesn't mean the game made them do it. There must have been some underlying physiological problem already there for someone to go and kill someone.

I have been playing games like MW2 for years and never have I thought "oh, this is fun. I think I'll go and buy a gun and try it in real life." That's because I KNOW IT'S A GAME!

You never hear stories of people killing someone after playing a few rounds of paintball. That's more real life than shooting a gun made of pixels with a keyboard or controller!

Then again I do blame parents for letting a 13 year old play a game that is clearly labelled 18.

[/rant]

For sure, this is a report that is predominantly worried about the mentality of war games on young and impressionable minds
For sure, there is a relationship bewteen visually involving an active participant with a "war crime" and an actual "war crime"
For sure, it is not demeaning towards gamers that this report assumes they cannot tell the difference between games and reality
For sure, players of this game are likely to be involved in an actual situation where the "war crimes" that this game has "taught" them can be applied
...
For sure, I am not being sarcastic

But you have been able to kill civilians in games for ages. I mean taking a gun and massacring thousands in GTA is no different than in CoD where you are a soldier and not a gangbanger.

Secondly games only influence the actions of the player in so much as the player cannot distinguish fact from fiction. So a mentally sound 9 year old is fine playing CoD whereas a sociopathic 20 year old is clearly not fine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlSIqJpXI5A

Interesting i wrote the above comments before posting this video or watching this video. Although i had watched the episode in full before.

I wrote a lengthy essay on this exact topic in Media Studies a few years back.

Because of this, I.. err.. think both sides have valid points?
The link between violence in the media and aggression in impressionable minds has never explicitly been proven, there's almost always a whole set of other factors that have to be taken into consideration.

But yeah.
I hated having to be impartial while discussing the FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIAN mothers who are concerned that their child is being CORRUPTED by a VIDEO GAME.

Apart from that, I was pretty happy with that essay.
I don't know where it got to, but I'm sure it's on my computer somewhere.

I'd like to read that Lee, I'm sure it is pretty good!

I also read somewhere about um, was it the army wanting to advertise through Xbox Live whilst they play war games on their console. Their latest recruitment tactic.

I'm fairly positive that playing a war game on your television on your warm, comfy sofa eating Doritos is not quite the same as being on the frontline and on patrol in Iraq, do you?

bluekatrock wrote:I'd like to read that Lee, I'm sure it is pretty good!

I also read somewhere about um, was it the army wanting to advertise through Xbox Live whilst they play war games on their console. Their latest recruitment tactic.

I'm fairly positive that playing a war game on your television on your warm, comfy sofa eating Doritos is not quite the same as being on the frontline and on patrol in Iraq, do you?

I too would like to read this essay.

The idea of advertisement in games is a bit odd. But seeing that war games play as advertisements for the military anyway its a logical step to me it seems. But i cannot imagine many people being allured by them.