The Prevalence of Violence in Games

Violence is real and people cannot just act like it is not a real thought or intention. By removing violence from games we leave an opening for an opportunity way worse to take its place. This same opportunity could be better but more than likely will be way worse than simulated or fake violence. Kids also benefit from it being an escape from their very real-life rather than living through the constant torment life keeps providing them. Kids also use it as a way to vent rather than to hold on to anger and release that violence into a place that is filled with living humans rather than pixelated versions presented in video games.

This also upholds other forms of violent games. In fact, there are many facets to this general concept of keeping virtual or simulated violence.

In 1976, the year death race one of the first controversial video games was released. the number of crimes committed was 11,349,700 (1976, United States of America and has lowered 2,908,590 to 8,441,110 (2018, United States of America).

Furthermore, the population has only increased giving a higher probability of crimes being committed. Second of all the only reason, people saw this video game as bad and violent is because when you were hit the character would say “ahkk”, and a small gravestone would appear when you lost according to video game historian Steve L. Kent. Equally important Death Race was just a glorified game of “Pong”. In the end, the game had to be removed from the market because of the public outroar and such controversy over the game of “Pong” called Death Race.

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Despite situations like Death Race’s many games still sat on shelves which gave people reasons to make accusations like the following. Three children killed in Heath High school shooting in 1997. The parents of these three children chose Jack Thompson an Anti-violent video game activist and attorney. These parents planned to file a lawsuit against violent video games (which was the first time this had been done) they targeted multiple video games including Doom, Quake, Castle Wolfenstein, Redneck Rampage, Nightmare Creatures, MechWarrior, and Resident Evil. Thompson credited these games and other websites for desensitizing kids making them more prone to violence. In spite of the fact that there were 3 other shootings that same year and since 1965, 198 school shootings.

I highly doubt every single one was caused or influenced by violent games. Lehigh University’s Peter Langman says that the majority of school shooters come from dysfunctional or struggling families and have not been targeted in bullying but have had small comments made. Moreover, there is no correlation between violent video games and these mass murders. But, Peter points out that media may be to blame like the news. This same man, Jack Thompson, has made absurdly unorthodox comments like one off of a story by Inverse “if someone could “create, manufacture, distribute, and sell a video game in 2006” that allowed players to kill video game developers, I would donate $10,000 to charity.” The comment made is insignificant to his argument he wants someone to make a violent video game that kills violent video games. This case went to the Florida supreme court and he was ridiculed by the judges for inappropriate conduct and false statements. Then later the case was dismissed in 1999.

Now, these examples may be from before the 2000s but, both of these examples will show the developmental effect of violent video games and what people now view as violence opposed to then. In the example of Death Race people felt violence was a game of virtual dodge ball or an advanced game of “Pong”. Then with the lawsuit example, how anti-violent video game activists didn’t even have truthful statements and made comments counterintuitive to their own points. Additionally how crime has fallen since the 1960s to the 2010s since the introduction of a form of venting. The evidence all points to the unrelated violence that violent games supposedly persuade to upcoming generations.

But, into the 2000 people of higher power started making similar bold accusations and concepts. Joe Baca a US representative proposes a bill that would ban the sale or rent of video games to minors. Called the Protect Children from Video Game Sex and Violence Act of 2003 this was a bill that would make selling video games to minors a federal offense and you would be fined $1,000. Washington state attempted to pass a similar law were if you sold video games to a minor you would be fined $500. The ban was overall rejected by a 7-2 vote they said that it violates the first amendment of free speech. Equally important the Florida Supreme Court judges made the comment “No doubt a state possesses legitimate power to protect children from harm, but that does not include a free-floating power to restrict the ideas to which children may be exposed.” Thus showing how the government and other people cannot stop people from choosing their personal activities.

Thereupon supporters of these violent games started speaking out as well. Henry Jenkins, Ph.D., professor of Communication, Journalism, and Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California wrote a paper debunking all of the absurd myths surrounding games, especially virtual games. In 2005, when he wrote his paper, the juvenile crime rate was at a 30-year low he also writes that kids who commit school shootings have been connected to violent video games but this is insignificant because 90% of boys play video games and 40% of girls play video games.

Now it is true a larger amount of school shooters are male but this is also insignificant because the overwhelming majority of these kids who play do not commit anti-social crimes. He also claims that many pieces of research done are performed with the very narrow school of research or extremely general fields of research. But many of these 300 studies are inconclusive. Now many would also say that violent video games are anti-social which only amplifies the anger created but this is completely illogical because almost 60% of players play with friends 33% play with siblings. Even single-player games are often socially played with either spouses or parents.

Remember those Anti-violent video game activists well they continued to fight in the shadows until about 2006.Yet again in 2006, the now disbarred attorney, Jack Thompson, filed two more absurd lawsuits in New Mexico and Florida. The lawsuit in Florida is the only lawsuit of his applicable (because the New Mexico lawsuit is nearly the exact same to the Heath Highschool lawsuit) the aspect of the lawsuit that makes me say it is applicable is what the judge’s response is. Similar to the first Lawsuit he was laughed at but, unlike the first one it didn’t even make it out of small claims court and the judge made the comment that it was something they could see on the late-night show. Again this being said it is not the games giving kids ideas and causing violence it is the media, newspapers, news channels, and much more.

Also this same series of events occurred for the law proposed years earlier. Again in June of 2011, the same concept of a law was proposed to the Supreme Court where it would be illegal to sell or rent violent video games to minors. They again brought up the point of it being unconstitutional and defied the first amendment of free speech.

These last two examples show how little has changed with the effects of violent video games on kids and people in the broad. People are more scared of change rather than the violence presented in the games. Most of the people mentioned in this paper are more striving for something to complain about than they are worried about the violence that is presented to the upcoming generations.

In a brief, the violence in video games may have some small effect but nothing able to be proven or large enough to cause crime, also the games may be helping kids to vent without having to do therapy or a sport. It, first of all, violates our first amendment and leaves room for a kid to fill that void in their free time with a worse hobbies. Equally important school shootings are not caused by kids who play video games it is kids who more than likely live in dysfunctional or struggling families and video games may even help them.

Sources

1. ‘Timeline of Video Game Controversies .’ NCAC, National Coalition Against Coalition, ncac.org/resource/a-timeline-of-video-game-controversies.
2. Jenkins, Henry. ‘The Video Game Revolution.’ PBS, Public Broadcasting Services, www.pbs.org/kcts/videogamerevolution/impact/myths.html.
3. ‘Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association.’ Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association, Oyez, www.oyez.org/cases/2010/08-1448.
4. ‘United States Crime Rates 1960 – 2018.’ United States Crime Rates 1960 – 2018, disaster center, www.disastercenter.com/crime/uscrime.htm.