Thread: Can people really blame video games for violence?

This is a topic that has been debated over the years. I am not talking about gun violence but general violence like fighting, anger, hurting other people. This is directed at children as well. So young children and older ones (teens). How do you feel about it? Do you think video games actually alter or encourage violence in children?

I have always said music (specially rap) has more of an influence on behavior with kids/teens than video games or TV does. There have been multiple studies done to back this up as well. Music can be used against people and I believe in a lot of mainstream stuff, it is.

Video games on the other hand, I think this depends on the child. I grew up playing mortal kombat and games like that. I can't stomach people fighting. It actually grosses me out. Clearly video games didn't change anything for me. I think it comes down to parenting. If you know your child has anger issues, the last thing you want them to be doing is playing a violent video game.

The answer is simple : NO.
Video games are just like any other media and i'm easily triggered about it.
Anyone that wants to incriminante video games more than other media will have a VERY bad time with me on their back.

On the contrary, I think video games can be used to help people with anger issues. Gaming can be a method of stress relief, just like many other kinds of activities. Just because a game displays violence doesn't mean it will influence youths. Geeze, you should take a look at some of the TV shows young people are watching nowadays. Heads being smashed to a pulp by a barbed wire bat. I will say no more.

Like you highlighted, KorinKitty, this is really the parents' doing. It's a matter of nurture, but that doesn't bring the media views. The media needs controversy and quite ironically they have to assault the big guys for that.

No, I think videogames are just games and entertainment it doesn't affect the psychology of a child when he grows up. I played a lot of games when I was a kid up until now and I'm not violent. Besides the real world is filled with violence and video games even teaches us how to properly react in times of aggression and violent encounters. People simply needs to know how to protect themselves and to fight back when needed or else they'll get bullied.

In short, no.

There are folks who say that video games tend to make people more aggressive. The same thing can be said of contact sports but why are they letting that off the hook? There's this trend I notice that violence or misrepresentation in games (or any other media for that matter) could have a negative impact on people. I'm sorry but when did entertainment become a babysitting tool? The only thing that a video game owes you is entertainment. It doesn't owe you something tamer just because you're afraid that it's going to turn little Timmy into the next mass shooter. If someone committed acts of violence due to videogames, then they were already mentally unstable to begin with. It's been said in this topic already but it's true; it's down to the parents to teach their kid right and wrong and that what they see in a videogame is not reflective of reality.

No. Not at all.
Video games are just another scapegoat for the media/"concerned" parents to use so they can blame something on the psychopathic fucks out there in the world.
They did it with Rock n Roll music, D&D, Gangsta rap, and now that video games are popular, they use that, too. Hell, anime has been used on a few occasions.
And, like Starwind said, it's the same parents that bitch about how violent video games made their little Timmy be mean and violent. Parents? If you see a game with an M rating, that actually MEANS something. Do your research, look at the back of the box, and understand that maybe, JUST maybe little 12 year old Timmy shouldn't be playing a video game whose name is also a vehicular felony.

Hell, Catcher in the Rye was banned from schools for years because Mark Chapman killed John Lennon because he was "inspired" by the book.

Bottom line is, anything that has major influence over people, especially young kids, can, and will, be blamed for violent acts. People don't want to admit that these young kids that kill others are just mentally unstable. They want a reason, and video games are just the latest reason these neanderthals use to justify it.

I think the blame lies solely on the parents for not raising their kids right. They don't want to take responsibility, so they refuse to self-reflect or contemplate why their kids misbehave, and choose instead to blame everything on video games, music, etc. It's shameful, simply put.

It's all in the intent.
Violence in games has a lot to teach us, if done right.

Originally Posted by KorinKitty

So young children and older ones (teens). How do you feel about it? Do you think video games actually alter or encourage violence in children?

I will say that yes, they absolutely can, and almost assuredly do to varying degrees. Here's the caveat, though: RATINGS MATTER! The issue is when you have, as you said KorinKitty, children exposed to things like Grand Theft Auto or online COD experiences.

A lot of times, this is symptomatic of parents who aren't really involved in their children's lives; so you have kids being exposed to (and partially influenced and conditioned by) violent and sexual content that they just can't absorb in a healthful way on their own yet. Plus it's way worse than when I was a kid with the aforementioned online gaming experiences, which are "not rated" (so unfortunately, parents probably think oh, it's okay then), and Bob's your uncle you've got eleven year olds hearing and regurgitating sexist, racist bile and vitriol in doses that they otherwise wouldn't be exposed to on the playground.

Again, I'm not saying this is the fault of the video games or the companies directly: you'd have to be a negligent or absent parent to buy your kid an 'M' rated game, AND THEN not hear them screaming and throwing tantrums into their headsets while playing an online match.

But hey, I had a friend in middle school with a single mom who was away working a lot, so we played Vice City and I turned out fine lol, so it's not like 'oh, the humanity' if kids do what kids do and inevitably get into a few things they're not supposed to from time to time.

Originally Posted by KorinKitty

This is a topic that has been debated over the years. I am not talking about gun violence but general violence like fighting, anger, hurting other people. This is directed at children as well. So young children and older ones (teens). How do you feel about it? Do you think video games actually alter or encourage violence in children?

I have always said music (specially rap) has more of an influence on behavior with kids/teens than video games or TV does. There have been multiple studies done to back this up as well. Music can be used against people and I believe in a lot of mainstream stuff, it is.

Video games on the other hand, I think this depends on the child. I grew up playing mortal kombat and games like that. I can't stomach people fighting. It actually grosses me out. Clearly video games didn't change anything for me. I think it comes down to parenting. If you know your child has anger issues, the last thing you want them to be doing is playing a violent video game.

As much as I would like to say video games don't contribute to violence, I really am not sure. I grew up playing Mortal Kombat and Tekken and to be honest, I am a very angry soul. I can't help it. Maybe the games I played as a kid did influence my character, maybe not.