Video games are bad: Heres why

reply to post by Hiasyouwant


Anyone can refute this by googling: video games help intelligence. I was first worried years ago when military video games came out that the Army would use it to later recruit kids for a virtual war. I was right but then it will save American lives by not leaving the country while operating Drones in Afganistan. A percentage of the users of ANYTHING will misuse it, let's say spoons! Did you know that 1 in 8 people have no capacity for compassion,in other words is a Dexter, no conscience. People who play video games have better dexterity, hand eye coordination, puzzle solving skills, and logic. If you are worried about violence ask yourself where a 10-14 year old kid gets $60 to spend on a game that is banned to them.if you answer from their parents then you know whom to blame. RAISE YOUR KIDS BETTER! YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEM! NO ONE ELSE! WATCH WHERE THEY GO & WHAT THEY DO, LOCK UP YOUR GAMES & GUNS OR DON'T HAVE KIDS.
This is a ridiculous thread and too easy to refute.

video games are not a bad influence on children , nor teens , its the real world that influences children
children know the difference between reality and make believe!

Firstly, videogames can influence people. A very small percentage of people who fail to make a distinction between reality/fantasy. However, the same people could just as easily be influenced by a books or film or the news. So why should we make video games a special case?

Videogames are not inherently bad, and I think they saved me from major depression when I was around 15 years old. In school I was beaten up daily, and nobody did much about this....I eventually didn't even try to explain to anyone anymore because I realised it was useless. Instead of getting more and more depressed though, I played videogames which let me escape from these problems for a while. Of course, the problems were still there, but at least when I got home I could spend my time doing something which took my mind off them. I'd argue that it was a much more healthy escape than using drugs or alcohol.

I eventually became so interested in games that I wanted to make my own. (Unlike the OP states, not just anybody can make videogames)....So, I went about teaching myself algebra and trigonometry, as well as several programming languages. Maths suddenly made sense to me, and all of this knowledge has helped me in all of my jobs so far.

Videogames are never more shocking than real life. If anything, the news and real life have desensitized me. Everyday I hear about people getting murdered, and see their photographs. I see pictures of civilians getting bombed in the middle of deserts. Religious leaders abusing children. No video game comes close to that. As a matter of fact, many games are the complete opposite - they actually teach sensitivity and moral values. (Take the game 'ICO' for example - the sensitivity of holding hands, and the requirement of taking care of others, not just yourself).

Just my 2 cents...

I don't like violent games, but this is a reflection of what people in our society want to play. Should we ban books about crime too?

Originally posted by sapien82
video games are not a bad influence on children , nor teens , its the real world that influences children
children know the difference between reality and make believe!

I agree. As the supreme court noted in their decision last week, there is just as much violence in most fairy tails as in video games.

Originally posted by ABWarrior58
Yes, video games may be excessively violent. That's why there are ratings on them just like for movies. Whenever there are movies ratings it is up to the PARENTS to decide if there child should see that movie. The same goes for video games. Any games rated Mature you literally have to show an ID to purchase it. Im sick of these kids when they get in trouble saying oh its not my fault its that video game, or its the music. Thats ridiculous. Wake up parents! Teach your children right from wrong and teach them more than just shifting blame

I agree. Parents need to take accountability as do their children. Blaming media is wrong sighted

reply to post by Hiasyouwant


Stop whining, start playing!

Some people in here must be terrible a FPS's to hate them soooo much

Originally posted by Farnhold
reply to post by Hiasyouwant

 

Stop whining, start playing!

I think what you meant is:

"LESS QQ, MOAR PEW-PEW"

I love when highly religious people rant about the violence in this world, without even thinking about the sheer and utter violence that times like the Crusades or the Inquisition (not only supported but ordered by the Vatican) caused to millions and millions of people, and what effect that had on our evolution up to this day. Or was Galileu set on fire because of the hours he spent on Warcraft? I wonder...

Knowledge scares the ignorant.

reply to post by Toorop


maybe we should make a game about the crusades or the conquistadors set them with heavily religious overtones , hell even make the westoboroguh baptist church game , or give them a copy of dantes inferno .
Or make a game about the rapture you have to be able to say the lords prayer in level one or blessings to some saint over the mic in order to get your holy armour , before slaying the infidels and burning their history to the ground !

maybe then they would stop complaining and start playing !

Video Games are not evil. This is a stupid thought to even ponder. If one doesn't like video games then they don't have to play it. Others like it so naturally someone out there has to point out the bad in it and never the good. Are video games violent? Sure they are. So is the news. Rarely do you ever see news that is considered good and if you do its nothing your going to go talking about at your next book club. However, you will be talking about the mass murder going on in whats-that-state. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but violence sells. Hell, even the Bible is filled with violence. Also it's also filled with sex! *gasp*

This is the same idiotic argument religious people (no offense to any out there) that say Harry Potter is the devil yet they go around and let their children watch Wizard of Oz.

It's absolute nonsense. *sigh*

I actually work in the games industry, may I also state that the following opinons expressed by me are mine alone:

Firstly, not 'anyone' can make games, it takes a large amount of dedication just to make a small 'indy' game nowadays, I work on big projects, the amount of TRCs, ratings, focus group testing and marketing procedures that a game has to go through before it hits the shelves is staggering.

For a AAA title such as GTA III take a huge colaborative effort of 100s sometimes 1000s (in the case of MW2) to create with budgets rivaling Hollywood blockbusters. 'Psycos' as you put it, would be hard pressed to make a game that is actually successful and mainstream to have the far reaching effects you seem to infer
.
Game are not to blame and believe it or not we (speaking from places I've worked at in the past) do have boundaries regarding content, the main problem is that alot of things are taken out of context in the media. Gaming is a big part in alot of peoples lives today - did you know that the target demographic is now mid twenties to mid thirties? How are children gaining access to mature 18+ titles? They are rated 18 for a reason, you wouldn't let you underage child watch an 18 rated film or late night TV programme would you?

We need to live balanced lives, games can be a part of living a balanced life, if someone goes out and re-enacts something they've 'played' or watched or read then you really have to ask whether they were balanced to begin with.

Video games are inadament objects they can't be "bad". :0

reply to post by Hiasyouwant


I got a pipe, with a mushroom on the end of it, what can you do with that?

I can't believe this thread has gotten as many responses as it has,but then again, it seems the OP upset a lot of gamers out there. Then again, maybe upset isn't the right word, perhaps, put gamers into defensive mode is a better way of saying it.

Gaming isn't just for your kids anymore, it is for everyone. I've grown up with game systems, and watched them evolve from pong to xbox 360/ps3, and man, have we come a long ways in about 30 years.

Would I trade my mother in for a game of space invaders?
Am I hooked, am I hooked?
Is my mind cooked? LOL

reply to post by OptimusPrimate


I remember programming my first game on my spectrum 48 K i spent over 4 days making sure every line of code was correct , and at the end all I got was a little 2d character go across the screen up a ladder and to the exit.

Psychos could no way make a video game !
it requires heavy amounts of patience

reply to post by Turkenstein


i have to say this..lol go through the pipe and get the 1-up mushroom? hahaha

ok on topic. IMO it's not the video games that make "people" make poor decisions. it's a mixture of music, tv, video games, books, ...basically everything you can think of. It's up to the person to decide whats right and wrong and let them make their own decision. I for one play video games but you don't see me launching rockets at person or jumping off walls (unreal tournament reference).

Originally posted by theRhenn
Where else, prey-tell, would a new member post such a topic?

Everyone is intitled to their thoughts and posts. I used to be a gamer. I can tell you stories how it turned my life into a miserable nightmare. And suprise! It has nothing to do with religion. If you spend your life indoors, wasting away rather than spending it doing something constructive, that wont have you ending up with heartfailure after taking out the trash on a hot day... You get the picture.

Have any clue whatsoever how many families MMOs destroyed? Marriages? Lives? I can find you article after article of people who got into gaming so much that...

- Boy forcably removed from cyber cafe because he would not go home, would not bathe and would not leave..after days!
- Young parents arrested because newborn neglected after young parents wouldnt pull away from an MMO to tend to the child... (edited) btw... the child died.

and so bloody many horror stories. I have my own personal 12 year MMO horror experiance.

People loose when they dedicate themselves to playing games.

So I would say such to many rabid gamers... Grow up.. Get Up.. Loose some damn weight.. Get a life!!! When the virtual game quarter runs out and you're on your way to the next big MMO, lets hope you didnt waste 30 years of your life, trying to figure out what the hell happened...


OP if you were not new, I would give you a star for this. So... A flag for ya instead. Some people just dont realise how much damage this does to their lives. It's no diffrent than being a complete drug addict or acoholic.

edit on 1-7-2011 by theRhenn because: (no reason given)

So according to you every gamer is fat and lazy. Well not everyone is you( you said it yourself).

I have been playing vids since Mario came out. I am in great shape, very active, eat healthy. Yet I am able to balance fun time and real life time accordingly. Don't bash all gamers becuase you had/ have a problem.

SO because video games are as harsh as what you would see on TV such as CSI, Human Centipede, etc, etc. It should be banned? Shouldn't TV any and all violent shows be banned aswell as books? No.

Oh by the way i'm not religious, not like it would matter if I were anyways. Just because one's religious doesn't mean you're better than anyone else in this world!!