Malik
(7/29/04) A
Rockstar Game Once Again Blamed For Violence This
time, it's not GTA, but instead it's Manhunt. According to a
news item I found at Gamespot, it seems that a 17 year old in
the UK (England) who played Manhunt killed a 14 year old in a rather
gruesome fashion, involving a claw hammer and a knife. So, the
natural reaction, either by the victim or the perpetrator, is to
blame Rockstar...I mean they keep telling me to kill...blah. Not
to sound insensitive, but this is total bull shit. First of all,
this kid who committed this gruesome act is 17,and in England the
game is rated for 18 and over (in the UK they call it a "18
Certificate"), and as I just said, the murderer is 17. So,
first off, like with anything involving minors and murder, why don't
we try looking at if the kid was even being watched, at all, by his
parents/guardians. I mean, for one thing, if this game is not rated
for a minor, than it is purely hypocritical to blame a developer
when a minor has access to the game and not to look to the parents.
Secondly, as it says in the article; "There's
been no longitudinal research following adolescents over a long
period, looking at how gaming violence might affect their
behavior," said Professor Mark Griffiths of Nottingham Trent
University, who called for more research. So,
we, as a society, should never immediately blame some third party
for someone's failing before we consider an important line of
thinking...if there is no evidence that something else caused a
problem, then could it be possible that the person to blame is
actually the person to blame? In other words, could the 17 year old
have been to blame? Could he have been unbalanced in some capacity?
I know that despite Doom being partially blamed for Columbine, the
two assailants were actually psychologically unstable...it pays to
read all sides of the issue, including those with actual research
and not just blind speculation, before forming a solid opinion...but
then again, Reuters, the big media outlet had this to say about
Manhunt; "it
awards extra points to players for carrying out murders in a
particularly extreme and bloody way, while victims plead to be
spared on behalf of their wives and children." Which
is...ummm...almost 100% wrong. I love when news agencies jump to
conclusions about something without giving any thought about doing a
little of...what's that word...research! This type of biased and
unfounded reporting is what causes parents to blindly blame video
games when their children do something wrong or when their children
are affected by someone who's done something wrong. It's an easy
scapegoat, and far easier than blaming someone who may actually be
responsible...I mean, how are you going to get sympathy from the
public at large when you blame Mr and Mrs X for their bad
parenting...no one cares or knows about the X family. However, the ignorant
masses know all about the evils of Rockstar and their violence
inducing, Haitian hating attempts at poorly raising our children!
Ok, for those who are on the slow side, that was a shit load of
sarcasm. Video
games do not cause anything. While they can serve as a good outlet
for our frustrations, or serve to divert our attention away from the
more depressing issues at hand, they do not teach us moral evils.
I've played literally hundreds of games involving a gun, and I have
no idea of how to fire, load, and properly maintain a firearm (I
know you pull the trigger, and some other details, but I've learned
no more about firing a weapon in real life from Rockstar than I
learned from Saving Private Ryan). Plus, I have killed several
million virtual lives in everything from Wolfenstein to GTA to KOTOR,
and I can tell you I am as morally balanced and pacifistic as
humanly possible. To
sum it up; while I feel empathy for anything dealing with uncalled
for violence (in particular, to those who are most likely smaller
and less able to defend themselves; like a 14 year old lured into a
trap by a 17 year old), I also have strong feelings to those who
blame the entirely wrong and innocent for something they did not do.
Rockstar did not kill the child in this article...a messed up 17
year old, who probably has some underlying psychological problems
and a lack of proper supervision and upbringing, did the killing.
Rockstar cannot be blamed for trying to make some money and make
some entertainment for a mature audience. It
is this type of crappy decision making, which invokes a strong sense
of blame on the video game companies, that leads to our chosen
passion being stigmatized as wrong and evil. While I've learned more
about how to use a weapon in the real world from movies, they will
never recieve the blame for violence like a video game will. Video
games are simply not played by as many people as those who watch
movies. It is always easier to push down a minority group, be it
ethnic, favored form of entertainment, or other affiliation, than to
look at the reality of a situation. I'm not trying to say that the discrimination
against geeks is anywhere near the tragedy of discrimination based
on sex, race, or religion, but it is uncalled for, none the less. On
a side note; just because a game is rated Mature, it doesn't mean it
fits for your playing even if you're in a "mature" age
group. Maturity is something that comes with personal psychological
growth. This, and personal taste in entertainment, is why some
children are perfectly able to handle a mature game like GTA:VC and
why some adults simply cannot. To often the word mature is tied into
an age group, when some of the neglectful parents who refuse to
properly supervise, raise, or seek help for their children, despite
being in the 30's, 40's, or above, are simply not mature, even with
age. Malik
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