What's your opinion on violent video games?

I don't like them at all, especially as the graphics have grown more realistic over the years, but I'd stop outside of an all out ban.

It does make me wonder: Why are people so up-tight about sex, compared to violence? Sex is perfectly natural, pleasurable, relaxing, and yet if there was as much sex as violence in video-games or the media, people would have a fit.

I think it's really weird how we accept violence, war, blood and gore, but still tend to view sex as something that is still somehow forbidden, and that must remain hidden: Something we must 'protect' children from even seeing, as if it will curl their spines, or something. Yet with violence, it seems perfectly OK.

I just don't get this.

Then again, I don't really like video games...I much prefer pinball machines, and their more physical appeal, archaic as they may seem.

 

Honestly, I'm fine with it. People always try to blame real life violence on video game and movie/TV violence, but in my opinion if a video game makes you go out and do that, there were already some screws missing.

 

I think they are fine, I don't play them too much. The worst I play daily is world of tanks which has no blood or anything...

But I worked with a socially challenged (For lack of better wording.)child as a volunteer. I definitely think they should be monitored when it comes to these games. All he did all day is keep to himself, hide behind a poll, or a bush, and pretend to shoot the other children in the camp, it was kinds disturbing. He only participated in the water gun fights.

So I guess I have mixed feelings on the subject.

 

I feel like in a lot of ways our society has become desensitized to gore and violence, and violent video games are just examples of this. But violent entertainment isn't new, at least now people don't definitely die to satisfy someones need for entertainment. The only problem is it making people do dangerous things that might harm others, but there are plenty of people who play these games and don't harm others. Banning them wont solve anything in my opinion, people just like violence.

 

The level of violence in a videogame has no bearing on whether I find it enjoyable or not (positively or negatively - if it's there, okay; if it isn't, okay).

No correlation between violent videogames and violent crime has ever been found.

If anything, violence in videogames provides an excellent avenue for people to get violent tendencies out of their system without actually harming anyone or anything.

 

I like them. It's a good outlet for frustration sometimes. Can't really say I love them because I enjoy puzzles, mysteries, and good plots far more often. ^-^

 

When me and my sister were kids, our parents would play mortal kombat with us and execute fatalities every time (well, at least my dad would). Til this day, I'm one of the most nonviolent people I know, and til this day, I DO play occasional violent games like Dead Island, Skyrim, Grand theft auto etc.

I don't think video games make people kill.

 

I like those kind of games. I know the media loves blaming games for "teaching" people how to kill, but honestly if you're gonna out and do that then you have WAY more going on than just playing a game.

I think its stupid how the media can be so bias towards games but TV shows like Breaking Bad which are basically about people cooking meth and selling it are praised as the best thing since sliced bread. The guy sells meth, but god forbid its in a video game.

I'm biased though since I grew up on games and they are a huge part of who I am today. I have yet to see a game that even comes close to making go "Maybe they shouldn't release that..."

My 2 cents.

 

I'm the kind of person that wouldn't hurt a fly in real life but would quite happily play a game where you could chainsaw the face of a hyper-realistic pensioner just because I can.

There's nothing wrong with ultra-violent games, just the morons who give them to their children...

 

I voted "I really like violent video games",not because I particularly like violent video games, but because I really strongly disagree with the idea of banning them. No way should the government ever be in the business of censoring video games in that way.

And I think people who blame violent video games for violent behavior are silly. If anything, at least they provide an outlet for otherwise violent people to act out their tendencies in a virtual environment rather than really commit an act of violence.

There is a culture of violence and idealization of war that pervades our world, but I don't think video games are to blame. The loudest warhawks are bitter old men who wouldn't even know what a video game is. There was plenty of violence in the world long before video games were invented. Violent video games exist because there is demand for them- people who have already been bred by society to have a thing for violence want to play them. They might attract people with violent tendencies to play them, but they didn't create the violent tendencies.

Though I do think, at least American society in particular, has a ridiculous double standard with its wide embrace of all sorts of violent media content (movies and TV shows as well as video games) combined with extreme prudery about the human body, nudity, or anything involving sex. Backward and ridiculous, since there really should nothing seen as disgraceful or shameful about nudity or sex, while as a culture we should be shunning violence and war. So I do wish we would see a toning down of violence in films and video games, and a wider acceptance of sex and nudity. But the culture has to change for that to happen.

 

If there was a statistically significant relationship between violence in video games and violent crime, then why has violent crime been in decline for the last 10 years (it has in the UK)? Also, why are our societies far less militaristic and violent on a state level than ever before? If video games are the cause of violence, the last 5000 years of human civilisation should've been like one huge hippy fest.

I firmly believe that the people who are inspired to commit acts of violence by a video game already had deep-running mental problems. Also video games are a good way for some people to vent.

Personally, there are a lot of violent games I like, but I don't like them because they're violent. I like them because of the gameplay, tactics or storyline involved mostly, which can be enriched by violence in the game depending on the kind of game. So all in all I'm absolutely fine with violent video games, the only thing I am opposed to is video games which have excessive amounts of violence for the sake of it with no real reason to add to the experience (if it's not even there for realism, horror or satire what's the point?!). In those cases, the violence should be toned down if it doesn't serve a purpose, but ban or censor violence in video games? Nope.

 

I love violent video games. They're good stress relief.

 

I have no issue with violent video games, really. It's not like we aren't exposed to enough desensitizing material on a daily basis in the news, right? :dry: But people need to learn how to make informed choices on what kind of games to buy for themselves and their children.

I'm not buying into the "VIDEO GAMES MAKE KIDS/PEOPLE VIOLENT" bit.

From personal experience, I've been playing M-Rated games since I was thirteen, not because my mom didn't care or was just like "OH OK Let me buy my child a violent game! lolwut", but because she understood that by that time I knew the difference between reality vs. a game, I was mature enough to handle it. I'd like to hope I came out semi-alright. Parents need to take responsibility for what their child is exposed to in the world of video games, just as with any kind of external media. A seven year old does not need to be playing Call of Duty or Halo, nor does a seven year old need to see a violent and gory slasher flick, and parents need to step up and make that kind of decision.

People have been scapegoating "the rise of violence in our young generation" on any kind of new media. Comics were a big to-do back in the 30s-50s (check me if Im wrong on the time frame) because they were apparently "corrupting the youth", but did kids grow up to become violent, sex-crazed, and corrupt because of comics? No. Same logic applies here.

Gotta agree with Sam, I don't play violent games because they're violent. I enjoy essentially everything but. Hell, violence bothers me sometimes. But I play video games for the story, mechanics, graphics, et cetera. Plus it's a good way to get distracted and relax if things aren't going so well in life; it gives something to focus on and dispel anger or can aid in getting out of a slump. It's escapism, like reading a book or watching a movie or browsing the internet. We all do it at some point.

 

It has been proven that violent Games hold no Psychological change in the person playing them unless the mental illness already existed, that being said I'm quite tired of hearing Fourteen year olds or even younger online on an M Rated Game; shouldn't they be playing...Tetris. None the less, there are Video Games that surpass this example though such as Rockstar's ******* & ******* 2 those games should be banned; I shouldn't have to go into detail if anybody has either played them but I will if Necessary.

 

I play violent video games and I also did growing up. I wouldn't allow children to play any game because there are ratings for a reason.

 

Ah yeah, I agree with this actually. Kids in this day and age should reaaaally not be playing violent games with graphics THIS realistic. I know I just said my parents used to murder me and my sis in mortal kombat all the time when we were kids, but back then, blood looked like plumes of cotton candy in that game.

But I think now, there should be a limit to what these kids see, not because I think it'll make them violent murderers, but because if the game has all this vivid gore in it, odds are it's probably gonna have a lot of other things in it that kids don't need to be submitted to just yet

 

Fun fact. Not all "13" year olds are 13. I'm 25, but I sound 13 because, well, I'm 4'11" and happen to be physically female.

Also, no one knows what games you're talking about lol.

 

Exactly. All of this. Parents need to be parents, and watch what their kids are exposed to.

Personally, yes, I enjoy casually playing violent video games. But in real life, I'm so nonviolent I'm vegan.

 

Young children shouldn't be exposed to violent video games... but neither should they be exposed to violent TV programmes. Breaking Bad should not be glorified while video games half as violent as it are condemned.
I voted 'I really like violent video games' because I enjoy them; for their sense of adventure and realism; not because I condone actual violence or war. + Agreeing with HuskyPup on the prudishness of video games, even ones that are rated "M".