4/27/15

Mikayla Alexander

“Killer” Position

                   

Many video games are looked at as bad for kids. Violent games such as GTA V are shamed upon because games like those attract so much attention from the young minds of our society or generation. This may be true to some people, but it is all for fun and entertainment.

The game “Killer” is a very violent and competitive water-pistol game for high schoolers in New York City. Many kids sign up  and form squads and try to take down other teams. A pot is filled with money from the players, so when the game ends the team of winners get the money. With that being said, it seems like a interesting game to play. I think it is very entertaining and gives the students an amazing way to celebrate their last year,or just to kick off their first year, whether they are a judge or out destroying the other teams.  I think it is a cool experience for high schoolers. It also makes a good story to tell when they are older.   Kids these days like to have fun. They like to experiment, some may be dumb experiments, but they want to enjoy life. We think about having good memories to share with people we know or love. I think this game is a good way to do that. Even though it seems fun, it could also send the wrong message to vulnerable minds.

For example, a freshman who might already be mentally unstable, could be influenced by this game and become a serial-killer or just walk into a place and start shooting. An example of this could be the Sandy Hook shooting. I doubt that a freshman would do, or grow up to do that, but it could happen.  Other than that, I believe the game could teach teamwork and show that hard work pays off. It can teach the students that you have to always work harder because in everything there might be a competition. It could maybe even motivate the girls and boys to fight for their country, if that is what they want to do.  

This game teaches students responsibility, common sense, and skill. For example, a player named Jake Protell, followed two targets to an airport. They usually use water pistols, but instead he asked the judge’s permission if he could use his “squirt fish.” The judge agreed. Jake said, “I had to get special permission from the judge for the squirt fish, because I didn’t want to take my gun anywhere near an El Al encounter.” This teaches those three things because he knows better, and knows that he should ask for permission from higher authorities, whether he was sure of something or not. It taught common sense because he used his background knowledge of possible dangers that had to do with guns at that time and  thought to himself that he shouldn’t bring a gun to an airport. That was a smart idea because firstly, people might mistake it for a real gun and he would have to  go through unnecessary  problems. He might have even been shot and killed, being mistaken for having a real gun. Secondly, it was smart because, people who are not mentally stable may think if he got through with a gun, why can’t I? Him bringing a gun into an airport could influence someone to being in a real one. That wouldn’t be very intelligent because there are metal detectors, but Jake made a well thought out decision for bringing in the squirt fish to avoid all kinds of problems or accusations.

Another way that proves these students are skilled is because of the planning they do. They think and find out a way or any possible opportunities to take down their opponents. For example, three seniors staked out at Willis Cohens house. Willis was a freshman who “enlisted” in this game. The seniors staked out near his house. Their plan was to call the Cohens’ home using the caller I.D. of Willis’s teammate, Dominic. The driver of the minivan they were staking out in quoted,”We want to get Cohen out on the stoop, or learn whether he’s sleeping at home.”  They got through the call, but Cohen’s mom was tipped off and she had already driven her son and a teammate to a kill in SoHo.  Eventually, Willis was killed.  He used his usual plan, by hopping his neighbors fence, instead of going through the front. He took a cab and asked his driver to raise the windows, but the driver refused. As Cohen was pulling up to the school, he was shot in the chest by a Gaisford member. Willis tried to save himself, but the driver wouldn’t cooperate. “I told the driver to pull over on the other side of the street, but he wouldn’t do it.”

Back to Jake Protell and his team, who took out thirteen people in four days.  Eventually, in the end, the Protell-Lowther team won with a total of twenty-one kills.  

Some people may argue that this games just teaches violence and that video games influences “violent” games. All though this maybe true,  it doesn’t explain the fact that scientists haven’t found results that led to the conclusion of shooter, or other violent games, are too blame for the violence in the world or in, Killer. It turns out that, gaming helps science. An example of this is, while people are playing Candy Crush they could be actually looking for mutations that cause cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, or diabetes.  

Overall, all of this proves that this game teaches the students skill because they really have to use their brains. They need to keep track of other players and find out where they go and what they do to catch them in the least suspected moment. They need to be sly and stake out, like several of players have done. They resolve problems and are taught to stay hidden. They learn to watch their backs and to stay careful, to avoid being brought down by a team. Games like these teach students valuable lessons they could us for the real world.

(2013, September 18) “Do games like ‘Grand Theft Auto V’ Cause Real- World Violence?” Retrieved from  http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2013/09/17/a-grand-theft-auto-v-book-club-or-why-the-day-one-review-isnt-always-best/

Carey,B. (2013, February 11) “Shooting in the Dark” New York Times.D1.

Mohammadi,B. (2014, January 25) How online gamer’s are solving science’s biggest problems. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jan/25/online-gamers-solving-sciences-biggest-problems

About the Author…

I am thirteen years old, turning fourteen in May. I like chocolate, One Direction, video games, and traveling. I live with my grandmother, mother, sister, and father. The reason for writing this four page speech is to show my thoughts and support for the game, Killer. My language arts teacher, Ms. Crain, brought my attention to this game, that I didn’t know existed, until she showed me an article about it. She questioned whether this game was harmful or entertaining, leaving the option up to me. I want to thank Ms. Crain for always pushing me to write the best papers I can and for introducing this topic to me to help me have something to write about.