Stop Blaming Video Games

The video games phenomenon is somewhat new in this modern society. Although they are often entertaining, the contents have become more violent and disturbing as computing technology has advanced. These days the popularity of violent games have caused major controversy. Parents and experts feel that some games are just too violent. They have begun to demand that the government regulate the sale of these games to protect children. However, I strongly believe that violent video games do not cause an increased aggression in adolescents. Furthermore, the forceful plan by the government is a reaction to an exaggeration to the effects of violent video games and these worries are unfounded.

Looking past the violent contents, video games have several positive aspects. Based on my experience, video games can push children’s competence to the limit by forcing them to master a certain ability to overcome the obstacles in a game. For example, “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six” series requires teamwork. The player acts as the leader of an elite anti-terrorist squad consisting of 3-4 members. At the beginning of the game, players can choose how to infiltrate the terrorist compound. They can plant an explosive on a door, rope onto the roof from a helicopter, or simply breach all the doors at once to create a surprise assault. These options will ignite the sense of logical thinking and strategy formations in ways of which formal education cannot.

Aside from the cognitive aspects, video games are a tool for social interaction. Friendships can be developed through playing video games and ultimately keep friendships lasting. Many of the most popular video games today have a multiplayer or online mode. For example, I’ve made friends with many people of other ethnicities by playing “Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare” This game focuses on eliminating the other team and there are many ways to do this, I prefer to communicate with my teammates and discuss a strategic plan expunge the other team. Or other times, with a headset ( a combination of headphones and a microphone) I just speak to other teens just like me about our interests, ideas, and backgrounds, getting to know each other while we play. Personally, I’ve been able to enhance my social skills by having conversations with others online. For some people, starting a conversation with another can be really hard, I know it was for me, and videogames have helped others and me to learn how to.

On the other hand some people, although they already know some of the positive aspects of video games, still believe that the negative aspects will overcome the positive aspects. The article “Don’t Shoot: Why Video Games Really are Linked to Violence” by Amanda Schaffer from Slate.com stated “The connection between violent games and real violence is also fairly intuitive. In playing the games, kids are likely to become desensitized to gory images, which could make them less disturbing and perhaps easier to deal with in real life. When video games aren't about violence, their capacity to teach can be a good thing. For patients suffering from arachnophobia, fear of flying, or post-traumatic stress disorder, therapists are beginning to use virtual realities as a desensitization tool."(Schaffer) Though this presents evidence that violent games do in fact increase violent thoughts, this data still cannot serve as evidence because the test was conducted in a controlled environment, without considering the other factors that might result in a change in behavior. Additionally, although violent video games might expose children to violent behavior, the amount of violence is often not as great as seen in popular movies and television. The news is filled with stories of war and murder, and nearly every movie contains some form of violence. Plus, these two media's are different from video games in a very important way because they involve real people and not computer-generated characters.

Bibliography

Schaffer,Amanda. “Don’t Shoot Why Video Games Really are Linked to Violence.” Slate. 27 April 2007. 20 April 2015.