Wow… I got nothing on this thread now. Thanks.
What? These people were critics -the Burning Criticism movement. They just aren’t in vogue now.
[quote=] It just means there are other thoughts occupying his head, than making small talk and getting wasted. And isn’t that the point of developing your imagination?[/quote] Is there a specific point? Btw getting wasted can lead to some imaginative conversations, that’s for sure.
Continuing with what Xwing said, let’s look at history.
Rock and roll was considered a barbaric form of music that was going to turn American kids into monsters. Elvis Presley was evil for his hip movements. A ban was put forth in Congress to ban rock and roll altogether, which obviously didn’t pass. Today, Elvis and rock and roll are considered integral parts of American culture and history.
For all intents and purposes, the same thing is happening with videogames. Whenever a new media form arises that people don’t understand or don’t like they try to suppress it, fearing it will turn American youth into savages. It’s easy to turn something you don’t even understand into an addiction, and it’s pretty damn easy to not understand videogames. I don’t hear anyone saying that the kid who shot up Virginia Tech was addicted to poetry or that it caused him to go on a killing spree.
Yeah, but he hadn’t actually played many video games either. Jack Thompson was just talking out his ass. Of course, 90% of youths in America have played video games at some point in their lives. (I actually did a bit of research on this.) It is therefore a reasonable bet that you can say “He played video games at some point in his life! They turned him into a serial killer!” That said …
I just want to hear the argument when a kid who loves Animal Crossing commits a violent act.
So the video game crash of 1983 (effects in 1984) is responsible for the rise in crime. Er… no. I wonder though if this table (or its variations) is so popular because it can be interpreted as VGs lowering crime.
There was an interesting book I spotted at a local bookstore the other day called Sex in Video Games. I can only describe it as an unbiased objective look into the heavily biased subjections of the video game mythos. Basically it’s a thicker than an inch book which owes a third of it’s lenght to GTA:SA, a second third to obscure sex oriented fan games like Panty Raiders, and the rest of the book focusing on all the rest of the offenders like Leisure Suit Larry and Night Trap. (Btw why isn’t Night Trap on that list it was video games’ second bad poster boy game next to Mortal Kombat which also seems to be conspicuously missing from that graph?)
Mortal Kombat’s on there, it’s right between Postal and GTA 3. And I’ll be the first person to say that corellation does not equal causation, but that graph is based on actual government sources apparently, and you can’t make the case that real-world violence has increased since the release of violent video games.
As for serious books … I’ve also seen a book called “Don’t Bother Me, Mom, I’m Learning”. It’s about how certain video games are good for you, and spend some time describing how the “Video games are EVIL!” stance tends to be based on shock-value rather than substance (and doesn’t outright say Jack Thompson’s a psycho ass, but …)
I was refering to the Original Mortal Kombat. I think that the one on the chart is like 3 or 4 (or a PC version)
Yar, that is a nice chart; I’ve got a somewhat similar chart (slightly outdated though) stored in my documents. But the trend definitely continues.
For the VG addicts here (this is just between us), there are already facilities like Smith & Jones GAMESTERDAM clinic that could help you get on the right track.
Keith Bakker, director of Smith & Jones Addiction Consultants reads you like an open book knowing your past, present & future: “You can get a 21-year-old with the emotional intelligence of a 12-year-old. He’s never learned to talk to girls. He’s never learned to play a sport.”
Going to Amsterdam to cure an addiction? I can see how this may backfire.
Yeah, and “never learned to play a sport” is synonymous with “development of a twelve-year-old.” Sure. And the sole defining characteristic of your personality is your gender. Uh-huh.
Oh christ that’s like 40 minutes from here.
D:
Bloody rubbish! Addiction isn’t a disease. Nothing that requires an active choice is a disease!
Drug and alcohol addiction is very real, and horrible. But videogames are not in that category. Not by far.
Videogames are an art form. You might as well declare “painting addiction” (he studies Picasso too much!), which most people would find ludicrous. Or “movie addiction”(those weirdos have too much of a fixation with Citizen Kane!).
Videogames are an art to be enjoyed like painting, movies, etc. Not like alcohol or drugs.
How is locking yourself in your room to play games, rather than going out and being social, that much different from locking yourself in your room and getting high? You’re escaping from reality either way.
Videogames CAN be appreciated, but they can also be abused as an escape.
You can say that about anything.
How is locking yourself in your room to play games, rather than going out and being social, that much different from locking yourself in your room and getting high? You’re escaping from reality either way.
How is it different from watching a sports game? You’re escaping from reality when you do that. I mean, what the fuck does watching a bunch of guys play a game have to do with your daily life, anyway? How is it different from reading a book? Or watching a movie?
The only way playiving videogames is different from those things is that its not as popular. Which is why idiots want to say its bad somehow. But its a hobby, like all others. Its only “anti-social” because its not as popular yet as other hobbies.
That said, don’t fucking play three days straight kthxbai
edit: btw, OmegaflareX, even as late as 1986, rock was still accused by the PMRC, resulting in the Explicit Lyrics sticker. (Zappa vs Lofton)