Violence in Video Games

Today we're going to discuss and explore depictions of violence in video games and the cultural conversation around it.

Content warning: discussion of violence.

When we hear the terms violence and video games, we may think of modern games like Grand Theft Auto or Dark Souls.

Historically, games have been criticized for using violent content since they first appeared as commercial products, when their graphics were no more complex than white blocks on a black screen.

Death Race (1976)

A precursor to GTA style games, in Death Race the player drove a car to run over humanoid zombies and monsters that looked like people.

The game received criticism and negative reviews due to its depiction of violence. That criticism and negative press was believed to be responsible for higher game sales.

Public outrage not only fueled sales of the game and made Exidy a household name, but established a pattern by which controversial games receive a high levels of press attention, which in turn drives these games' marketplace success.

The Agony and the Exidy: A History of Video Game Violence and the Legacy of Death Race

Discussion

Why do many video games include depictions of violence?

ESRB and restrictions

The Entertainment Software Rating Board appeared in 1994. Like the Comics Code Authority formed in 1954 and The Parental Advisory label introduced to the music industry in 1996, the rating system hoped to prevent children from being exposed to depictions of violence and sex in video games.

The ESRB was formed in reaction to criticism of games like Mortal Kombat and Doom which graphically depicted gun violence, fighting and gore.

Following the 1999 Columbine High School shooting, the shooters were found to have played violent video games like Doom. This lead to studies of the relationship between video game violence and school shootings.

The reports commissioned by the government did not establish such a relationship.

Video games are often blamed for gun violence, but video game play is not predictive of future gun violence, while other social factors are.

chart of gun violence and video game sales by country
https://er.educause.edu/articles/2015/10/what-can-we-learn-from-violent-videogames

In 2005, following controversies relating to the ESRB rating system and content in games like Grant Theft Auto, a law was passed in California that banned the sale of video games to people under the age of 18 and created a new rating system independent of the ESRB to define violent video games.

That law was later struck down in a landmark 2011 case ruling that video games were protected under the First Amendment.

Discussion

Are video games more violent than other mediums like film, novels or comics?

Psychological studies

Lots of research has gone into the study of the relationship between violence in video games and violent acts in real life.

The results of those studies are debated by advocates on both sides.

Some studies have shown a link between video game play and higher levels of aggression, depression and anxiety, while other studies are inconclusive.

Studies have not been able to show a significant relationship between video game play and real world violence or violent crime.

97% of children play video games, and it is estimated that over half of games depict some form of violence.

Federal crime statistics suggest that serious violent crimes among youths have decreased since 1996, even as video game sales have soared.
Violent video games and young people
People are more likely to blame violent video games as a cause of school shootings by white perpetrators than by African American perpetrators, possibly because of racial stereotypes that associate minorities with violent crime, according to new research published by the American Psychological Association.
Violent video games blamed more often for school shootings by white perpetrators

The role of violence in video games

Why is violence so often depicted in video games?

Some studies of violence in film and video games have suggested that the experiences can actually alleviate anxiety, because, it has been suggested, viewers are able to experience extreme emotions in a safe environment.

While many video games depict graphic violence, the most popular video games (by sales) include games like Minecraft, Tetris and Mario Kart.

We were really unhappy with that game [Death Race]. We [Atari] had an internal rule that we wouldn't allow violence against people. You could blow up a tank or you could blow up a flying saucer, but you couldn't blow up people. We felt that that was not good form, and we adhered to that all during my tenure. (Kent, 2002).

The Agony and the Exidy: A History of Video Game Violence and the Legacy of Death Race

Morality and video games

Can video games actually increase our ability to make moral decisions?

In previous classes, we have looked at examples of games that have political or moral themes.

Researches have also looked into how video games can model moral and ethical behavior and decision making.

The book War Play, by Baruch Professor Corey Mead, explores the relationship between the US military and video game developers. The military has funded games for recruitment, training and treatment of post traumatic stress disorder.

Discussion

As game designers, should we use violence or not?

What are the pros and cons of using depictions of violence?

Resources