Hot topic! This one comes up all the time, usually after someone kills someone else (in real life). I've been chewing on this one for a while.
Proponents of this theory say that violent video games cause violent behavior. That little Johnny was such an angel until he started playing Grand Theft Auto, at which point he went next door and stabbed little Stevie to death with a carving fork.
These people are idiots. And yes, I'm going to tell you why.
For one, they try to prove their point by doing studies that prove a link between violent behavior and the playing of violent video games. Jimmy is a bully at school, and he plays a video game called Bully. In the game, you're tasked with being a bully at school, and sure enough, Jimmy is a bully in real life. Proven. Or is it?
Now, I'm not saying that there isn't a link between violent behavior and violent games. Just that these people have it backwards:
Jimmy isn't a bully because he plays the game. He plays the game because he's a bully.
A slight change in wording makes a HUGE difference in the outcome. The truth is quite simple: Violent people are more attracted to violent video games. It's not the other way around. The video games don't make them into violent people, they're already violent people, whether they play the game or not.
This could be proven rather easily by just doing a simple unbiased study. You put Jimmy the bully and Bobby the little angel into a room to play video games, and you give them a choice of Saint's Row and Barbie Horse Adventures. Guess which kid's going to play which one? Jimmy isn't going to touch the Barbie game with a ten-foot pole, and if you were to force it on him, he'd probably try to find ways in which to break the horse's legs so he'd get to shoot it. Conversely, if you were to force angel Bobby to play Saint's Row to run over pedestrians and shoot up a police station, he'd probably get sick. He'd play the game in a very conservative fashion, and he absolutely would not suddenly turn into a mass murderer.
In fact, other studies have been done that indicate that violent video games are actually a healthy outlet for aggression for these people. Have a bad day at work? Pop in Call of Duty and go kill some Russkies, you'll feel better. Better to play a game for an hour than to leave a body in a ditch somewhere, yeah?
Yes, I play violent video games. Because I'm a violent person. I have an incredibly vicious temper, one that I've had since long before these games even existed, that I've spent most of my life learning to control. And I'm very good at it. Most people see me as mild-mannered Clark Kent, which is how I prefer to be.. it's who I want to be. That's the guy that plays Flower. Underneath, it's more like Dexter Morgan. He's the one that plays Mortal Kombat.
The problem is that a lot of parents these days, specifically the ones that were never gamers themselves, believe that games never grew up.. they think that it's all still Pac-Man and Missle Command and that "games are for kids". As such, they tend to completely ignore the rating system (many aren't even aware that there is such a thing) and let their kids play whatever they want. Ironically, they get mad at the store or the game industry when they find out just what the games are like, even though they themselves purchased it. It's not that hard, really. If the store clerk refuses to sell the game to Junior, and asks for your ID before selling it to you, that might be a pretty good indication that this game isn't what you think it is.
It's part of a much larger problem of parents refusing to take responsibility for the raising of their children, but that's a discussion for another time.
In the meantime, parents need to pay attention to what their kids are playing, and learn about the rating system. It's there for a reason. Video games aren't for kids anymore.
