TCOM103 - Fall 2003 - Video Games and Violence

The History of Video Games

By: Kristy Farell

When we look at video games of today, we are looking at games that are much different then they originally began. The games and their coordinating systems are pricier, more popular, and violent and the memories of the systems are greater. These memories being greater allows for more action and a greater amount of imagination. In this section of our article I will be outlining the history of video games, which can be traced back to 1889 through to the present.

Video games can be dated back to 1889, when a man named Fusajiro Yamauchi established the Marufuku Company that would distribute Japanese playing cards. Later, in 1951 the company would change its name to Nintendo. Nintendo means to “leave luck to heaven” (gamespot.com). Then in 1945 two men, Harold Matson and Elliot Handler would come up with the name “Mattel”. In 1947 the Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Company was developed. The company first developed the world’s first pocket-sized battery-powered tape recorder. This company would later change its name to Sony, which in Latin means sound. And last in 1954, after seeing how popular mechanical games were on US military bases a Korean War veteran by the name of David Rosen began developing what would be known as SEGA (gamespot.com).

Generation	Years
1st	1972 - 1977
2nd	1977 - 1981
3rd	1981 - 1984
4th	1985 - 1989
5th	1989 - now

Beginning in 1972 there would be what was considered to be the first generation systems. This would span until 1977. The first televised release of a game system was done by Magnavox and was called “Odyssey. This was a very small computer and only consisted of a few small switches. The major point to this system was not that it was the first video game, but that it was the first computer to play video games on in the privacy of one’s own home. However, a man named Nolan Bushnell would develop the next popular system by the name of Atari Pong. This Atari Pong and its over sixty other similar games would dominate the market until 1977. It would then be replaced by another Atari system, the VCS (geekcomix.com).

The second-generation systems would range from 1977 through 1981. Due to consumer demands and desires for the games, there would be a dramatic change in the contents of the video games people were purchasing. The consumer was more interested in games that were more complicated and exciting to play. The new systems designed would have better graphical and auditory effects, topping what existed in the previous years. It was in these years that the changes had the most dramatic effect on video game sales and on player interests. The most popular game of this generation would be the Atari’s VCS/2600 until the gaming market crash of 1982 (geekcomix.com).

The third generation would exist from 1981 through 1984. This generation is termed the dark ages because there was a major market crash for video games during these years. During the previous generation the video game industry was grossing near $3 billion here in America. At the end of the third generation game sales would only reach approximately $100 million worldwide (geekcomix.com).

There were many reasons as to why the market crashed so drastically, but all ideas were purely speculation. The first of many were that Atari had spread itself to thin, while trying to diversify and the market became too flooded with product. Another theory was that Atari did not make the necessary jumps to better equipment, because they felt the new equipment was to delicate for consumers to handle. This concern would eventually backfire on the company. This would mark the end of Atari’s reign on the video game market. Even to this day Atari has not produced any new games and has slowly been picked apart by the industry (geekcomix.com).

The fourth generation would exist from 1985 through 1989. Two things needed to occur for video games to reach its same level of popularity that existed in generations before. The first would be a reduction in the cost of DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory). This allowed programmers access to more memory. The second major change would have to be a higher power 8-bit processor. These changes would allow for lower prices and become more accessible to video game companies.

During this generation of gaming there was a need for home consoles to be able to compete with arcade games. Several companies from previous generations started to test the market. These companies failed and were beaten by unknown companies with fresh ideas and consoles (geekcomix.com). With winning games such as Mario Brothers and Donkey Kong, Nintendo was one of the major new players. Nintendo would become one of the highest selling systems and would get involved in intimidating retailers and competing heavily with the competition. From basically monopolizing the market, Nintendo would suffer from many lawsuits including allegations of price-fixing and anti-trust violations (geekcomix.com).

The last generation would be the fifth generation that would exist from 1989 to the present. During this generation there would be a16-bit monster system developed and would leave Nintendo behind, while SEGA would take full advantage of the new space creating more imaginative games then ever before. SEGA would develop the SEGA Genesis, which would be more powerful, and by Christmas of 1989 it was outselling any other system (geekcomix.com).

So why all the information on the past 104 years of video gaming? It’s because when we look at today’s gaming systems we’re not only looking at size, price or variety of games. We’re now also looking at the violent content. When video games were small computers, less information could be programmed and people played for simple pleasure. Today we are looking 32 plus bits and games of all colors, sizes, levels and price ranges. In the days of Tetrus and Mario Brothers, characters were not beating each other up nor were the games directed at one race over another. Today, unfortunately they are. The games are aimed at the weakest and demonstrating that the white male is superior. The reason for this is to appeal to certain markets (geekcomix.com).

The rest of our article will address the many components of games today, but at least now you can see where games originated and by whom. Our main point is to demonstrate how video games have the potential to cause anger and aggression especially among children. When you look at the past and the reasons for video games and then look at the present depiction one might see a relationship since in some places video games are considered as “men’s toys”. From this it shows how little boys might misinterpret the action in a game as how real life really should be.

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Video Game Popularity

By: Erick Donley

There are several video games on the market that are violent and there are several that are not. Which of these games are selling the most and which games are in high demand in the market? The top selling and top rated games in the nation are both action games and they are a little violent for some audiences. Many children and young adults play video games and some think that these games have the possibility of making the youth become violent with others around him or her.

The game that is selling the best in the marketplace, as of the week of November 2, is Call of Duty. This is an action game that puts the player in the middle of WWII. The player gets to be either a “U.S. soldier, a British trooper, or Russian infantry” (www.gamespot.com). The player gets to understand first hand how life was during WWII. According to gamespot.com, they portray their character in this “first-person roll-playing atmosphere as the character experiences the gritty and epic life.” This game is very violent and also very realistic. You go through the story killing Nazi soldiers in order to stop their rain of terror. This seems a little bit too much for small kids to handle, but the game earned a parental rating of “T” which is meant for teens 13 and over. I believe that the game should have gotten a more restricted rating of “M” for mature audiences ages 17 and older according to ESRB Game Rating-Game Rating and Descriptor Guide. The game seems a little too graphic for young children to handle. Besides the most popular games, there are also the top ratted games on the market.

The top rated game, as of November 2, is Metroid Prime. To be considered for a top rated game, it is judged on certain criteria. First the game is judged on graphics, how good the background looks compared to the character in that background. Next is the transition from one frame to the next. In other words, how does the character look while it is moving about in the game? Is it smooth or jagged? Lastly the game is judged on its story line if it has one at all. In this game, a robot goes about travailing and investigating this planet of Tallon IV in order to rid it of the Zebsian space pirates. The violence in the game is less graphic but there is still some in the game. The Metroid spends most of his time investigating the area around him instead of fighting the pirates so the violence is a lot less. The reason this game got the top rating is because of its 3D graphics and wonderful story line. But what about the other games that are out in the market place?

The most popular games bought today are either action games or roll playing games with lots of violence in them. If parents are really getting concerned with the games their children are playing then they should look at the rating on the game to make sure that it is suitable for their child. The ratings from the Entrainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) are and they are printed on the front and have a small description why the game got the rating it did. There are several different categories of games like driving, sports, trivia, and several others. If parents want to stop the violence in their children’s lives then they should monitor what their children are playing and set guidelines for their children to follow.

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Kinds of Violent Content That Exist

By: Sara DePasquale

Over the years the public has been exposed to violence more in their everyday life, then ever before. It seems like gun shootings, violent acts, and harassment have been more popular day by day from much of the publicity of the mass media. But did you ever think that any of the violence could be caused from video games? In recent years, video games have been proven to be a popular image of the youth civilization. People have failed to see that video violence has many harmful side effects, and that they are not just for entertainment. However, as the video games have become so common, the amount of violence contained in them has also increased.

Violence is a very key role that has played in many of these video games, so why does it sell? Why do so many kids want to see violence? According to Ken Wirt, the assistant vice-president of NEC says that “Violent games are the most popular because the people enjoy the action in violent games”. Although realistic games are exciting and entertaining, they have brought about many questions as to the risks and effects people face from playing games with extreme violence and graphic depictions. The action packed games basically include punching, kicking, and whipping, shooting, and even killing the opponent in order to win the game and receive an award. Oddly enough, they will receive a prize as to the other player just stays the same, or dies. Along with all these video games that give rewards for killing and abusing others, it is found to be no question or surprise as to why people or parents are starting to be concerned for their children. A lot of parents have been starting to worry that these games could cause tension to their children, and even some violent and hostile behavior. Violence is definitely a built-in part of video games, especially with the newer games becoming more violent. In conclusion, as violence increases so does the concern from parents about the controversial topics of games. This proves that although many video games can be fun and entertaining, they are not very productive and only cause more controversial problems then positive ones.

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Who to Watch out for

By: Robert Engel

Are violent video games really a problem? If the only violent video games in existence were being played by women in their late 60’s, most everyone would agree that they would not be a problem. However, old women are not popularly known as the group that are playing these games. If not old women, then who? Many people would immediately respond children.

Video & Computer Gamers Fall 2003
	6 to 17	18 +
Male	21%	38%
Female	12%	26%

While not a bad answer, this is not, perhaps, the best answer. Chao Xiong, in the Wall Street Journal – Eastern Edition (2003), recently reported around 38% of all video and computer gamers are men 18 or older, 26% are women 18 or older, followed by boys age six to seventeen at 21% and girls age six to seventeen at 12%. Rebecca Gardyn started her column in American Demographics (2003) with the statement that college students are playing a lot of games – not all of them involving alcohol. She goes on to say that 65% of students report that they are regular gamers, and 1 in 5 even claim that their play time actually helps them make new buddies or improve their existing relationships.

Raoul Mowatt reported in the Chicago Tribune (2002) that The Interactive Digital Software Association (IDSA), now known as the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), found in 2002, 55% of console game players were older than 18. The ESA currently reports that number at 62%. These statistics may seem to indicate that games are played by adults, but they also indicate that 38% of the most frequent game players are currently less than eighteen years old.

Video games, themselves are not being debated here as good or bad, it is the tendency for them to present violence that is at issue. Of the classifications of video games, it is “Mature” that causes the most concern. In this group, titles may contain mature sexual themes, more intense violence and/or strong language. This group accounted for 9.9% of games sold in 2001, and 13.2% 2002 (ESA).

Perhaps the way to protect impressionable people from violence in video games is to restrict the sale of these games to people over the age of 18. If children could not purchase these games, then they would not be able to play them. This is a very quixotical view. It turns out that the vast majority, 92%, of people who purchase video games are 18 years or older. Of those under 18 years old who purchase games, 83% get their parents permission (ESA). Therefore it seems adults are buying violent video games. The issue here is that parents buy inappropriate games for their children. James Fussell, in the Kansas City Star (2003) quoted George Scarlett, deputy chair of the department of child development at Tufts University in Bedford, Mass. He said “If your relationships are good, no video game is going to have any ill effects. If the relationships are bad, then maybe the video games have some augmenting effects. But what I worry about is that the video game becomes a scapegoat and a diversion from the real source of violence – poor parenting and toxic relationships.” Fussell also quoted single mother, Melva Winters, about a violent video game played by her two sons, age 11 and 15. She said “Both my kids play it. They haven’t killed Andersen's Fairy Tales anybody yet. And until they do, I figure, let ‘em have some fun.” As this quote shows, some parents have no compunction about allowing their children access to violence, so long as they don’t go so far as to actually kill anybody, that is. Mowatt (2003) also interviewed a Chicago police officer, Migdalia Bulnes. She has confidence in her children age 12 and 16. “I have all my faith in them,” she said. “They know they’re right and wrong, and even though the game has a lot of wrong parts in it, they will make the right decisions.”

But, does violence in video games actually cause increased violence in children? This is a question that has had much attention over the years that games have been in existence. Even in a recent federal appeals court case relating to video game violence, Judge William Posner emphasized the importance of not isolating children from all forms of violence (American Amusement Machine Association v. Teri Kendrick (2001).

“People are unlikely to become well-functioning, independent-minded adults and responsible citizens if they are raised in an intellectual bubble” he said. “Violence has always been and remains a central interest of humankind and a recurrent, even obsessive theme of culture both high and low. It engages the interest of children from an early age, as anyone familiar with the classic fairy tales collected by Grimm, Andersen, and Perrault are aware. To shield children right up to the age of 18 from exposure to violent descriptions and images would not only be quixotic, but deforming; it would leave them unequipped to cope with the world as we know it.”

Reviewing the aforementioned case, Clay Calvert (2002) quoted Professor Torben Grodal of the University of Copenhagen, Denmark:

“The themes and actions of most video games are updated versions of fairy tales and Homer's Odyssey, enhanced by modern audiovisual salience and interactive capabilities. Central themes are the fights with dragons and evil monsters in combination with quests through dangerous and exotic scenarios. It is furthermore important for many games that the hero rescues damsels in distress. That there are only a few basic narrative patterns in video games is not surprising because there are not many basic narrative patterns in fiction.”

A study in the early 80’s showed a correlation between the length of experience with video games and achievement motivation in females (Gibb, Bailey, Lambirth, & Wilson, 1983). Other studies have shown correlations regarding video games and violence, but they have not shown causation (Kirsh, 2001). As Judge Posner wrote, “The studies do not find that video games have ever caused anyone to commit a violent act, as opposed to feeling aggressive, or have caused the average level of violence to increase anywhere.”

There are other benefits. Brian Good reported in Men’s Health (2003) magazine that researchers at the University of Rochester found that men who play video games have better visual acuity then men who don’t play. And it didn’t take years for the improvement. He states that after as little as 10 hours of game play, your ability to track fast-moving objects will have improved. Seventy-six percent of Americans believe that video games help develop hand-eye coordination, according to John Fetto of American Demographics (2002).

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The Positive Side to Video Games

By: Reggie Donald

In today’s era the video game is becoming more and more popular. It’s not abnormal for children to have many of them and to have a Playstation2, X-Box, or Nintendo Game Cube. Many people think that video games bring violent activity to the household, but honestly, how can one playing a video become violent. Many people may not know it, but video games do have positive outcomes on children. Many think that they are just a waste of time and are useless to children. But video games have many positive aspects such as: they keep kids familiar with the increase of high-technology, they provide a family bonding, and they encourage more socialization within their peer groups.

With the advancement in technology, video games are a key element in helping them learn about the advancement. “According to UCLA psychologists Patricia Marks Greenfield, video games introduce them to the world of microcomputers at a time when computers are becoming increasingly important in many jobs and in daily life. In fact, many computer programmers and technicians have gotten their first taste of technology by playing such recreational devices” (White 92). Not only are they fun to play, they are making children more technologically advanced.

In many households, parents and children do not get a chance to bond. By playing video games, this is one way family members can get to bond. This is a very fun and exciting way in which they can. Many family members don’t have the opportunity to really get to know their child because they are always working, but having an opportunity to play one video game makes the bonding process a success.

We live in a society today where many kids have to gain acceptance amongst others. In some cases this is very hard for them. Video games help kids socialize with their peers, and in some cases help them make new friends and friendships. “An Allentown, PA., couple…said their son’s video games helped him through some difficult times. ‘Our son is not the athletic type,’ [the woman] said, ‘but after he got the games, we noticed all the kids started to congregate in our home. It was a way of socializing” (White 92).

Video games have lots of aspects on children. The majority of them are positive, but some are negative. Video games do not provoke violence. There are plenty of other factors that provoke violence and video games aren’t one of them. To some children, video games are their only life and if you take that away from them, what will become of them? Video games give children something to fall back on, instead of them going out and causing trouble. Video games are essential in the development of a child. A video game is a teacher to young children.

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The Healthy Side to Video Games

By: Josh Denning

Too many people focus on the down side of video games like the violence and how it seems to be corrupting our kids these days. But not very many people tend to look at the positive side to these games, or the benefits that these games bring to us. Because they focus on the violence of the game they look right past how video games give us better hand-eye coordination, or how it makes us pay attention better and keeps us more heads up during our daily lives. There is a positive side to these violent video games that no one seems to want to find.

Researchers are reporting today that first-person-shooter video games, the kind that require players to kill shoot or do some sort of harm to enemies or monsters that pop out of nowhere sharply improve visual attention skills (Shaffer). Which, if you think about, makes since because the person playing the video game has to stay alert, because he/she never knows what is going to pop up next or where it is going to come from. According to Dr. Daphne Bavelier, an associate professor of cognitive neuroscience at the University of Rochester, experienced players of these first-person-shooter games are 30 percent to 50 percent better than non experienced players at taking in everything that happens around them. They identify objects in their peripheral vision, perceiving many objects without having to count them, switch attention rapidly and track many items at once. Also in this study Dr. Bavelier said that the kids that were novice players of these games paid better attention in class and could concentrate better on work. Dr. Jeremy Wolfe, the director of the Visual Attention Laboratory at Harvard Medical School stated "It might give every 14-year-old something to tell his parents 'Hey, don't make me study. Give me another grenade.'" He also said that an increased capacity for this kind of visual attention was helpful in tasks as diverse as flying, driving, radiology and airport screening (Shaffer).

Video games also improve hand-eye coordination, Joslynn M. Malfait said “...Playing Pac-Man and Donkey Kong were teaching kids how to use strategies and also hand eye coordination.” When playing a video game a person has to look at a screen and use the hand held controls at the same time. Usually when someone is a beginner at playing video games he/she does not have the coordination to look at the screen the whole throughout the game, they usually have to look down at their hand every now and then to find certain buttons, but the more they play that game they get more used to using the controls and they develop better hand eye coordination.

NASA also did some research that has led them to believe that video games can lead to better health and hand eye coordination. Doctors at NASA have used biofeedback to help control stress and tension. Now NASA technology combines this mind-over-matter technique with the hand-eye coordination of video games. This trains people to change their brainwave activity or other physiological functions while playing popular off-the-shelf video games. This is accomplished by making the video game respond to the activity of the player's body and brain (NASA/Langley Research Center). Dr. Olafur Palsson, assistant professor of psychiatry and family medicine at Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) in Norfolk, Virginia, said,

"Thirty years of biofeedback research has shown that by training specific brainwave changes, or reductions in other abnormal physiological signals, people can achieve a wide variety of health-enhancing outcomes, with this new technology, we have found a way to package this training in an enjoyable and inherently motivating activity."

In order to sensor the players brain waves, sensors are attached to the players head and body while he is playing the game. These sensors are fed through the joystick or another type of controller to monitor the player brain waves as he/she becomes closer to an optimal stress-free pattern (NASA/Langley Research Center). This pattern starts when the player gains better hand eye coordination and can start to use the joystick more easily; this makes the player repeat those patterns in order to succeed at the game. Dr. Olafur Palsson states,

“In this way, recreational video games have the potential to help both children and adults with a variety of health problems -- from concentration difficulties to physical stress. Unlike earlier biofeedback methods, which tended to be monotonous and simplistic, this technology adapts to today's most popular games, giving players a healthful side effect, while fully preserving the high-tech entertainment value. “

Video games are not all bad; in fact they are very helpful and much needed in today’s society. Too many people only look at the bad effects of the games like the violence, but if you can look past the violent content and see how helpful they are for our health and hand-eye coordination then you would understand that they are needed in our lives.

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Misrepresentation in Video Games

By: Julie Demler

Video games have become a really popular past time with today’s generation. Players often spend hours trying to conquer a challenging game, and why not. They’re a blast. Because of the improvement of technology, today’s video games speeds are much faster compared to the games of the past. The technological advancements have made games life-like. Many games are 3-D, this makes characters look like real people, the action realistic, and some games even have very detailed storylines.

One thing is missing in the picture. Where is the racial diversity? Think about your favorite video game; how many African Americans or Latinos are represented in the game as heroes? A recent study completed by the organization Children Now has discovered that “female characters were most likely to be portrayed as props or bystanders (50 percent). Almost all African American females (86 percent) were victims of violence; African American and Latino men were typically athletes; and Asian/Pacific Islanders were usually wrestlers or fighters. In addition, there were no Latina characters” (Children Now, 2001).

Software can be used on the internet to make video games. Some groups are taking advantage of this by making “hate games” that anyone can play. Ethnic Cleansing is one of those controversial games. When playing Ethnic Cleansing, “Players become cyber-Klansmen and stalk minorities through a virtual urban landscape…The game allows players to assume the persona of a Klu Klux Klan member or a ‘skinhead’ gang member and kill minorities” (Eng, 2001) as a challenge.

Very few games have women represented in them. Normally, if there are women in games, they are portrayed as helpless and “more likely that males to scream, to wear revealing clothing, and to share, help, or nurture” (Children Now, 2001). However, one popular game shows a female character as the exact opposite of being helpless. Lara Croft is the lead character of the movie and video game - Tomb Raider. She does not need anyone’s help. She is smart and very strong. She is able to conquer her enemies. She is, however, scantily clad with revealing clothing.

The races and gender stereotyping in video games could very easily affect the players. Since the games are so life like, the players lead to believe that this is how they should behave in the real world. Today’s youth grow up with the concept that it is okay to see females as helpless sex symbols and that white males should always be dominant.

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Portrayed Races in Violent Video Games

By: Tim Fiely

Video game violence is a major issue in today’s society but how video games portray different races and ethnic groups is often over looked. Since the popularity of video games, especially violent video games, started to increase races have been not only portrayed unfairly but stereotyped as well. This phenomenon has been ignored for a very long time and is just now getting some recognition. With the abundance of violent video games overflowing the market and violent games becoming so popular, many people end up playing them. This means the video game companies need to represent many different races. The bad thing is most of the time the companies make the minorities the so-called bad guys or the antagonists. In the Grand Theft Auto series (GTA), which includes four different games: Grand Theft Auto one, two, three and the newest installment, Vice City, many races are portrayed very badly. Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City are the worst of the series. In these games mainly the Italians are portrayed wrongly. These games make Italians out to be heatless killers that are only interested in crime and money (Bueno). GTA III and GTA: Vice City are played by millions of people. Many are younger and vulnerable made to believe that all Italians are in the mob or that all Italians are bad people. The game also unfairly portrays Asians, Blacks, and Haitians (Bueno). These games not only portray races badly but women as well. Women in these games are treated extremely brutal. They are beaten, killed and even fondled and raped in the back seats of cars. This problem of bad portrayal of races in violent video games is not something new in fact many games in the mid 1980’s had bad portrayals and used stereotypes. A series of boxing games called Punch Out had many racists and stereotypical components such as a character called Gabby Jay. Gabby Jay was an extremely feminine Frenchman and the weakest player in the game. This is using the stereotype that feminine people and the French are weak and cowardly. The Punch Out series also stereotypes Italians, Asians, Mexicans, and even the British. The British are stereotyped by the character being stuck up, spoiled, and bratty (Bueno). Though the Grand Theft Auto games have been getting a lot of press recently, shortly before GTA came out, the biggest story was a game called Ethnic Cleansing. The game promotes white supremacy and Nazi views. The basic object to the game is to travel on urban streets and through underground subway tunnels and kill as many different races as possible. Players target African-Americans, Hispanics, and Jewish characters. The game also has many repeated racist images and audio content (Becker, 2002). This game is extremely unnecessary in today’s society, but sadly it is not the only one like this. There are hundreds of games that portray many different races poorly. Video game companies need to start to portray different races better. There is no need in today’s society for games like this. All races should be represented and represented fairly.

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The Possible Solutions

By: Aaron Duncan

Video games turned 30 years old in 2002. The industry that started with Pong has become a multi-billion dollar worldwide industry (Walsh). The growth of the industry is both matched and driven by technological advances. In a little more than two years, video game consoles have gone from processing 350,000 polygons per second (pg/s) - a measure of graphic and action quality - to processing 125 million pg/s (Walsh). Video games have significantly increased in detail and playability in the past two years (Walsh). This increase has created a more addicting atmosphere where children, teens, and adults alike can become lost in the world of the video game. But, it is argued, that this being lost within the game has created a real world full of violence and hatred.

Violence among teens and children has been on the rise in the past few years and this rise is being attributed to violent video games (Walsh). A possible solution to children or teens getting a hold of inappropriate games is the rating system developed by the ESRB. “The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) ratings are designed to provide information about video and computer game content, so you can make informed purchase decisions” (ESRB, 2003). The ESRB also provides services for rating websites and online games, for ensuring online privacy protection, and for reviewing advertising created by the interactive entertainment industry. The rating system ranges from early childhood to adults only (ESRB, 2003). With this rating system, parents can determine what type of game their children are buying and hopefully prevent them from purchasing and playing violent or inappropriate games.

The best possible solution to preventing children from playing violent video games is for parents to simply not allow their kids to play such games (Anderson, 2002). Parents are the ultimate word of authority to their children, and if parents do not allow their children to play violent video games then their children will protected from them at home (Anderson 2002). Parents should go with their children to buy video games and check the rating system because that is what it is there for in the first place. Children can be protected from violent video games and it is the parent’s responsibility to protect their children.

So is the answer to ban all violent video games? That certainly is one solution, albeit an uncreative and ineffectual one. Violence in video games may not be the problem; the problem maybe that parents need to be more responsible with what games their children play and do a better job teaching them wrong from right (Anderson, 2002). People do not imitate violence for its own sake; they do it because violence is portrayed in video games as the best way to solve problems, and this problem solving technique is carried into the real world. If adults monitor their children, then violence would not be a problem stemming from video games. Video games can be an excellent form of aggressive escapism as long as the games do not convey the message that violence is the best means to solve problems.

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Reference

Anderson, Craig A. (2002). Violent Video Games and Aggressive Thoughts, Feelings, Behaviors. In Calvert, S. L., Jordan, A. B. & Cocking, R. R. (Eds.), Children In The Digital Age: Influences Electronic Media Development (pp. 101-119). Retrieved November 9, 2003, from http://www.psychology.iastate.edu/faculty/caa/abstracts/2000-2004/02A.jcc.pdf

American Amusement Machine Association, et al., v. Teri Kendrick, et al. 244 F.3d 572 (7th Cir 2001), cert. denied, 122 S. Ct. 462 (2001).

Calvert, Clay. (2002, Winter). Violence, Video Games, and A Voice of Reason: Judge Posner to the Defense of Kids' Culture and the First Amendment. San Diego Law Review, Vol. 39 Issue 1, p1.

Children Now. (2001, Dec 11). Top-selling Video Games Virtual Wasteland for Racial, Gender Diversity. Retrieved November 3, 2003, from http://www.childrennow.org/newsroom/news-01/pr-12-11-01.cfm#charts

CNET Networks Media Property. Copyrighted 1995-2003, November 2, 2003. http://www.gamespot.com/

Eng, Paul. (2002, Mar 20). Raising Hate to a New Level. Retrieved November 3, 2003, from ABC News Web site: http://abcnews.go.com/sections/scitech/DailyNews/hategames020301.html

Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). (2003). Game Ratings: Game Rater and Description Guide. Retrieved November 9, 2003, from http://www.esrb.org/esrbratings_guide.asp

Entertainment Software Association (ESA). (n.d.). ESA << Digital Press Room. Retrieved November 5, 2003, from http://www.theesa.com/pressroom.html

Fetto, John. (2002, Jul/Aug). Game Do-Over. American Demographics, Vol. 24 Issue 7, p17.

Fussell, James A. (2003, Feb 25). Violent video game has parents, experts concerned about children who play it. The Kansas City Star (MO). Retrieved November 3, 2003, from EBSCO Newspaper Source Database.

Gardyn, Rebecca. (2003, Oct). Got Game? American Demographics, Vol. 25 Issue 8, p18.

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