Video Games and Violence

Tests done in the US, one of the most violent countries on Earth, taking into account age, video games played, time played, video game release dates and sales. They show no evidence of video games causing violent behaviour.

On the contrary, violent video games actually show a decrease in violence in real life. This may be due to the fact that they can express their violence in a virtual sandbox and don't have to let it out in real life.

Why there is that huge misconception then?

Well, in case you have noticed, the media, which tends to spread these false claims, hates everything which our generation likes. Sure, there are some bad bits about our generation but the media obsessively targets video games whenever something is slightly related.

The media tends to spread these claims because they engage the target audience much easier that, say "Teen talks out online friend on Xbox 360 from committing suicide" and yes, that's an actual case.

But who is the target audience? Who watches the news the most? Typically our parents, aged somewhere around 40 to 50. And you must have heard your parents complaining about being on your console all day (which is not healthy but is no incitement for bad results or violence) right? So this sort of exaggerated news, often modified heavily is out there to please the audience, adults.

Then, of course. Video games offer something which can be blamed. Yes. It is much easier to blame any of the new technologies than it is to blame the failing education system, bad parenting and many other social flaws.

This is the same thing as 5G causing Covid-19. People who caught it preferred to blame an emerging technology than to blame themselves for not wearing a mask and for not practising any Covid-19 guidelines.

So why does this point sound so ridiculous but the one before it does not?

Furthermore, research claiming to prove a correlation between gaming and violence fail to enforce proper experimental practices. One of the most blatant cases is how apparently child gamers will grow up to be more violent. Given that video games (violent ones) have not been around for a long time, it is bizarre to even have a large enough sample size for a valid experiment. Furthermore, experimentation fails to isolate video games as the source of violence. Many social factors also come into play and the phony science here mentioned makes no attempts at reducing disparities on this level. Who is to say that a slowly collapsing society has had no effects at all on people's mental wellbeing? That would be a much more logical line of thought than blaming videogames.

The research may also be wrong. There are many many factors which have an impact on children's lives and it is impossible in practice to create a test scenario where video games are the only variable. Hence, the research may not be adequate to quantify the impact video games have on children's violence. So, here are some concepts which may prove that video games are somewhat responsible for child violence.

The first problem is that children are allowed to play games which are rated for older gamers. For example, a friend plays Assassin's Creed which is rated for 18 years old while he is only 16. If gamers do not respect the guidelines, of course they may be subjected to certain influences. But that's not the game's fault. It's the parents' fault for buying the child that game. You cannot blame the games instead of the parents' irresponsibility.

Let's assume you have managed to give a child games which are rated for his age. There is one more problem, being online play. Online play involves players across the world playing together on a single match. Online play is not rated, ever. This is because people may decide to be vulgar on the game chat or in the voice chat. Hence, the gamer is exposed to verbal violence, typically by an enraged gamer on the other side of the planet. This may be anything like racist, homosexual or sexist slurs which are inappropriate for younger gamers and, which I believe is a huge downside to video games.

Points against video games but unrelated to violence.

Video games adapt the brain to develop it's short term memory at the expense of long term memory. This is because games typically move fast and you won't need to know what happened in a game some weeks into the future. This means that the memory dedicated to information typically study-related is neglected. This is disadvantageous to our studies, especially ours, here in Mauritius because our study system is entirely memory based.

Video games offer a short term reward system which is more appealing than long term rewards. The gamer would rather get a virtual achievement every day than have to work over a year to get satisfactory results. And even then, his teachers and parents are not satisfied. So, that's why students may develop an addiction to video games.

The view that video games carry no benefits to the player is also really dated and biased. Here is why:

Video games enhance hand-eye coordination. You cannot look at your keyboard or controller when playing so this means that your hands develop better self coordination. You can control your hands without having too maintain eye contact.

Certain games, like Minecraft, enhance creativity as you can build anything you want and the possibilities are limitless. Hence, creativity is a positive point of video games which is not developed in many other fields, practically none of them are offered at school. I'm saying, school does not develop creativity but actually diminishes it due to the boring and often uneventful classes.

Other games encourage thinking outside of the box. Even violent games may promote that. Like, you may need to develop your own strategies and this sort of problem-solving is a really really important skill. Jobs in the computer science sector, such as basic coding or even hacking require the person to "think out of the box". There's an example of this, which is not too relevant here, on Alex's website.

So you have games which develop the skills you may need in computer science. Well, some games, including Minecraft, possess key components which are used in actual, better schools in the UK and Scandinavian countries. Minecraft is used to teach coding through mod creation, the use of Turtles and Commands as well as through external programming by it's widespread Python and Scratch port. Minecraft is used in conjunction with Raspberry Pi's to teach coding. Many other games are used too but I could not go too far in depth. Anyway, I hope you understand that video games bring about good in this field as well.

Video games are a very good means for socially awkward children (and adults) to be exposed through social contact by making friends online and maintaining a friendly relationship even if they do not know each others' faces. This is really important to those sorts of children who have difficulties socialising and these online interactions can teach them how to get better.

Video games increase the capacity to concentrate on a given task. This is because, when playing, you are entirely focused on the game. You might not hear your mother calling you for dinner and when she hits you with Savat Dodo, you have no idea why.

Video games enhance multitasking and observational skills. You may need to check multiple aspects of the game interface at the same time, such as enemies, health, time left and sorts. Hence, not only are your multitasking skills improved but your brain develops in such a way to become faster.