Video Game Violence - Can games become reality?

One issue that has grown lately is the topic of violence in video games. Many people are concerned about the effects of first-person shooting games, or war-based games, on today's youth. Could playing these games cause them to turn virtual reality into the real thing?

Although many great points have been made, I have to disagree with this idea. I think it's absurd to believe that a child will take the ideas presented in a game and apply them in real life. I'm not ruling out the possibility, but I think the chances are slim.

I have always believed that a child's first influence is his/her parent(s). What you teach your child(ren) as they are growing affects how they think and feel when they mature into free-thinking individuals. I think those children that may turn a game into a real-life situation are those that aren't taught the basics.

I have played many games that have plenty of violence and malicious activity, and I can say that I have never thought about reiterating my in-game actions into real-life occurences, and I believe I, and those of you that believe the same, owe it to our parents, or those who raised us. It's the basic morals we were presented with that made us who we are today.

I think something to research is the link between child neglect and hatred, or a feeling that would make someone want to cause violence. Child neglect could cause depression, like many other things. I think depression is another very common problem that could be linked to real-life violence.

As I've mentioned in my "'Homophobia' - could there be a more idiotic word?" entry, I think a lot of times people try to come up with answers for things to cover their ass. Instead of saying "well maybe he brought the gun to school because I didn't teach him that it's bad", they like to cover their butt with "it's gotta be those violent games he plays!".

Even if this does prove to be the issue, I believe it is still the parents' fault. Most parents that really pay attention to their kids know what they are doing and what games they are playing. Most of the time the parent(s) are the ones that buy the game in the first place.

There are ratings on games for a reason, so pay attention to them! If you don't want your child playing a game that involves guns and/or shooting, look at the back of the game, they all have a rating and a reason why they are rated so. Also, titles can be very good to go off of. If a game is titled "The Hitman", you can be pretty sure it's going to deal with murder and violence.

With that being said, here are some main points to think about:

• Parents (or legal guardians) are the first influence on children. Teaching them the right things in the beginning will pay off.


• Neglect and depression should be considered for sources of hatred or other causes for violence.


• Games have ratings! Pay attention to them and decide if it is a good idea for your child to have the game or not. If you say "no", your child will only hate you for a minute, but if you say "yes", who knows what could happen?.

To close the entry, I leave you with this statement:
"The source of the problem is not the video game, it's the parent advocating it."