Video games
Video games are electronic games commonly played by children and teens. A large number of young adults, having grown up in the era of video games, also play. Many video games such as sports games and educational games are harmless fun and can actually be beneficial to a child's development, especially if they allow more than one player. Some games though are violent and sexually explicit and have attracted the attention of family groups and Conservative Christians. Games such as Grand Theft Auto and Mortal Kombat are very violent and sometimes sexually explicit. Laws have been passed to limit young people's access to these violent games but these laws are either rarely enforced[Citation Needed] or overturned by judges.[1] Violent video games are believed to cause violent behaviour in some children, especially those under 16 whose mind is still not fully developed.[Citation Needed]
In the USA, the majority of games carry ESRB ratings.
Contents
Various genres
Video games in the course of their existence have grown from the simple arcade style games, and have become more detailed and separated from one another. Genres can now include first person shooters, racing, Simulation, Role-playing, Sports, and many others. Even then, games can combine genres, such as "Mass Effect" Role Playing and Third Person Shooting, and some even create their own genre, like "Katamari Damacy".
Popularity & Controversy
Games have risen in popularity over the years, as is shown in the rise of video games sales from the eighties until today. This has brought with it a various amount of controversy as the video game industry continues to grow with it's original player base.
Most of the controversy comes from the rising trend toward violence in video games, as pioneered by Doom, Quake, and the Grand Theft Auto series. One man in Particular, Jack Thompson, has imposed a self-manned crusade against video games, which has made him a target of both the online gamer community and of the mainstream media.
Video Games & Society
As video games become more popular, their impact on society becomes ever more present. A prime example of this is the massive ad campaigns for the Halo series, as well as Grand Theft Auto. Advertising, merchandising, and even social pressures have changed in the ever-growing influence of video gaming.
Due to their popularity, various corporations have begun placing advertisements for their products within the context of the game. Players of Grand Theft Auto may notice real-world company ads on billboards. Second Life, an Internet-based virtual world, has blurred the lines between real-world and virtual world. Companies such as Adidas Reebok and Dell have set up virtual stores selling real-world products within the game. Reuters also operates a news bureau reporting news in the game.
Faith in Video Games
Faith in Video Gaming has, as a rule, either led to the creation of new and dynamic antagonists, or video games that are mediocre , such as Spiritual Warfare and Bible Adventure for the Nintendo, or The Bible Game for various systems.
The Bible, or other such religious texts, are rather used to tell a story spanning many different viewpoints. Turning these ideas into a video game, however, most often leads to games that tend to bore most video game audiences.
Religion has, however, taken a prominent place amongst the various heroes and villains in video games. The Breath of Fire Series, in particular, uses God as a main antagonist in many of its incarnations. Other games to use religion include Final Fantasy, Left Behind: Eternal Forces, Xenogears, and Okami.
Popular Video games
- Final Fantasy - A very popular RPG series in both the United States and Japan. Some games contain violence, sexuality, references to homosexuality, suicide, teen pregnancy, transvestism, occultic themes and (although rarely) negativity towards religion.
- Grand Theft Auto - Highly violent. 16-18 and up depending on country.
- Half-Life - First Person Shooter series about Gordon Freeman, a luckless scientist turned hero-from-desperation.
- Harvest Moon - Farm Life simulator, with many sequels spreading from various platforms. Character runs a farm, raises animals, and can eventually marry. Until recent incarnations, games had no violence. Rated E [6+] to T [13+].
- The Legend of Zelda - A popular series of fantasy action-adventure games.
- Mass Effect - A science fiction RPG rated "M" for blood, language, partial nudity, sexual themes, and violence.
- NHL Series - This series from EA Sports as well as other NHL series are very popular, especially in Canada.[Citation Needed] They are family friendly with less violence as seen on NHL hockey on television (which actually can get quite violent). There is, obviously, no sexuality.
- Pac-Man. An old maze game. It was very popular with kids and adults back in the eighties, and like most old video games it's a clean, fun game for everyone.
- Portal - A popular first person shooter/puzzle game based upon Half-Life involving teleportation.
- Resident Evil - Survival Horror video game series, revolving around viral zombies and the survivors of the zombie attacks. Copious blood, gore, and violence present. As of date, all games in series have been rated M [17+].
- The Sims - A light-hearted life simulator with mild violence and some sexuality. Recommended for 13 and up.
- Smash Brothers - Series of Nintendo Animated fighting games. Follows no specific story, mixing characters from different franchises in wide environments. Animated, no-blood violence.
- Soul Calibur - A weapon-based fighting game. Revolves around the tale of two weapons, Soul Edge [Cursed] and Soul Calibur [Blessed], and those who fight for control of the weapons.
- Street Fighter - One-on-one martial arts fighting game series, where a player selects one of various martial artists and battles other players or against computer-controlled characters. Since this game has mildly revealing dresses for the female fighters and sometimes a little blood during fights, though nowhere as over-the-top as Mortal Kombat, this game is recommended for teens.
- Super Mario Bros. - Side-scrolling platform game series by Nintendo. Players play as Mario and Luigi, two Italian-American plumber brothers from Brooklyn, who explore the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Peach from the evil Bowser Koopa. This game has no strong violence and no sexual content, so it is suitable for all ages.
Benefits Perhaps the most visible benefits of video gaming are its artistic and entertainment contributions. As a form of multimedia entertainment, modern video games contain a unique synthesis of 3D art, CG effects, architecture, artificial intelligence, sound effects, dramatic performances, music, storytelling, and, most importantly, interactivity. This interactivity enables the player to explore environments that range from simulated reality to stylized, artistic expressions (something no other form of entertainment can allow) where the actions of the player operating as a single, irreducible variable. In this respect, every game scenario will play out a slightly different way every time. Even if the game is highly scripted, this can still feel like a large amount of freedom to the person who is playing the game.
A related property is that of emergent behavior. While many games including card games and sports rely on emergent principles, video games commonly present simulated story worlds where emergent behavior occurs within the context of the game. This is something that some gamers find appealing as it introduces a certain level of randomness to a game. In discussing the issue, game designer Warren Spector has used the term "emergent narrative" to describe how, in a simulated environment, storyline can be created simply by "what happens to the player."[20] Emergent behavior in video games date back to the earliest games though. Generally any place where event driven instructions occur for AI in a game, emergent behavior will inevitably exist. For instance, take a racing game in which cars are programmed to avoid crashing and they encounter an obstacle in the track, the cars might then maneuver to avoid the obstacle causing the cars behind them to slow and/or maneuver to accommodate the cars in front of them and the obstacle. The programmer never wrote code to specifically create a traffic jam, yet one now exists in the game.
In Steven Johnson's book, Everything Bad Is Good For You, he argues that video games in fact demand far more from a player than traditional games like Monopoly. To experience the game, the player must first determine the objectives, as well as how to complete them. They must then learn the game controls and how the human-machine interface works, including menus and HUDs. Beyond such skills, which after some time become quite fundamental and are taken for granted by many gamers, video games are based upon the player navigating (and eventually mastering) a highly complex system with many variables. This requires a strong analytical ability, as well as flexibility and adaptability. He argues that the process of learning the boundaries, goals, and controls of a given game is often a highly demanding one that calls on many different areas of cognitive function. Indeed, most games require a great deal of patience and focus from the player, and, contrary to the popular perception that games provide instant gratification, games actually delay gratification far longer than other forms of entertainment such as film or even many books. [1] Some research[21] suggests video games may even increase players' attention capacities.
Also leading the study of video games' positive effects on society is Dr. James Paul Gee, Mary Lou Fulton Presidential Chair in Literacy Studies within Arizona State University's Mary Lou Fulton College of Education[22]. Formerly of the University of Wisconsin, Gee's book, What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy[23], offers 36 learning principles, found in video games, that could be applied to reform America's education system. In a May 2003 column on Wired.com, Gee says, "We don't often think about video games as relevant to education reform, but maybe we should. Game designers don't often think of themselves as learning theorists. Maybe they should. Kids often say it doesn't feel like learning when they're gaming - they're much too focused on playing. If kids were to say that about a science lesson, our country's education problems would be solved."[24].
Online multiplayer games, which take advantage of the fact that computer games can use the internet, provide players with the opportunity to compete in real time with other players from across the globe, something that is also unique to electronic gaming. MMORPGs take the concept much further with the establishment of vast, online communities existing in persistent, virtual worlds. Millions of players around the globe are attracted to video gaming simply because it offers such unprecedented ability to interact with large numbers of people engaged simultaneously in a structured environment where they are all involved in the same activity (playing the game).
Even simple games offer potential benefits to the player. Games like Tetris and Pac-man or Galaga are well-designed games that are easy to pick up but difficult to master, much like chess or poker. Despite their simplicity, simple games may also feature online capabilities or powerful AI. Depending on the game, players can develop and test their techniques against an advanced computer player or online against other human players.
The U.S. army has deployed machines such as the PackBot which makes use of a game-style hand controller intended to make it more familiar to use by young people.[25]
