Should games like GTA take the blame for murder?

[El_Cid]

Originally posted by Adagio

And how do you propose this will work? The game has a quite hard time figuring out if the person sitting by the computer is over 18 or not
And even if you manage to make the game figure that out, it will be pretty easy to google "awesome game" disable parental lock to find the answer on how to enable the "full" game

lol yeah I know it won't work, I was just throwing something out there. I guess my main concern is that if the games industry doesn't try to regulate itself better(by being more responsible?) then government will step in and take an interest. ....hold on what about Iris scanners linked to a national ID database, no verification = no play?

Sad cases like this boy and GTA all just add to the negative press that mainstream media loves to report on.

And just how real does the violence you can enact upon a computer character on screen have to be to make you feel the game is a good one?
That will vary from person to person, but I can tell you I get my killing urge plenty satisfied by playing defender or Robotron2084 - I don't need to see the veins leaking blood from the arm I just tore from that guys body to enjoy the game.
I'm just providing the devils advocate here - I don't want to see games like GTA banned, but well they might end up being so if we are not smarter about this.

[Zanarkand]

I promise you, the 18+ stamp is not something most parents care much for. Not the shops either.

Yeah..that was kinda my point.

Parents have a responsibility about these things.

[DRoseDARs]

How about we blame murderers for murdering people ... and make murdering people illegal!

[Nugog]

Originally posted by DrSpike
No.

[Zanarkand]

How about we blame murderers for murdering people

I agree partially, but isn't that a bit like saying "guns don't kill people, people kill people"?
I think that the video stores should be much more strict about not selling games like GTA to kids under the age of 18.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Zanarkand


I agree partially, but isn't that a bit like saying "guns don't kill people, people kill people"?
I think that the video stores should be much more strict about not selling games like GTA to kids under the age of 18.

Well it's actually one step removed unless someone slices their victim up with the GTA4 disc.

[DRoseDARs]

Indeed. A gun is designed to maim and kill. A CD/DVD? Not so much. It's all about the intent of the user and the ability or purpose of their implement.

[El_Cid]

that reminds me of the scene from 'Shaun of the Dead'(a british zombie movie) where the hero is frantically going through his record collection trying to hit a zombie on the head with one of his LP's!

Read this little link the other day and forgot to post it:

http://gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=19772

Which if a true representation, makes me wonder if maybe many parents know more about the computer games their kids play than I thought? I'm quite surprised they rate GTA higher than some of the other 'normal' parental concerns.

[El_Cid]

I think this is why I find myself sitting on the fence in the "can a computer game teach violence to kids" debate.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7587238.stm

If the Army finds computer simulations useful to train soldiers to do their jobs more effectively(which lets not beat around the bush is about better being able to kill and not be killed), then I can see how that can gravitate into changing behavioural tendancies in young and often impressionable males.

So while I doubt I'll ever join the ban all games as evil group, I find myself neither too quick to dismiss concerns over what a graphicly realistic game could do to someones state of mind.

If you practice something enough you get good at it, you learn from it, and ultimately you can get desensitized to it - it's a possibility.

[Felch]

Originally posted by DRoseDARs
Indeed. A gun is designed to maim and kill. A CD/DVD? Not so much.

A gun is designed to fire a bullet. If the gun is pointed at a person, it may maim or kill them. If the gun is pointed at a shooting range target, it probably won't hurt anybody. It's all in the intent of the user.

[LDiCesare]

I suppose in an ideal world no under 18's would watch 18+ certificate films or play 18+ certificate games.

The boy was 19. So he had more than one year to play with the game legally, 18+ bans would have no effect there.

Let's suppose you ban all such games. What will the players do? It's likely that non violent video games won't appeal to them (I mean, even Civ is about mass slaughtering of slaves and armies). They might read violent fiction, watch movies, with the same effect "Can I do the same?". Like the boys who jumped from the window because Superman can do it.
Or they'd have nothing to do, which means they'r roam in the streets with nothing to do. Youth gangs have existed for more than a century. They didn't have video games, or TV, or cinema. Most probabaly couldn't even read. They were still violent.

Banning such games would be useless.

[Adagio]

Should games like GTA take the credit for saving people?

http://mywebtimes.com/archives/ottawa/display.php?id=366041

Preteen girl helps family escape crashed vehicle

Many disparage the value of video games and their effect on today's youths.

Karen Norris, of Streator, will say no such thing. Not after her quick-witted 11-year-old daughter, Audrey Plique, sprung to the rescue of their family because a popular video game showed a potential danger of a vehicle rollover.

"She just knew, from playing 'Grand Theft Auto.' She saw on there that when a car rolls over, it can blow up. She knew that could happen to us," Norris said.

About 9 p.m. Aug. 27, the family of five was en route to visit relatives in Diamond when Karen's husband, Robert Norris Jr., felt lightheaded while driving on Route 113 about one-half mile east of Coal City. Their 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee drifted off the road while moving 55 to 60 mph, struck a guardrail and flipped four times before coming to rest on its side in the ditch. The roof of the vehicle caved in and the back window broke out.

"It was a pretty scary experience," said Audrey, a fifth-grade student at Oakland Park School.

Both parents lost their glasses and were dazed in the dark night. The three children -- Audrey, her 9-year-old sister, April Smith, and her 7-year-old brother, Robbie Norris III -- were wearing seatbelts, as were their parents. April was hanging upside down and Robbie was pinned down.

"I was really scared. I didn't know what to do," Audrey said. "But I knew I had to help."

She realized the back window had broken and was able to climb over the spare tire to get out. She then called for her mother to reach out her hand and Audrey helped pull her out the back window. She proceeded to help get the rest of family out of the vehicle. Audrey also tugged on her father's bloody arm to lead him to the road, where they flagged down a passing vehicle to get somebody to call 911.

"She showed the kind of bravery and courage you don't expect from an 11-year-old," Norris said. "She stayed composed. She sounded upset, but she knew the things she had to get done to help her parents and her siblings."

Robert Norris Jr. was hurt the worst, suffering numerous cuts and bruises after slamming into the steering wheel several times without the air bag activating. Everyone else in the vehicle also suffered minor cuts and bruises, but were treated at Morris Hospital and released, Norris said.

"My mom said that because of me, her babies are safe," Audrey said. "When I heard her say that, I was really relieved."

Nice

[DrSpike]

Games.

[Imran Siddiqui]

[El_Cid]

Excellent! - the family name was Norris? related to Chuck maybe?