Sellars 1 Antonia Sellars Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English (1102/1103 pick correct one) 12 February 2014 Videogames: distraction

n or destruction? Videogames are universal, kids and adults alike play them every day but some never stop to think about whether or not what they see or do on videogames seeps into their everyday lives. So, that poses the question of how 1st person shooter games are affecting sensitivity to real-world problems and do they make people more violent in reality. Some people spend a majority of their time playing these videogames so much that it may be sometimes hard for them to separate reality from the game. So I will be examining the potential risks associated with this issue as well. From where I am sitting, first-person shooter games can definitely be effective for certain people but I feel it depends on how strong your mind is and how you let outside things affect you inside. According to my mother I am emotionally detached anyways, so for me first-person shooter games dont affect my mentality one way or another. The thing about that is, whats true for me and someone else may not be true for every person who participates in these first-person shooter games. When I asked a few friends what they thought about this topic two stood out to me more than the others. Kania Wilson, a female non-players response was that: It could be effective depending on age and maturity; younger people are probably more affected than older people. When I asked Darrell Smith, a male video game player his response was: Yes, I feel that it changes the way a person looks and thinks about real life pertaining to the things they see

Sellars 2 and do on the videogames. I feel as though the first-person shooter games affect many more than they even realize. Many researchers and statistics prove my position to be correct. An article in the New York Times by Michael Gonchar, entitled, Do Violent Video Games Make People More Violent in Real Life?, was aimed at figuring out whether or not there is direct correlation to violence and violent video games. The article went on to mention another writing entitled Shooting in the Dark, by Benedict Carey, that talked about the fact that the men involved in violent massacres like the movie theater in Colorado and columbine high school had one thing in common they were all gamers who enjoyed playing violent video games. According Carey, Playing the games can and does stir hostile urges and mildly aggressive behavior in the short term. Moreover, youngsters who develop a gaming habit can become slightly more aggressive as measured by clashes with peers, for instance at least over a period of a year or two, which shed light on some of the questions of people who shared this concern. Also according to an article written by John L. Sherry entitled Research on Violent Video Games and Aggression: A translation, Experts whove calculated the variance have found that exposure to violent video games increases violent behavior by 13% to 22%. Although there has been many studies trying to show how first person shooter games have negatively affected society, and I somewhat agree, forbes.com has pointed out that, as violent video games have become more popular, violent crime has fallen. Peoples perceptions of the effects of first-person shooter games vary because of many factors. The different factors could be their gender, their tolerance for violence, and maybe even there background and at-home life. During my own independent studies Ive found that men are more likely to say that the first-person shooter games dont affect them but they do admit to an adrenaline rush while playing. Women are more likely to be a little more squeamish when it

Sellars 3 comes to the vulgarity, blood and gore depicted on videogames like Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto. Recently, in Chicago there was a 16 year old boy who killed his 17 year old brother by stabbing him in the chest 17 because he had the higher score of 17 on a game called Flappy Bird according to geekclick.org, for this game to be non-violent and to cause such dire behavior; it really makes you wonder what it could cause someone who plays violent videogames to do. Many people can be affected by this issue both directly and indirectly. The stakeholders of this issue are both people who do and do not play videogames, video game creators and manufacturers, the people who became or may become victims of crime because of those people who are negatively affected by first-person shooter games, and also video game researchers.

Sellars 4 Works Cited Carey, Benedict. "Shooting in the Dark." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Feb. 2013. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/science/studying-the-effects-ofplaying-violent-video-games.html?_r=0>. Gonchar, Michael. "Do Violent Video Games Make People More Violent in Real Life?" The Learning Network Do Violent Video Games Make People More Violent in Real Life Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. <http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/13/do-violent-video-gamesmake-people-more-violent-in-real-life/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0>. John L Sherry. "Research on Violent Video Games and Agression: A Translation." Http://icagames.comm.msu.edu/violence.pdf. N.p., n.d. Web. <http%3A%2F%2Ficagames.comm.msu.edu%2Fviolence>. Kain, Erik. "Do Games Like 'Grand Theft Auto V' Cause Real-World Violence?" Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 18 Sept. 2013. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2013/09/18/do-games-like-grand-theft-auto-v-cause-realworld-violence/>. "Teen Arrested For Killing Brother Over 'Flappy Bird' Game (3 Images)." Geek Click Teen Arrested For Killing Brother Over Flappy Bird Game Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. <http://geekclick.org/teen-arrested-for-killing-brother-over-flappy-bird-game/>.