Articles: Violence & Sex in Video Games

Can A Video Game Lead To Murder? link

18 year old Devin Moore, has no criminal records previously. Until one day, while he was being taken into a police station on suspicions of car theft, he jumped onto a police officer and, using his gun, shot 2 shots, killing the police man instantly with 1 shot hitting the head. Another officer in another room, heard the gunshots and rushed in to check what was going on. Devin quickly fired 3 rounds at the still-surprised officer, taking him out instantly with yet another shot that went through the head. Devin then took a patrol car keys and drived away on a police vehicle, on his way shot down another police officer, bringing his murder count to three.

All these, by an 18 year old.

"Life is like a video game. Everybody’s got to die sometime." Devin was heard saying as he was being taken away by a police officer. Further investigations revealed that Devin had apparently been addicted to a video game called Grand Theft Auto, prior to the incident. Reports have him playing the video game day and night for the last 3 months.



Pope Condemns Violence and Sex in Games, Worries Kids Too Exposed. link

In a message to mark the Roman Catholic Church's World Communications Day, Pope Benedict XVI focused on "Children and the Media," and among other things, criticized on xploitative video games. He went on to call violent and sexually explicit games a "perversion,". Adding that they were "all the more repulsive when ... directed at children and adolescents."

The Pope called upon entertainment industry leaders to rethink strategies and products that could be endangering wholesome family life, and encouraged parents to turn their kids onto "children's classics in literature."

-Tedo

Conclusion: Violence & Sex in Video Games

Violence, Sex... They're topics more often than not labelled controversial.

In these media-dominated era we live in, can we deny the existence of bad influences constantly being reproduced in the media?
Are we really affected by them, unconsciously... or for some people even, consciously?
Is it really necessary to cull these ideas (AKA Censorship) , especially for our youths?

Many questions and accusations can be targeted at them. Especially in recent times, when the entertainment industry is on the rise, many social issues like teen violence and underage pregnancies are constantly putting the blame on the media. Is it right to do so?

One might argue that the best defense a child can have is through his/her parents. That is true, a parent has the responsibilities of shielding their children from all sources of harm. If so, why are there children still committing crimes out there?

Influence is without a doubt the main reason for all these problems. Afterall, a kid cannot just know how to fire a gun without having ever seen one. A young boy that grows up in a broken home will learn to be violent in both actions and speech. A young girl that grows up in a materialistic environment will grow up to be greedy and sell herself.

All issues that are faced by man can be traced by influence. If that is so, then why is it that nowadays, when teen violence erupts again the finger immediately points to video games? It is true that games such as Grand Theft Auto and Mortal Kombat promotes violence like it's nobody's business. It is also true that their targeted media is, the youth.

That said, many tend to overlook the fact that violence in the media has been around for decades. But so much lesser blame was put on Hollywood when a kid stabbed his friend to death 20 odd years ago.

Technology brings about globalisation, the world is now much more connected than before. The media is now not restricted to just the black box sitting in the living room. Dozens of information can be reached by innocent and naive young ones just a click away on the internet.

Maybe yes, video games help influence negatively on the young as some of it has unsuitable content involving violence and sex. However, even if video games were to be totally cleansed of all things bad, that will still not put a stop the influence the media has on the growth of young children.

All these boils down to a point I made previously, parents. They are the key to the problem. Children in today's world need parental guidance much, much more than ever. With proper care and guidance, no matter what the young ones face, the parents are the ones ultimately responsible for how they react to and what they become later on.

- Tedo

These links are put up to serve as references for Assignment 3. I have written short descriptions to provide more information on contents of the links as well.

Trial for father in killing of tot who broke video game

A newspaper article on a father who killed his young daughter in rage as he thought that his daughter had caused his console to be broken.

The Game of Sex and Violence

A commentary on the influences that violent games have on society.

Teen Violence - Violence Leads to Violence

Factors that lead to violence and warning signs that a child may exhibit.

Sex vs, Violence in video games?

A question posted on Yahoo! Answers garners responses from the netizens.

Studies on Violence and Sex in the Media

A collection of documents on the external factors that may influence a person to become violent. An extremely good source!

Pope condemns violence and sex in games, worries kids too exposed

Pope Benedict voices his worries about the negative influences that games have on children.

Sex, Violence, Tension and Comic Books - An Interview with Gerard Jones

An interview with American writer Gerard Jones. Issues on sex and violence were discussed.

Gameplay Demo

DESOC Assignment 2

1. The following are to be posted to your blog:
a. Industry trend (5%)
b. SCAMPERR(5%)
c. Game's description and business model (5%)
d. SWOT analysis (5%)

(a) Pick a current (i.e. from this year) significant trend on the video game industry. You can take facts to guesstimate the trend, or you can refer to an existing forecast study.

About 10 years ago, NanaOn-Sha released the first music game called PaRappa the Rapper, which became an instant success. This spawned many other similar games which followed in their footstep. The most successful series is notably the Bemani series by Konami.

The immense popularity of the games initially released in video arcade centers sparked a recent surge in online games with similar genres. With modernisation and current age of technology, almost everyone has a personal computer at home. Work aside, most people do engage games as a form of entertainment. That saying, most people play multiplayer online games nowadays.

There mainly exist two types of gamers - the hardcore gamer and the casual gamer. Hardcore gamers concentrate on the game they with most of their time, knowing the game inside out. Casual gamers play the game as a relaxation and tend to be less in-depth. As casual gamers usually have a lesser tolerance for spending a long time to learn the game, controls must be easy with a user-friendly interface.

Most online games are free to play, but certain features are only accessible to players who pay-to-play. This allows the game to gain popularity as players do not have to pay first to try the game, and they have the freedom to choose between paying or not.

The current industry trend that we have picked is free-to-play multiplayer online games that incorporate the popular music elements.

* Reference material



(b) SCAMPERR:

S - Substitute

The game is mainly played with the keyboard to substitute the instruments. Optional hardware, can however still be used. A microphone will be used for the vocal part.

C - Combine

Combine Guitars, Drums, Keyboard, Turntable, and Vocal segment into one integrated game as a band.

A - Adapt

Adapted from reality. Events such as band competitions and gigs will be hosted with real/celebrity judges.

M - Magnify

Our game's ability to create and submit self-created songs will allow it to become a talking point between casual gamers and music enthusiasts. Independent artistes can also use the game as an alternate venue to promote their music.

M - Modify

Players can manipulate our game to create/promote their own songs using a program that is supported by the game.

P - Put to another use

The game can be used as a music creator as well as to allow aspiring artistes to express their talents.

E - Eliminate

Support basic gameplay (without the fancy and added stuff) to reduce the heavy requirements. This allows people with outdated computers to play the game without having to compromise on quality. Faster computers will be able to run music creator and added functions.

R - Rearrange

Players can choose which instrument or part of the band they want to play in. This allows the player to have freedom of choice.

R - Reverse

Reverse the boring concept of developing your hidden musical talents alone and allow socializing.

The game idea that we have in mind capitalises on both the popularity of online gaming and the current love for music games. Our game will appeal to the general audience aged between 8 - 39. The basic gameplay is simple to learn and will appeal to casual gamers. However it does not just end here as hardcore gamers will be able to live in the game and do more by creating their own songs.

This is a win-win situation as it appeals to gamers of all ages, be it casual or hardcore gamers. Music enthusiasts may find our game a good avenue to express themselves or even develop their love for music.



(c) Game's description (genre, gameplay, etc.) and business model (5%)

Game’s Description : The game is going to be a Massively Multiplayer Online Music Game. Users can form bands with other users, and perform in gigs or take part in competitions. Alternatively they can go solo.

During performances, users are supposed to hit keys that represent the notes at the right time. Hitting the notes right will keep the crowd meter up while not hitting it or hitting it not accurately will reduce it. Points will be awarded to the band for their overall performance, meaning that all members must perform well in order to get a high score.

These points can then be used to buy in-game equipments such as better instruments or amplifiers that will increase the multiplier for the points awarded after each performance.

Business Model : The game will be free to play. However, only a limited number of songs are available initially, in order to download more songs users will have to pay a small amount per song.

In addition, some equipments and upgrades in the game can only be purchased by paying real money.

Additional hardware controllers that will enhance gameplay largely are also available for purchase. CDs containing the latest popular songs of the game can be compiled from time to time and sold.



(d) Do a SWOT analysis for your game with respect to the local and global games market (why you think it will sell), thus the reasons for its targeted audience and related marketing plans.

Strengths:
- Game is free to play
- Entertaining game that packs possibilities of developing talent/career
- Allows interactive sycnchronised multiplayer gameplay
- Includes realistic events with real people organising them

Weaknesses:
- New music has to be added constantly
- Money needed for licensing of existing music by popular artistes
- Financial support for several in-house artistes
- Complicated contract issues with music companies
- Need someone to consistently handle music submissions by players

Opportunities:
- Caters to gamers of all ages irregardless of being a casual or hardcore gamer
- Appeals to music enthusiasts and capitalises on the digital age
- Immense popularity of interactive online gaming

Threats:
- Licensing/copyright issues
- Competition against established music game companies like Konami
- The significance of latency as the game relies heavily on timing

Movie Analysis - Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

The movie starts by enacting a battle scene between the humans and the machines in a post-apocalyptic future world. A narrator then narrates the historical events that led to the nuclear fallout, and why the humans have to fight the machines, which caused of the destruction of the world. The machines sent an assassin back to the past through time-travel to kill the leader of the human resistance while he was still a kid. To counter that, the humans sent a protector to protect him. The central question of the movie is posed here - whether the hero would be able to protect the kid from The Terminator.

At first glance, the whole movie seems to be just about high adrenaline action. Yes, it is an action-packed movie (a very good one at that). However, at a closer inspection, the movie actually paid close attention to the character development of the T-800 - from being a purely objective-based programmed machine to an artificial entity that is able to, however minutely, show compassion and feelings like that of a human’s. This, by itself, is only a metaphor of what the filmmaker is trying to convey, which is the key theme of the movie: that anyone or anything, however impossible it may seem, can learn to become a human after all. This is further conveyed in the last quote of the movie, “… a sense of hope, because of a machine; a terminator, can learn the value of human life. Maybe we can too.”

The movie can be divided and categorized into three acts. The first act runs through until the part where the T-800 manages to save the boy, John, from the T-1000 and bring him to safety. The second act begins when John realizes that he must rescue his mother, Sarah, from the asylum that she’s locked in. Act two continues to the point where the three of them managed to stop Dr. Dyson, the man most responsible for the creation of Skynet - the computer program that ultimately caused the launch of the nuclear weapons. The war was prevented apparently, but the T-1000 was still hot on their tails. Act three begins with the T-1000 chasing them into a steel foundry, where the climatic battle begins.

The story primarily revolves around the three main characters, John, Sarah, and the T-800. There are a few subplots being told simultaneously as the movie goes on. One of them is the relationship between the young John, and the “good” Terminator. The filmmaker depicted John, a boy who never really had a father or a father figure to look up to, slowly developing a “father-son” relationship with the robot, someone who protected him, spent time with him and never left him.

Another subplot being told in the movie is the internal struggle of the John’s mother, Sarah. How she feared the “Judgment Day”, the actions she took that led her to be locked up in the asylum previously, and how she reacted to the information provided by the Terminator regarding Dr. Miles Bennett Dyson. In the end, Sarah sneaked into Dyson’s residence and attempted to assassinate him. However, her conscience and humanity caught up to her ultimately, and she stopped short of pulling the trigger.

One apparent script flaw in the movie is the T-1000 taking out the police when he just arrived in the present world. In the movie, the T-1000 was able to get away with a police car and the uniform. Why didn't anybody from the police station notice his disappearance (or his dead body) and launch a large-scale search? Perhaps one might argue that the T-1000 utilizes his ability to morph into anybody he made physical contact with previously and his ability to mimic the voice of any voice he heard of to cover up the death of the police officer. However, the movie showed none of that. Therefore if we were to be given the chance to remake the film, that issue would be certainly addressed. Another improvement we would implement is that throughout the movie, the T-1000 is to use the form of the police officer he disguised as at all times, as it is the only logical thing to do.

In the year of its release, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, won the Academy Award for Best Achievement in Visual Effects, and it is not difficult to see why. Even to this day, some of the visual effects employed in the movie are believable and realistic. Imagine how breathtaking it was for audiences back in the year 1991. It was the first mainstream blockbuster movie ever to include multiple morphing effects and simulated natural human motion in a CG character. The T-1000 was the first computer-graphic generated main character in a film. The liquid-metal cyborg Terminator freely morphed body-parts into different objects, all flawlessly done in CG.

Our Machinima!

One main difference between machinima and the 'traditional' film is the portrayal of human emotions and response through facial gestures and movements. The actors in ‘traditional’ films do not face too much problem overcoming this as all they have to do is act it out. In machinimas however, the animations for the characters (both facial and body) are difficult and takes a lot of time to create and import into the game engine. As one of the main purposes of machinimas is to provide amateur filmmakers with a cheap and easy-to-use platform to make their films on, this matter proves to be a stumbling block to all machinima-makers.

My first post

Here's my first post on my SecondLife experience! Check out the pictures that I took.


That's me in the Olive Upside Down Room. I got bored while waiting for Tedooo so I sat on the fan. Bad choice, that made me feel really dizzy.


We roamed the streets of SecondLife and got ourselves a really cool Mohawk hairstyle!


I didn't really know what the craze over pet dragons were about until I got my own. Man, these critters are really fun to be with. Just be careful, 'cos they bite!


Does this remind you of Super Mario?

Halfway through we felt kinda bored, so we started looking around for entertainment. We saw this SLingo joint and we felt lucky so we decided to go for a couple of games.


Looks like today ain't our lucky day. We didn't get lucky at SLingo, so we tried playing another game but we didn't fare well either. We had enough of games so we decided to go sight-seeing.




We had to wait a while for the next balloon tour to commence... Good thing I had my pet dragon to play with.


We met our friend Joan and she joined us for the tour. Halfway throughout the tour, I spotted little winged creatures in the distance approaching the balloon...


It was our friends, Melmint and Hane! It was a nice surprise meeting them in such a fashion. We hung around and chatted a bit before moving on.


Tedooo and I hit the clubs for a couple of drinks and we started shaking our booty on the dance floor. We enjoyed the music but didn't stay long because we still had other tasks to complete so off we went to look for the Greeters, but we just couldn't find any members of that elusive group. Off we went to attempt the Teleportation Trail.



Tedooo lost half his body particles while teleporting to the location so there I was all alone, waiting for him to gather his lost little pieces.


We ran into difficulties trying to put on our furry avatars, so we got help from our friend! That's us catching our breaths after getting into our new avatars.




We decided to pay Spongebob a visit. Though we didn't get to see him, we left a flag to let him know that we dropped by.




Our tour around SecondLife was eventful. Personally I feel that SecondLife has an interesting concept that blends interactivity with scripting/programming. The advantage to utilising SecondLife is that people have a lot of freedom to do whatever they want by scripting. However this may not appeal to the people who do not have any relevant background.

I hope that you enjoyed my walkthrough of SecondLife!

Write 3-5 sentences on your impressions, pros/cons of SL as a platform for entertainment.

SL is definitely not a traditional type of game, in the sense that the users have to build and create their own in-game entertainments, something that alot of people would prefer to be already available to them. With that said, the game is not for the casual gamers. The complex and lengthy creation process will not appeal to those looking for quick thrills and entertainment found in most other MMOGs. On the other hand, for those who enjoy expressing themselves and to explore and meet other creative people and their creations, SL definitely offers a richly interactive experience.