Posted on 06/22/2005 1:53:33 PM PDT by Callahan
LONDON (Reuters) - The brains of players of violent video games react as if the violence were real, a study has suggested. ADVERTISEMENT
Klaus Mathiak at the University of Aachen in Germany studied the brain patterns of 13 men aged 18 to 26 who, on average, played video games for two hours a day.
Wired up to a scanner, they were asked to play a game involving navigating through a complicated bunker, killing attackers and rescuing hostages.
Mathiak found that as violence became imminent, the cognitive parts of the brain became active and that during a fight, emotional parts of the brain were shut down.
The pattern was the same as that seen in subjects who have had brain scans during other simulated violent situations.
It suggests that video games are a "training for the brain to react with this pattern," Mathiak says.
The research was presented at a meeting in Canada and reported by New Scientist magazine.
Whether violent videos make people more aggressive though is hard to prove, the magazine noted. Studies have suggested players of violent games are in fact more aggressive but have left open the question of whether the games made them that way.
GTA = Grand Theft Auto III--V. It's a "sandbox" style game that lets you play the role of a criminal battling for control of virtual cities modeled on L.A., San Fran and Las Vegas. In other words, it's video crack that causes my wife alot of grief when the trash needs to go out.
That and Final Fantasy X are my two fave games. I really liked Banjo Kazooie on the old N-64 as well.
video simulated violence receives the same brain reaction as other forms of simulated violence. BRILLIANT. Give them more funding!!!
I'm at the same spot. I've takenover most of Los Santos (again). The riot is somewhat annoying since everyone else can shoot off a few rounds at you but only you get chased by the cops when you defend yourself. What about my 2nd Ammendment rights!!! ;)
My friend was showing GTA:SA to his wife the other night. She was mildly impressed by the technical achievement of it all until he grabbed a chainsaw and slaughtered and old lady on the sidewalk. I told her it was Helen Thomas. She went to bed. Women don't understand.
lol...
Well I'm a former Counterstrike player...you don't see me running around trying to headshot everyone with a DE in 50AE, or going for the "2 in the chest, 1 in the head" with an MP5...
The virtual world is popluated with civilians, cars, buildings, etc. which tend to get in the way (i.e. get shot or run over) while you are driving like a maniac and carrying out your criminal missions.
If you keep it in perspective, it is a hilarious release and quite entertaining. Probably not suitable for many teens though.
Just do a google search on "GTA Vice City". There are hundreds of fan web sites with clips from the game. The newest version is called GTA San Andreas, where instead of Miami, you are now out in Southern California. Haven't finished Vice City yet, so I haven't bought the new one. Can absorb way too much of your time if you let it!
The title suggests that violent video games are interpreted by the brain the same as real, actual violent events.
However, in the body of this article, the comparison is not between video games and real-life events, it is between violent video games and "other simulated violent situations." I'm assuming that these are simulated events approximating a truer, "real-life" scenario (and not another video game). Still, the person (and therefore the brain) knows that simulated event is "not real", just as the brain knows a video game is "not real."
So what's the breakthrough? That the brain sees a digital simulation of violence the same way it sees a staged approximation of violence? Wow, shocker!
Havin' a twenty-year flashback!!!! AUaggggggg!!!
GTA...Is that the inspiration of these small-brained idiots who tear down city streets at 90 mph causing death and mayhem, and who zip in and out of lanes on the freeway, endangering the rest of us?
Geez, with all my violent video game experience I must be a cold-blooded killer. I can also double jump, reach high places by using the blast of my rocket laucher for an extra push and fire a chaingun one handed with uncanny accuracy as I do a half twisting forward flip over an enemy. Whoda thunk it?!?
And the point is...
now back to Grand Theft Auto.
Anybody tried GTA: San Andreas?
I am thinking about getting it for the PC, but dang, I am a cheap one so 40 bucks about kills me.
But, I may have to get it after I get my next paycheck.
My brain sees two dimensional images of two-inch tall green aliens differently than it sees three dimensional humans in front of me.
My brain see an apple on the television in the same manner it sees an alien on television.
How awesome is San Andreas compared to Vice City etc.?
I want some reviews before I take the plunge and spend 40 bucks on a game for the PC.
I will admit that GTA is in a class by itself when it comes to virtual violence. It's the only video game that occupies my mind when I'm not playing it. I'll be sitting in traffic thinking "Man, I wish I could blow this intersection and jack a motorcycle." Maybe they're on to something.
How much better is it than Vice City?
That's exactly what they did. Ah, the new "science" propelled by big grants.
From http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/06/20/news_6127865.html
Senator blasts Eidos' 25 to Life
New York Senator Charles E. Schumer claims upcoming shooter is an "all-time low" and teaches "Little Johnny" to kill cops.
Senator Charles E. Schumer (D-New York) is embarking on a crusade against Eidos, telling the New York Daily News that the British publisher is readying a game that makes "Grand Theft Auto look like Romper Room." The game is 25 to Life, an action title where players take on the role of a drug dealer named Freeze who gets into gunfights with police officers, uses civilians as human shields, and shoots rival gang members.
Schumer is calling on New York retailers not to stock the game or sell it. "There is nowhere that the value of the police force is felt more strongly than here in New York, and to sell a video game that denigrates their value is simply unacceptable," Schumer said. "You certainly don't need a degree in criminal justice to understand that when you make sport of behavior that is dangerous and destructive you reinforce it. The last thing we need here in New York is to reinforce a destructive culture of violence and disrespect for the law."
A press release from Schumer's camp calls 25 to Life one of the worst in a string of violent games, finding that it "sets gang members against police and sends them on a mission to fight their way through the streets, killing whatever gets in the way."
Not only is Schumer urging retailers not to sell the game, but he is also asking that Sony and Microsoft end their licensing agreements with Eidos. "Little Johnny should be learning how to read, not how to kill cops," Schumer said. "The bottom line is that games that are aimed and marketed at kids shouldn't desensitize them to death and destruction."
25 to Life is currently in development by Utah-based Avalanche Software. The game is scheduled for release this August on the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PC. For more information, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.
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Chucky's weighing in on the issue as well. Of course, the game in the article isn't out yet, but hey, given Schumer's record, why should we let facts enter the picture?
To quote Penny Arcade:
"Maybe it's just because we've done comics on the topic for nearly seven years, but it's getting harder and harder to understand why violence in electronic games warrants such brazen showmanship. Presumably it's all about the kids, but they always trot out a line of dirty-faced kids when they want to get their own stuff through. It's like bringing your son to a restaurant, and then saying it was his birthday so you could get the free Mile High Mud Pie. Maybe he gets a bite or something, but mostly you'd really like to eat five pounds of frozen cake and chocolate ice cream, and there's not really any nobility associated with that."
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