News - 'Games make you kill' debate reignited as Oslo killer writes about Call of Dut

[Saracen]

STOP PRESS

Man Utd have just offered snootyjim the Assistant Manager's position with a view to taking over in due course, having witnessed his heroics with Arbroath in Football Manager 2011.
....

Quite.

If you can get me premium seats at the next cup final, I cam organise a flight in my Tie Fighter.

Oh, and nobody tell the supermarkets about my scores in Thief and Thief 2. I'll starve.


What this amounts to is that an early 30's male plays video games (wot a shock, who'd have thought it ), and one of them turns out to be a psychopathic nut-job with an assault rifle. The millions (tens of millions hundreds of millions??) of others that have played video games and not committed mass murder are obviously statistically insignificant.

[superscaper]

The millions (tens of millions hundreds of millions??) of others that have played video games and not committed mass murder are obviously statistically insignificant.

All those millions are obviously the statistical outliers.

[Jay]

When I played Jimmy White's Whirlwind Snooker I did find myself not only thinking about snooker all the time, playing snooker for no reason I also hit people with a snooker cues... maybe there is some truth in this after all!

In reality I did none of those things.

If playing shooting games makes you want to kill people then playing bubble bobble would also want you to go outside, jump on ledges and burst bubbles. I don’t see many people doing that.

When Mario first came out was there a huge surge of applicants to pluming school? Probably not.

[peterb]

On the other hand (just to play devil's advocate) - what we watch on TV or read must influence people, otherwise advertisers wouldn't spend lots of maney advertising.

But - I suppose if someone is pre-disposed towards violnce, then seeing that on a games console (or a violent film) might push them over the edge - and the same could be said for pornography - seeing a fantasy (or whatever) being acted out might lead a susceptable individual to playing out a fantasy in real life.

[Saracen]

On the other hand (just to play devil's advocate) - what we watch on TV or read must influence people, otherwise advertisers wouldn't spend lots of maney advertising.

Oh, sure. Those adverts influenced me into buying a recorder so I can edit the adverts out, and have resulted in a very well developed finger for the "mute" button, on the rare occasions that I actually watch live TV.

[Jay]

Oh, sure. Those adverts influenced me into buying a recorder so I can edit the adverts out, and have resulted in a very well developed finger for the "mute" button, on the rare occasions that I actually watch live TV.

When watching Live to do you still try and fastforward the adverts? I am always doing that!

[crossy]

I dont think, Crossy, that games should be neutered. Although the airport scene was somewhat heavy, it had a purpose, it was in the game because it was part of the story - i don't actually know how they substituted that particular bit without playing it...(anyone fill me in here?). I think they actually struck the balance right with the option to disable that part of the game, and that i think that is what should be implemented more often if you aren't sure about its content. I personally wouldn't want a scene or section of a game removed because someone is more sensitive to something than I am, but they shouldnt be forced to play it either.

I'll agree to disagree on that one (partially) - the sole purpose of the airport level seemed to be that "good folks are sometimes forced to do bad things", either that or it was just gratuitous for the purposes of getting IW some P.R. (yes, I'm cynical).

Good point about the "family settings" option - I've seen a couple of games with it (the last that I remember being Brutal Legend) and it's always struck me as something that could be made more use of. Maybe this is something that Sony/Microsoft could provide as an API?

Still, I suppose there's some small comfort (assuming you subscribe to the "he played COD, and it made him a murderer" theory) that the lunatic didn't decide to attack Gardermoen.

I'm being especially polite since - as you point out - because you've played COD you're obviously now a steely-eyed Special Forces-level killer.

[.havoc]

I'm being especially polite since - as you point out - because you've played COD you're obviously now a steely-eyed Special Forces-level killer.

HAHA fear my wrath!

Im actually into Tropico 3 atm - maybe i should take over from Cameron...reckon i could do a better job with superior economical prowess and Special Forces super skill!

With regards to the airport scene - it is a case of each to his own. Some didn't find it disturbing, some did. It is about striking a balance and being allowed to use your own judgement about whether its the kind of content you wish to be viewing (and if not - should you purchase the game at all?). So my disagreement was more about blanket banning such content. Instead there should be more control (understandable that you may only want to experience certain aspects of the game), so i agree with you in a sense it needs to be reviewed how such things can be tackled without taking away from those who would rather the fuller experience...for lack of a better term.

I don't believe it's cynical to think the level was designed to also add controversy - and therefore free PR, but having played it as most have, I can understand why it's in there - not to say i enjoyed it. I actually found it a lil out of my comfort zone, but not to an extent where i lose sight at what it is...a game.

[AGTDenton]

I just wonder how so many mass murderers 'made it' before the advent of computer games, they must have had a really hard time by comparison....

Perhaps murderers were all failures back then because they only had the original Batman series to be influenced by. Kapow, wack!

I agree with majority on here this is rediculous.

[CrazyMonkey]

It seems he never made the switch to Black Ops.