Exposure to Video Game Violence at a Young Age

[mew_nani]

I don't think playing an M rated game as a kid will lead to that kid going insane and shooting people. However I still don't think a young kid should be playing M rated games; they're meant for young adults and have content catered to that age group. Often at video game stores you plain can't get one if you're younger than 17, and even if you're older you need to have an ID on you as if you were buying liquor.

Parents often buy games like that for their kids either thinking their kid can handle it, or they just don't pay attention to the big black M on the front of the case. Some of them even come back and blame the cashier or the game makers for ruining their children, even though it was their fault they bought a game meant for young adults. I've never understood that.

 

[☆Rei☆]

I've played Halo since 2001.

Spoiler:

I can confirm that because of this I have lead 100% of the mass shootings on the moon and I have, without emotion, brutally murdered spaghetti. But, it gets worse! I have never felt the urge to murder someone, nor have I ever attempted to reenact or attempt any physically violent acts to another person. Video games are terrible for people under the age of 9,000. This way they don't have to become as big as a scum bag as I have. Everyday I fear the cops may notice my totally terrible behavior and tell me "I wish my kids were as kind as you". Whenever I go to work, I get insults like "You're the most patient and kind cashier I've seen all week!" or "Thank you for your hard work, Hans!"

Video games have had no negative impact on me, even violent ones that promotes killing.

As I see it, video games are a pastime, stress reliever, anger ventilation, hobby, potentially a job, and depending on how you look at it a social hot spot. I can't say anything negative about them, until I hear a pubescent child swearing every other word or when they play a game that has inappropriate content in them.

 

[gimmepie]

Whilst I might question the parenting of parents who buy certain games for young children, I honestly don't believe at all that there's a correlation between violence in video games and violence in real life.

Even games rated for children include violence, they don't seem to have any bearing at all on real life. I think the fault lies in parenting, more than in external influences.

 

[Neil Peart]

I personally think kids shouldn't be playing GTA Online because they're griefing, insufferable little punks. But, to the question at hand, I think it is the duty of the parent to teach their children the difference between fantasy and reality, not shelter them from everything obscene.

 

[Lucario]

I am from the UK and we use PEGI ratings, and I believe that kids playing CoD and GTA is just... wrong. (that's coming from a kid whose mum didn't let him play smash bros on the day before his twelfth birthday)

 

[Fannie]

My mum let me play or watch whatever I wanted. I haven't gone on a mass killing spree yet. If anything, violent video games let me vent my life frustrations with minimal consequences. I've definitely become desensitised to a lot content but kid's aren't stupid. they can diferentiate reality from fiction. Like others have said anyone who uses violent content as a stepping stone to commit crimes themselves had that in them to begin with.

 

[Neil Peart]

but kid's aren't stupid.

Spend five minutes on GTA Online and I promise you, you'll change your mind.

 

[Fannie]

Spend five minutes on GTA Online and I promise you, you'll change your mind.

I've spent many hours on it. Actually, I met a kid (aged 11 IIRC) and his mother playing together. This is going to go against my point because the kid managed to convice his mum to let him skip school to play the game with me and my friend. Although he could have been playing any game so it's no fault of the game but some people in this thread have doubted the kind of parent that would buy these kind of games for their children and I thought this instance was damn irresponsible on his mum's part.

 

[Pebbles]

only thing i have to say is that my future kids, at young age like between 7-15
will not be allowed to play those violent games
hell no
BUT they can play cute violent games like JRPG stuff :pink_laugh:
because killing monsters with a mage or bowman or whatever, that is different in my eyes
i don't care if i make no sense^_^
​

 

[antemortem]

BUT they can play cute violent games like JRPG stuff :pink_laugh:
because killing monsters with a mage or bowman or whatever, that is different in my eyes
i don't care if i make no sense^_^

This logic is only partially skewed. Realistically, a child/teenager can get ahold of a gun if their parents own one or someone they know has access to them, etc. Whatever the case may be, it is actually possible to acquire a gun; in the case of JRPGs and the like, how likely is it that a child influenced by these games will come across, uh, a bow and arrow, or a katana, or a sceptre?

 

[Pokemon Game Fan]

I feel like our society has made it so that kids are wayyyy too sheltered. There's nothing wrong with them playing violent video games. No studies have proven the contrary, as far as I know.

 

[Sir Codin]

Human beings will kill each other regardless of video games. History has proven time and again that humanity is just a self-destructive time bomb of hatred waiting to go off and anything can trigger that, including people disagreeing with each other over who should lead a country.

 

[killer-curry]

The thing is we can't stop children from playing these....games. It is just their curiosity, but yeah kids in these online games are pretty annoying as well. I played Counter Strike when I was 5 , played battlefield 1942 when I was 7, CoD 4 and 5 when I was 9 or 10. I won't think it pretty much affects me ( except acting holding a gun lel) and I dun actually doing childish stuff at online least....

Back in old days, violent teen games like mortal kombat just attracting kids to play no matter what sh*t violent is that. They just want to play for having fun or showing off themselves about how good they are.

If you want to be seriously avoid these children from these violent games, the only way is watch what they play. Give them advice to play some mild violent games instead of **** scold them for playing these extreme violent games.

 

[Pinkie-Dawn]

Exposure to violent video games won't turn kids into violent criminals; that's been proven countless. The only negative thing about kids playing violent video games is that it turns them into pretentious jerks in online multiplayer, mic spamming and swearing like a sailor, making you question if their parents have raised them properly.

 

[Her]

Some kids are just going to be unstable enough to the point where any medium can/will damage them and influence their behaviour to unfathomable levels, so I'm glad there haven't been any posts using violent gaming as a scapegoat. Video games are simply a new medium where these people can be affected, one that is easier to use as a scapegoat because the interactive nature of it is harder to ignore than, say, television. Not much can be done but put more emphasis on bettering our mental health services and recognising when a person is at risk.

I don't mind parents letting their kids play violent gaming, it's just all about the degree of the game and when you let them do so. Just parent appropriately - if you're not being all out restrictive, you'll generally recognise what's the best course of action for your kid and how to ease them into that world properly. This is the same for gaming involving sexual imagery, though I imagine the average parent is more stringent about what kind of sexual activity/expression their child is exposed to, for whatever reason. Just look at the situation case by case, as I say for most things.
One of the few things Scalia got right was voting for video games as an expression of art and the freedoms that provides. The issue falls on the parents to parent appropriately, not on the developers to restrict their content. Allow for the fact that if your kid is resourceful enough, they will find a way to stay a step ahead of your restrictions. Blaming games for faults that are more easily traced to either poor parenting or simply being impressionable/unstable children is obviously just dodging the issue.

 

[Somewhere_]

Its really down to the individual, and only parents or guardians can make that choice because they know the child best. I do not believe people become violent killers later in life for shooting fictional characters in a video game.

 

[ShinyUmbreon189]

So, what's your stance on little kids playing M-rated games? Do you think it promotes gun-violence/violence in general, or do you think it's harmless?

No, that comes down to child discipline and how they were raised. A fit parent wouldn't allow their kid to play said games, especially if they're 8 (unless they knew real from fake). If the kid is 13 or so and understands real life from fantasy then I don't see the problem, except maybe GTA since it does have scenes a child shouldn't see but then again I played GTA at like age 12 (without parents knowing) but I knew if was just a game. Young teens playing FPS games doesn't cause gun violence. That would be like saying Mortal Kombat promoted going out and doing fatalities on people when it doesn't. They're simply games made for entertainment purposes. People that think violent games promote violence irl are crazy.

One side of the spectrum claims such games decrease real-world violence. The other one says playing M-rated games as a child sets you on the road to being a killer. What's your stance?

I came out just fine and GTA is nothing but stealing cars, killing hookers, shooting cops, and criminal enterprises.

Also, a question for those of you who think giving children access to M-rated games is a problem, how do you think we should remedy it? Stricter Gamestops? Stricter parents?

As I said, it's parenting. A parent shouldn't just let their child put any game in the system especially M rated games unless the child knew it was just a game. By the time a kids 9-10 and if raised properly they should know the difference. If not, then that's on the parents not disciplining them properly.

Gamestop can't refuse to sell a game to an adult anyways even if there was a child present. They have no evidence proving the game was for the child therefore they have no reason to not sell the game if the buyer is of age.

 

[Lunaris Adamantine]

I don't think it's a big deal, really. Kids are going to become exposed to violence at some point in their lives, and I'm pretty sure that they will be able to distinguish between violence in games and violence in real life.

If anything, I would say violent games are a great stress reliever for all ages. I'm certain there may be an extremely small amount of children who would be sparked to go on a killing spree from playing Call of Duty, or whatever. But for most, shooting fake people is a great way to prevent yourself from punching real people. It always worked well for me, and I certainly can't be the only one.

My dad, on the other hand. He relieved stress from playing Dr. Mario. I guess he imagined all those falling pills were anti-anxiety medication.