Donald Ng Jer Yi

English 110 R75
October 18, 2013

Video games: a boon, not a plague We all have that one day of the week where we just want to cut loose from the burden of work and assignments. This “free” day would be used to engage in leisure activities which would reduce stress such as playing video games. However, the video game industry has come under heavy fire from the mainstream media, whom claim that there is a direct link between video games and violence amongst gamers. Despite the numerous reports that claim it is directly related to violence, video games are beneficial because they enhance the cognitive flexibility and teach moral lessons.
Video games are games that are played by electronically manipulating images produced by a computer program on a monitor or any other display. Video gaming has become increasingly popular because some people feel the need to “escape” from the harsh reality, and dive into their fantasy realm that is video games. Whether players take the role of the great detective they dream to be in “L.A. Noire” and bring criminals to justice, or a Dark Lord of the Sith and spread fear across the galaxy in “Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic”, they indefinitely found their place and enthusiasm in video games. As a matter of fact, certain genres of video games are now played as a competitive sport; Counter-Strike (First Person Shooter), Starcraft (Real Time Strategy) and even the football simulated game of FIFA are now played as a competitive sport, in which the winners walk home with fame and glory. Despite these achievements, video game controversies have also emerged, with “series of media claims that video games cause violence.”(Burnett); a common misconception that suggests video games are the direct link to violent behavior amongst gamers.
Video games are beneficial to gamers due to their contribution to a gamer’s cognitive flexibility development. According to Wikipedia, the term “Cognitive flexibility” is the “mental ability to switch between thinking about two separate concepts, and think about multiple concepts simultaneously.” In fact, video games such as the popular Real-time Strategy (RTS) game Starcraft (published by Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. in 1998), not only tests the gamer’s perceptual abilities, but also enhance their cognitive abilities. According to a research conducted amongst selective undergraduate participants from the University of Texas at Austin utilizing Starcraft, “RTS gaming selectively promotes cognitive flexibility, particularly under conditions in which players must rapidly switch between contexts while maintaining memory of both contexts.” (Glass, Maddox and Love). This trait is beneficial when conducting group discussions be it in a class session or an important meeting.
Another reason video games are beneficial is that it improves the morality of a gamer. Morality is the ability to distinguish what is ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ in terms of actions and decisions based on a moral code. Certain video games have incorporated in-game decisions which would shape the outcome of the story and the player-controlled protagonist as a whole. One such game is the graphic adventure video game by Telltale Games: “The Walking Dead.” Here, the player takes control of Lee Everett; a university professor and convicted murderer who subsequently rescues and takes care of a young girl named Clementine in an onset of the zombie apocalypse in this fictional world. As the game progresses, players are not only tasked to make a ‘right’ decision during in-game conversations and events, but also face situations where the outcomes are sometimes morally grey; even if the player thinks his or her decision was ‘right’, it is not ethically ‘right’ based on the moral code. Facing such events would not only motivate the player to reflect upon their actions and improve their social interactions, but additionally these events serve as a reminder to the player to do what is ethically ‘right’ in real the real world.
Some people claim that video gaming is directly linked to violent activities, or even a key factor of turning an innocent gamer into a mass murderer. The implication is that people who play video games, especially the FPS genre games, will eventually lead gamers astray and transform them into killers. A perfect example of such claims would be the recent case of 34 year old Aaron Lexis. According to the report, Alexis was shot dead on Monday, September 16th 2013 at the Washington Navy Yard gunman after killing 13 people and injuring 14 others; Alexis was ‘obsessed with violent video games’ and that his friends “believe it could have pushed him towards becoming a mass murderer.”(Allen) However, there is no evidence that violent video games are directly linked to serial killing. Villanova University’s associate professor of psychology, Patrick Markey commented that “There really is no evidence to suggest that such violent media is linked to these shootings, or really any real world violence, what we find in our laboratory studies are very small effects affecting our thoughts, our cognition, but not so much affecting our actual real behavior.”(Tapper) Furthermore, it is the baseless claims itself that causes an increase in violent behavior. A research conducted by psychological researcher of Rapture Institute, Dr Mario Vance, shown “statistically significant increase in overall aggression and violent tendencies that occurred very soon after tenuous mainstream stories claiming video games caused violence.”(Burnett) Instead of putting the blame on video games alone, some parents are to be considered partially guilty for not supervising their children’s choice of games, or for not educating their child properly on what’s ethically ‘right’ and ‘wrong’.
According to Tale-Two Interactive Software Inc., “the first-day sales of the action adventure game “Grand Theft Auto V” topped USD $800-million worldwide” (Edwards); even Hollywood movies take at least a month or 2 to reach such high revenue sales. The rapid increase in popularity of video games throughout the years, coupled with the evolution of video games in terms of graphics and gameplay since the release of Atari’s “Pong” back in the 70’s, explains the huge success of the video game industry, not forgetting that success in any field also attracts the attention of the mainstream media and public opinion. Video games are a boon, not a disadvantage to society. In fact, it is a new form of leisure that strengthens our ties between our friends and family members.

Works Cited

Glass, Brian D., W. Todd Maddox, Bradley C. Love. “Real-Time Strategy Game Training: Emergence of a Cognitive Flexibility Trait.” PLOS ONE: accelerating the publication of peer-reviewed science.
Internet Systems Consortium, August 7th 2013. Web. October 14th 2013
Burnett, Dean. ”Claims that ‘video games lead to violence’ lead to violence.” Brain Flapping Dean
Burnett. The Guardian, 20th September 2013. Web. October 17th 2013
Allen, Nick. “Aaron Alexis: Washington navy yard gunman 'obsessed with violent video games'.” The
Telegraph. Disqus, 17th September 2013. Web. October 20th 2013
Edwards, Cliff. “Grand Theft Auto 5 sets opening-day record with US$800-million in sales.” Bloomberg
News. Disqus, 19th September 2013. Web. October 20th 2013
Tapper, Jake. “Researcher: There is no evidence video games trigger violence.” The Lead with Jake
Tapper. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., September 18th 2013, Web. October 20th 2013