Should violent video games be banned?

Answer 1

Violent Video Games, like violent films, are an expression of artistic focus. Most violent video games are not necessarily designed to make violence enjoyable, but more to make the entire experience of the video game more realistic in feel. One of the current trends in the media, is to encourage the ban of video games with violent content, and, personally I think this is a farce. Like films, literature, comic books and television, video games are merely the newest medium for artistic expression in the late 20th and early 21st Century. They are unique in the fact they can mimic and in some ways surpass all other artistic mediums before them, due to their digitally- interactive input method. It's this uniqueness and unwillingness to be pigeon-holed, that has piqqued the public's interest in them, to a point of wanting it's riddance. If violent video games should be banned, the only logical reason they should be is to protect them from younger children. But like films, there are clear age restrictions on games with a high amount of graphic content. The video games "Manhunt" and "Grand Theft Auto", have been particularly stressed in the press as boasting content that has led to the deteriation of young people in todays culture. But both these video games carry an 18 certificate age restriction, and if parents are letting their children play them at a young age, I'm frankly not surprised that adverse behavioral changes would occur in children below the age of 14, who have been allowed to play these games without efficient guidance. Also, blame perhaps equally lies with the video game retailers who have sold them to underage children. Violent video games, like films and similar expressive mediums should not be banned, if enough care is taken to stop them being experienced by children of an unsuitable age.

One point you have to keep in mind is at what point a game is considered violent. Some people consider games like Runescape where you "attack" another person to be violent. Others consider games like Call of Duty where people shoot in first person and there's plenty of blood and gore to be violent.

The reasons to ban violent video games are basically:

• impact on impressionable children
• cause society to become more violent

Arguments against banning violent video games:

• There is already a suggested age limit.
• No way to enforce such a rule.
• Limit creativity and how realistic the game can be