What do you think of the whole violent video games influence people debate?

Just thinking this pops up constantly on stupid articles what do you guys actually think.  My thoughts summarised.

- Video games don't make people violent
- Video games likely desensitise people to violence, but I think this is true of films  and any other media to
- You likely can spot a psycho by how they go out about playing games, those weirdoes who seem to go in great detail about what they get up to in certain games and do those things repeatedly ( I probably need to explain that better, but can't be jacked atm)
- Age ratings on games I think should be followed, some kids likely can ignore them if they're mature enough, but some kids are weird and I know some parents ignore when their kids need better parenting
- Violent stuff and sexual stuff really shouldn't be played by kids look at the crap Kimarous and Baal came out with when they were younger

Video games having any negative effect on regular people who play them has been disproved several times now. The constant violence/sexism/racism controversies surrounding video games are absurd and unfounded.

From what I remember reading, violent or competitive games change people's behaviour in the same way any other violent or competitive activity (like sports). Heightened aggression while playing and for a very short time afterwards but no long term effects.

When I was 8 my friends and I played Mortal Kombat 4 and we got into some fights in the school. The teachers loved me, but my friends weren't so lucky.

my eldest son throws his control pad when he loses at fifa but my youngest can play borderlands/ CoD/ GTAV// saints row 4 all day without incident, its not the games its all about your own self control

Your eldest son is more passionate or competitive about games.

(Holy crap, he has kids?!)

no, he just hates losing. Did you not know i had kids? i thought everyone on here knew

But, but you are too young to have kids. Or am too old and I need to get serious? Argh.

Neo wrote:

Video games having any negative effect on regular people who play them has been disproved several times now. The constant violence/sexism/racism controversies surrounding video games are absurd and unfounded.

The use of the word regular bugs the hell out of me I think, I wouldn't describe most people as regular.

When you say controversies do you mean when people say playing video games make you racist/sexist/psycho or are there others i'm overlooking?

It's bollocks, new media has always been blamed for antisocial behaviour by conservatives. Films were too, I know there was a whole thing about people worrying the film adaptation of Clockwork Orange would turn people violent when it was made. Now that videogames are on the scene, you don't see nearly as many claims of films turning people violent. I imagine a similar thing will happen in the future.

TTB's right, it's more to do with the people than media.

This is the exact same thing that people were saying about rock. Now the current generation of parents are simply taking up the mantle by trying to find something else to scapegoat.

I been hearing this shit for years.

The most violence someone will do with video games is throw their controllers at most. I don't think planning to shoot-up a school and planning for 2 years was caused by video games.

Like metal, movies, and TV before it, they are all blame for some asshole's rampage.

What I find stupid about this whole argument is the politicians and such that argue it never seem to understand this simple fact - You and your kids grew up watching stuff like Looney Tunes. Forget violent movies, music, TV, video games etc... You and your kids grew up watching anvils fall on cartoon animals heads, yet I have never once heard the argument that Wile E. Coyote influences kids to hit each other (or roadrunners) over the head with mallets and blow each other up with rockets and shit...

It's like back when I was a kid and my parents TRIED to stop me from watching Beavis and Butthead and I calmly explained to them that I wouldn't go around doing the dumb shit that those two did on their show because I'm not a moron. From that point on they let me watch it and never spoke out against it ever again. To this day forward I have never and never will reenact what I see in violent media.

As far as kids and adults who do reenact that crap and get themselves hurt or killed, it's called Darwinism.

So in all, it really just depends on how sane a person is.

i made a play pen for some cats in minecraft then dumped lava on them