Will the moral panic over video games die down?

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xEpix

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As someone who loves video games I am just really annoyed as of late by all the people who believe video games are bad. I see potential in this medium and I hate it that many people still in 2014 frown upon video games. Video games have been blamed for causing violence, addiction, antisocial behavior, obesity, cancer, and every other little thing. Do you think the fear over video games will ever go away? Besides, this has all happened before with every new media: Even Socrates complained about the effects of Writing on youth. Novels, comic books, radio, television, movies, Roleplaying and video games, we're all blamed for causing social ills and brining about the end of civilization. Now it seems that many of these fears have died down over the years. Si the fears of video games ever go as and will video games be a respected medium?
 

mccardey

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As someone who loves video games I am just really annoyed as of late by all the people who believe video games are bad.

Which people? Which video games?
 

cornflake

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As someone who loves video games I am just really annoyed as of late by all the people who believe video games are bad. I see potential in this medium and I hate it that many people still in 2014 frown upon video games. Video games have been blamed for causing violence, addiction, antisocial behavior, obesity, cancer, and every other little thing. Do you think the fear over video games will ever go away? Besides, this has all happened before with every new media: Even Socrates complained about the effects of Writing on youth. Novels, comic books, radio, television, movies, Roleplaying and video games, we're all blamed for causing social ills and brining about the end of civilization. Now it seems that many of these fears have died down over the years. Si the fears of video games ever go as and will video games be a respected medium?

I blame Metallica.
 

Osulagh

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As someone who loves video games I am just really annoyed as of late by all the people who believe video games are bad.

As of late means, ten, twenty years ago? The majority of the crack down/scare on video games died down long ago; now it's being generally accepted.

Video gaming is the biggest entertainment industry today, and I see little to stop it.

When something grows so large, there's bound to be critics.
 

ShaunHorton

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GTA5 came out in 2013. Nobody cared.

New Mortal Kombat came out in 2013. Nobody cared.

Some individuals will never let go of the idea that video games cause violence, and immoral behavior. The world that continues spinning without them, however, doesn't agree with them.

Yeah, 99% of the world really doesn't care about video games anymore. (At least in the ways that you suggest they do.)
 

Craig McNeil

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I take it you mean that whenever some nut job goes on a shooting spree, the media usually says that he (it's almost always a 'he') was addicted to Doom. It's usually Doom despite the fact it's almost 25 years since it was released though I've read that Random Nutter spent 27 hours a day, nine days a week playing Call of Duty. I think it's more a media thing (especially in the trash papers such as the Daily Mail in the UK) trying to stir up moral outrage amongst it UKIP voting readers than anything else. Everyone else who has a brain will merely roll their eyes.
 

Bufty

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They - whoever 'they' are- will be banning Three Blind Mice next because it incites knife violence.

Or Cinderella because it encourages belief in magic.

Or any number of other gruesome and nasty fairy tales that fill kids' heads with horrible ideas.

:snoopy:


ETA- I hope nobody thinks I'm serious here - you never know.:poke:
 

gingerwoman

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I think the video gaming industry may have eaten my teen alive.:cry:
 

frimble3

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It's always something. Before video games, it was Dungeons and Dragons that was going to make kids into Satanists, or ax-murderers, or both.
Back in the day, the waltz was dirty-dancing because the dancers held onto each other.
The day printing was invented, someone cried out "Think of the children!"
This, too, will pass. In favour of something just as 'bad', I suspect.
 

Primus

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There will always be criticism leveled at the video game industry, because there's a critic for everything, which stems mostly from ignorance and just plain disgust (especially by politicians when talking about vgs). Can't ever expunge it because nothing can ever be universally accepted. However, like anything, the video game industry will evolve, and what comes out of that will surely cause an uproar and level a public glare there for a time, leaving what came before a footnote in everyone's mind. People won't care about the past, they'll move on as time does to focus on the now and what they will "perceive" to be the future. That's how the world works, clearly.
 

Wilde_at_heart

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1995 called. They said Stop it.

Try 1982. Honestly, complaints have died down imo compared to when they were primarily available in arcades.

It's always something. Before video games, it was Dungeons and Dragons that was going to make kids into Satanists, or ax-murderers, or both.
Back in the day, the waltz was dirty-dancing because the dancers held onto each other.
The day printing was invented, someone cried out "Think of the children!"
This, too, will pass. In favour of something just as 'bad', I suspect.

Or dear old Socrates:

Our youth now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for their elders and love chatter in place of exercise; they no longer rise when elders enter the room; they contradict their parents, chatter before company; gobble up their food and tyrannize their teachers.
 
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efkelley

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Try 1982. Honestly, complaints have died down imo compared to when they were primarily available in arcades.

Quite so, I remember my dad showing me a news report in the mid 80's about how video games were eroding the culture and kids' minds. He told me 'in my day, television was destroying the culture.' :D
 
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