The PALGN Podcast, Episode 31

PALGN Feature | PALGN Focus: Violence in games.

Clocking in at 39 minutes almost on the dot, Tristan, Daniel, and Evan focus in on violence in games this week. In a session positively packed with soapboxes, we speculate on the why, when, and whether it's even important. Much opinionated bantering ensues.

This week's outro mix is Chrono Chross 'Radical Dreamers Angelic Mix', created by Kaijin and distributed by OverClocked ReMix (www.ocremix.org). For the full bitrate version, why not head over to OverClocked ReMix and download it?

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8 Comments

Daniel Golding

3 years ago

I dunno about anyone else, but I had a lot of fun recording this one!

Tristan

3 years ago

Violence is always fun. kidding.

One thing that I think we forgot to bring up though was the fact that with a decent rating system and educated/interested/responsible parents, violence in videogames, as it relates to children, would hopefully be less of an issue.

Fly

3 years ago

It's not just Pokemon, really every monster breeder has some manner of *catch random animal, use random animal who's probably bipolar to smack down other animals. Win* and really in some cases of the monster breeders you're also not just delving in "PG" violence but you're also breeding some strange ****. Jade Cocoon kinda gives an example of this where you use your seed beats to smack down other beasts, and then "merge" lets say a dingo with a bumblebee to form a hybrid. Sure you don't see the merging... since that'd be really damned weird but you sit there after finding a bird, picking a rat and then watching that rat get constipated and generate enough electricity to power the international space station but that you can then get that rat and form the cast from Thundercats.

So really it's not just the correlations with **** with such games and the abhorrent violence that it brings about, but also the apparent sexual innuendos of the genre also. Where something that's really viewed as harmless and kid friendly, depending on the viewpoint could arguably be worse than the GTA's since at least they're not "pretending".

Evan

3 years ago

Yeah, that's a fair point. Despite what most people complain about, I don't think it's actually the violence people complain about, it's the style of depiction that's important. Have a cute, cuddly fluff-ball beat another senseless (with no blood, mind you), and it's OK. Have two drunken bums beat each other senseless, however, and it's crossed that line.

Like I said in the podcast though, I don't think violence in games is an issue in practice. It's just too hard to create an emotional connection with Sub-Zero, for example, making your beating him to a pulp far more of an exercise in memorisation and button control than one of psychopathic rage.

One could even argue violence in games teaches emotional control and forms a cathartic release for those with pent-up rage ... maybe there's a reason why violent games are actually beneficial!

I actually had really good fun with this one as well ... I hope it's as interesting to listen to as it was to record!

Daniel Golding

3 years ago

Evan wrote

Like I said in the podcast though, I don't think violence in games is an issue in practice. It's just too hard to create an emotional connection with Sub-Zero, for example, making your beating him to a pulp far more of an exercise in memorisation and button control than one of psychopathic rage.

One could even argue violence in games teaches emotional control and forms a cathartic release for those with pent-up rage ... maybe there's a reason why violent games are actually beneficial!

Aha, but don't these points contradict? One says there is no effect of violence, the other says there is!

... I should really stop playing devil's advocate.

Fly

3 years ago

Evan wrote

Yeah, or being circumvented in that RPG's constantly have blatant killing, many times for no reason other than you can, but since way back when it was all polygons fading away, it's A OK and the only real complaint was the innuendoes of romance / sex.

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I suppose in these cases it also depends if one actually cares for the lore behind said characters, since using MK as an example it would be difficult to become attached to any of the characters if you only cared for beating stuff up, but at the same time if you delved into the Scorpion & Sub Zero plot you could actually make it more than a simple depiction of guy of ice tearing out someones spine. It's been more the evolution of the fighter to involve some manner of plot & development to get away from the 2D "it's just a fighter" opinion.

Then again that doesn't really stop people from say picking Samus because they adore Metroid and then every chance they get beating down Mario because they hate plumbers or Italians in Brawl.

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One could even argue violence in games teaches emotional control and forms a cathartic release for those with pent-up rage ... maybe there's a reason why violent games are actually beneficial!

That's the flip side argument, what's stopping little Timmy from practising his skillz with a real firearm? Perhaps him venting on the game will. Yes but then he'd be practising to... and a circular argument evolves.

Thus far no ones jumped to conclusions with the Wii also, what's to make them stop at fitness and sports "programs", are we concerned that Wii Sports with boxing could evolve into shadow boxing with further motion sensing improvements and are we then concerned at those casual gamers in their own homes shadow boxing each other? I mean given the trends it's really only a matter of time before we come to that argument also "fitness and training v beating the snot out of family / mates".

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I actually had really good fun with this one as well ... I hope it's as interesting to listen to as it was to record!

It was intriguing with the varying viewpoints, and probably one that more people could identify with given the content.

Evan

3 years ago

Daniel Golding wrote

Aha, but don't these points contradict? One says there is no effect of violence, the other says there is!

... I should really stop playing devil's advocate.

Not really. ;p

My point is that I don't believe that games can create violent impulses, as they don't generally create an emotional connection with your targets, thereby anthropomorphising the objects you're dealing with. However, they can act as an emotional release, just as any activity requiring concentration does. Domination, success, mastery, flow - all of these responses can act as stress relievers.

Look at tennis, for example - it can teach emotional control through learning to deal with personal frustration, defeat, and competition, but I doubt most psychologically stable people would actually feel like killing their opponent or racquet. The mechanic, one of domination and competition, doesn't translate to violence for the vast majority of people. And, for those who it does, we generally consider them socially unfit and / or are likely to have deeper issues. We don't blame the tennis, in other words - we blame other factors.

Daniel Golding

3 years ago

Yes, of course, you are right. Unfortunately, I was merely relaying an argument of a major 'media theorist' who decided that if you deny the effects of media violence (in a tangible cause > effect manner) you are also denying any other media effects. A stupid argument, because of course, the number one effect media has is to frame the way we look at things, which of course isn't a tangible effect at all.

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