Free Argumentative Essay On Do Violent Video Games Enact Violent Behavior In Their Players?

The advent of modern technology has brought about a cultural change in the society. There were times when people spent their time playing in the fields and enjoyed outdoor games. With time, as the era of computers and television took over, the socio-cultural patterns of the society changed. People began to spend more time watching television or using computers. Video games became one of the favorite pastimes for both children and adults. Several types of video games were introduced with a range of those video games which included violence. Violent video games have adversely affected the minds of the people and have given rise to violent behavior amongst them.
Video games provide an interactive experience to the people. The games are designed in such a manner that people are presented with challenging tasks. Video games build a virtual environment which allows the people to act as they desire. Viewing the freedom people enjoy in the virtual environment they tend to spend more and more time playing video games. Prolonged exposure to video games impacts a person’s thinking capabilities.Enjoying acts of violence in a video game develops insensitivity towards violent activities. Players who enjoy violence in video games are expected to develop a cold hearted attitude.
Video games which involve shooting are the most popular among the teenagers. As the graphics of video games improve, more and more teenagers are attracted towards such games. Taking active part in violence in video games is enjoyed by the teenagers. Shooting video games include the ones in which the player acts as a first person shooter. If a teenager enjoys killing people in a video game than how could we expect that he would be sensitive to human life in the real world.
Violent video games are considered to have more deleterious influences than violent programs on television. The prime reason behind this is that people become an active member of the activities taking place in a video game. Video games introduce a sense of competition by awarding points to the player. It is pertinent to note that the person is awarded points on the basis of death and destruction he unleashes in the game. In such a scenario, it is safe to assume that violent video games accentuate aggressive behavior in people.
The most revered personality trait in human beings is the sense of empathy. Violent video games play a role in killing the sense of empathy and giving rise to heartlessness. Once a person develops an uncaring attitude, he is not worried about the consequences of his behavior. It is a pity that a leisure activity like playing video games can cause a person to become accustomed to violence. The tragedy is that people absorb negativity from an activity which is supposed to be an entertaining experience.
Studies show that violent video games give rise to quarrelsome attitude in children. Such children are easily annoyed and respond in a harsh manner. Several parents complain that their children have gone through behavioral changes due to the violent video games. Children begin to disobey their parents and involve in fights with peers and siblings. Compared to the adults, violent video games have a pronounced impact on young children. The nascent mind of children is easily affected by violence shown in video games. The children begin to disregard the devastation of violent activities and accept violence as a part of their daily lives.
The environment has a major role in the development of the brain in human beings. People learn attitudes and behaviors from the environment. Imagine an adult enjoying killing in a video game and a child comes into the room. How could the child hate violence when he sees his own father or elder brother celebrating the “kills” in the video game? Celebrating violence only makes the matters worse as the children are made to believe that violent behavior is normal and desirable.
Like other sports, video games competitions are routinely held in all parts of the world. Most of the competitions involve online participation of players. The most popular games are the ones which involve war and shooting. Players team up and try to win wars in the virtual world. The sense of competition makes the players more involved in the game as they try to outplay the rivals. Players develop a sense of rivalry and hatred for the opposite teams. There is no denying the fact that such competitions adversely impact the innocent minds of the people.
In the recent past, a particular video game has drawn a lot of flak from the press due to its glorification of violence. The game in question allowed the player to roam in the streets of a city and get involved in activities like armed robbery. The player was allowed to snatch money and even shoot at the policemen. The game was widely popular among the children. However, the parents complained of how the game has changed the perspective of their children. The children became more materialistic and didn’t consider robbery as an offense. The aforementioned facts explain how violent video games adversely impact the thinking patterns of the people.
The video game developers have contested the fact that violent video games give rise to violence in the society. They base their arguments on the premise that there are several other factors like illiteracy and poverty which gives rise to violence. They are right to some extent but overlooking the impact of violent video games on people is not a rational approach towards the issue. The video games do increase intelligence levels in people if they are used in a positive manner. But, violent video games makes a person crave for more violence. Video game developers should realize that unregulated distribution of violent video games could have a harmful impact on the society. When the words like “decimated” and “obliterated” are enjoyed by the people who play video games, we can imagine how the people would react to violence in the real world.
There is no blinking the fact that violent video games have harmful effects on the thinking of both young and the adults. Watching television involves no active participation of the viewer but video games involve active participation of the players. Competition for superiority in the violent video games translates into the insensitivity towards violence in the real world. The violent video games are popular amongst the teenagers. Shooting games and the games which involve war are liked by the people. Prolonged exposure to violence in the virtual environment of video games leaves deep imprints on a person’s mind. It would not be an exaggeration to assert that violent video games give rise to violent behavior among the players.