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Do you think Videogames have a positive or negative effect on society?

mutsu

Member
"Videogames" is too broad a term. Some games definitely have positive effects, as I have seen a lot of families building bonds together by playing family type games, which is why Mario Party continues to sell so well...

Other games, and I am not going to name any, does nothing but to bring moral values down...
 

ChrisReid

Member
mutsu said:
Other games, and I am not going to name any, does nothing but to bring moral values down...

The same thing could be said of books and movies, but are they responsible for or symptomatic of the state of moral values? Incidentally, some of the most "morally destructive" games also have a very positive economic impact. Yeah, the original question is way too broad to have any sort of decent discussion.
 

jett

D-Member
They're pretty much a complete waste of time...so i'll say negative. I don't give a shit, though. :p
 
mutsu said:
Other games, and I am not going to name any, does nothing but to bring moral values down...

That's a crock of shit. If someone is so susceptible to a game/film/book/song/etc.'s influence that it would alter their morality begs the question, are these people even fucking stable as is? The content should not be to blame for some fuckwad's shooting spree.
 
Date of Lies said:
what about individual growth?

EDIT: dopey change that avatar

Last time I checked I'm not playing games cuz they are a god damn after school special. I play them because they let me play out fantasies like imagining that Medusa in God of War is that bitch at Starbucks who jyped me, and when I rip off the head my pants inflate like the good year blimp.
 

mr jones

Ethnicity is not a race!
Oh they most definitely have an impact on society, trippingmartian. If you don't think so, ask three people whether or not they've heard of or played pac-man, mario brothers, sonic, golden tee, or playstation.

As for whether or not its positive or negative, that's too vague a question. Like asking whether or not books or movies have a positive/negative effect on society. I'm assuming that you're basing the question on the whole "hot coffee" topic, and frankly, that's just a small, small issue getting a lot of media press. There's plenty of games like Lumines, Jak 3, Zelda, and Kirby that aren't displaying realistic violence, or have sexual content.
 
jett said:
They're pretty much a complete waste of time...so i'll say negative.
True enough. There are a lot of better ways to make use of our time but chances are if there were no video games I'd just read a book, watch a movie or listen to some music instead, so I suppose it's all the same.
 

mr jones

Ethnicity is not a race!
flarkminator said:
Last time I checked I'm not playing games cuz they are a god damn after school special. I play them because they let me play out fantasies like imagining that Medusa in God of War is that bitch at Starbucks who jyped me, and when I rip off the head my pants inflate like the good year blimp.

begin transmission
[YES SIR. WE SHALL KEEP HIM UNDER STRICT SURVEILLANCE. NO, HE DOESN'T SEEM LIKE A THREAT AS YET, SIR. WE WILL IMMEDIATELY TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION IF HE BEGINS TO SHOW SIGNS OF INSTABILITY.]
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I think I heard somewhere that videogames put you in a place where you have control, power and influence, which isn't always the case in real life :lol and that that's one of the reasons people enjoy them. Saving the world and feeling like a hero.
 
mr jones said:
begin transmission
[YES SIR. WE SHALL KEEP HIM UNDER STRICT SURVEILLANCE. NO, HE DOESN'T SEEM LIKE A THREAT AS YET, SIR. WE WILL IMMEDIATELY TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION IF HE BEGINS TO SHOW SIGNS OF INSTABILITY.]
end transmission

OH She'll pay! With her god damn trendy nose ring...You'll get yours starbucks girl!
 

demi

Member
Date of Lies said:
I think I heard somewhere that videogames put you in a place where you have control, power and influence, which isn't always the case in real life :lol and that that's one of the reasons people enjoy them. Saving the world and feeling like a hero.

That's how I felt with Advent Rising.
 
Positive. Every moment I spend thinking about awesome role-playing-video games is one less moment I spend thinking about society (which is kind of an MMO) , and that makes me happy. Every moment spent feeling happy is one less moment spent thinking about ways to blow up society, so that's good for society.

So, to sum up for developers: more turn-based, plot-driven, charcacter-rich RPGs and less MMO slug-fests equals less time being blowed up and more happiness for society from my little corner of the world. So get crackin'!
 

Spencerr

Banned
I think the real question is: Does society have a negative effect on videogames? If so, fuck society man, fuck it right in the ear.
 
they are pretty much a waste of time, but so is 90% of what we do with our free time, so its no big deal. Just shit to do, i don't think they have an impact on society either way.
 

Ghost

Chili Con Carnage!
Well there were two world wars before videogames, and Zero since, so I think the evidence is pretty clear.
 
Ghost said:
Well there were two world wars before videogames, and Zero since, so I think the evidence is pretty clear.

LOL


My serious opinion: videogames are a REFLECTION of society, not some outside influence that steer it right or wrong.

A society that creates a game that has violence in it is already violent. If it has prostitution, drug use, or any other bad things in it, then those are already prevalent in that society. And if it rewards problem solving, coordination, thinking ahead, and not giving up, then those are things the society already values. Just like any other game in history, videogames are a product of their world, not its shaper.

So the real question is, "Does looking in the mirror have a positive or negative influence on society?"
 

Gantz

Banned
Positive and negative. Video games are a pretty much waste of time. Although video games kept me away from drugs during grade school I didn't do as well as I should have in school. Maybe I could have a better a job right now or I could be cracked out living at home with my parents.
 

byproduct

The Amiga Brotherhood
I think religion, junk food, soap operas, music film clips, cars and mobile phones are all worse for society than videogames. Get rid of those things before you talk about getting rid of videogames. otherwise BACK THE FUCK OFF.

The above is an opinion. Opinions are also bad for society. That was also an opinion.

And swearing is bad too.
 

etiolate

Banned
I think videogames have posittively influenced culture already and also influneced other medias like film and especially music. Imagination has been poached over the years and many videogames still push the imagination.

I won't say the same about the playstation generation mentality. That produces stuff like XXX. =/
 

Gattsu25

Banned
byproduct said:
Opinions are also bad for society. That was also an opinion.
No, that would be a fact.

I agree with the earlier comments that people that are morally affected by videogames have issues that extent far outside of what content the games provide. If a checkers player gets violent after a game does that mean that the game of checkers is to blame?

In America? Fuck yes
 

shuri

Banned
They don't have any effect other than having spawned a whole new generation of social reclused and furries.
 
Videogames/movies/books are all influenced by the state of society, they then have a ripple effect on society itself in some form (take the SA scandal for example).
 

Shig

Strap on your hooker ...
Anything that keeps the kids off the streets is a good thing, IMO.

Also, entertainment with interaction > passive entertainment. At least videogames hone your reflexes and problem-solving skills a little, more than can be said for TV.
 

Tarazet

Member
Naked Shuriken said:
They don't have any effect other than having spawned a whole new generation of social reclused and furries.

?

I pity anyone who is malleable enough to have his moral leanings influenced by a video game. I mean, come on...
 

Scrow

Still Tagged Accordingly
why must it be a case of only one or the other?

"games are BAD for society!"

"games are GOOD for society!"

Games have both negative and positive effects, like most things in life.
 

jgkspsx

Member
BAN MMORPGs

THAT IS ALL

Seriously, we can't even begin to answer this question yet. Look at the birth of the novel -- it was feared it would devastate society and corrupt young minds -- and the birth of the television -- it was hoped it would educate its viewers and lead to a more intelligent, more informed, more homogeneous society. Obviously neither quite had its supposed effect.
 

Ranger X

Member
Society is all of us. You have to tackle this question with videogames as a whole, not each game independently to find the answer for this thread.

First of all, of course videogames are having an effect on society, everybody thinking otherwise lacks serious knowledge. Videogames is entertainment. Humans need entertainment, it's part of keeping mental health. Videogames then of course compares to movies and books. It also compares to table games, card games and such. Those are all NEEDED entertainement for our health.
Videogames relax you, fills you with anger, joy, or any other emotion. The way it's affecting you temper thus affect the way you think and act. Then it's having an effect somehow on people around you since we all influence something. All of us as a whole is society -- of course, videogames influence society because it's part of our lives. It's as simple as that.

Personally i think videogames as a whole are having a positive effect. It's just as good as books and movies. It even makes your brain work more. It's also extremely good for your memory compared to movies and books.
And games are getting so diverse nowaday and it touches so many subjects and emotions, cultures etc, it's even educational somehow. (though books still win on that front imo)
 

Acosta

Member
Videogames are only a consequence of society, they are not at individual and external entity that came from space.

People need to create/experience histories and feelings, I don´t know why, but we need to have lot of artificial things rounding on our heads, maybe as something we do to reinforce our existence. Videogames it´s just a new way to be part of that process, we always have created histories for ourselves because we need it, that is the origin of the art.

So no, IMO neither positive or negative, all medias have their very own characteristics, but society is the one who creates and demands videogames, TV, movies, newspapers, books, music.... it´s just an image of ourselves and a natural part of our society. Everything has an effect, but I find wrong to call them "positive" or "negative" from a so general point of view.
 

Jive Turkey

Unconfirmed Member
Really wondering where Society is and why he hasn't responded to this thread yet.

On topic: Just like all forms of mass media video games can have a positive effect on society (teamwork and such) and a negative effect (Jack Thompson).
 

Dr_Cogent

Banned
Videogames are videogames. Fuck society. LOL

:lol

I kid! I kid!

But seriously though, are they bad? In some ways they can be, and in others they are good. It's like any technology. There are +'s and -'s.

Are they going to be our demise? I doubt it. :D

We've got crazy fucks who want to set off nukes over here in the States. Videogames are the least of our worries.
 

Razoric

Banned
Zeo said:
Video game forums are worse.

Their Leader: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/board.aspx?fn=wow-general

Read that forum and then think about where we have gone wrong as a society.

One example: You have kids calling the developers pieces of shit, lazy, morons, etc all because Blizzard is giving a neat, non-combat, in-game reward to people who attend Blizzcon. There is even a fucking petition about it.

Now there is a turning point in someone's life when they would get worked up over someone else getting a fake polygon creature that does nothing but follow them around eventually to be stored in their "bank" never to be used again. At what point in someone's fucked up brain is it justified to outright attack Blizzard, the developers and other players because of something as trivial as an in-game pet?

And that is just one of MANY examples on that cesspool of a forum.
 

kaching

"GAF's biggest wanker"
CNET interview with ESRB Pres. Patricia Vance said:
And yet there's this perception that video games lead to violence.
Vance: If you look at the crime statistics over the last 10 years, where you've had the largest increase in penetration of games in this country, you've seen that crime has dropped precipitously, whereas playing video games has increased exponentially. It suggests that actually there has been a drop in criminal behavior since the introduction of video games.

Link
 
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