Video games.

How can you not see them influence our culture?

Okay, so the debate about whether or not they influence violence in our culture is debatable… but influence itself is not.

Video games have changed everything.

Take 2005’s record-breaking year, when the video game industry raked in approximately $10.5 billion worth of revenue.

Now, skip a year later to 2006—the new record-breaking year. It raked in approximately $12.5 billion.

Now what does that say about ’07? Of course those numbers haven’t come out yet… the Christmas holiday is still looming in the distance along with the assumed billions of dollars still to be made.

If violence or any other sort of “questionable” material are in them, how could they not be influential? Just look at the money spent on them each year…

Now, I like video games here and there. I am the type of person who could sit down and play some Nintendo Mario, some Playstation complete with Crash Bandicoot, and shoot-‘em-up games never really appealed to me.

However, they are some of the most talked about… from Grand Theft Auto to Call of Duty.

Are these so bad?

To be honest, like I said, I’m not into them. It could be personal preference, but I get bored and don’t feel the rush that some people get while playing them.

However, I feel like an addicting aspect is present in order for anyone to enjoy any sort of video game… and shooters, along with games like Super Mario, have it.

…and people want it.

–Online Multiplayer games such as Guild Wars or Star Wars Galaxies have thousands of people draining their computers of any downtime while they go on their endless journeys to conquer this and that.

–People sat waiting for hours upon hours , days and days, just to get their hands on the new Playstation 3 in 2006. People even actually tried to rob and mug other people who already bought the system.

It can’t be ignored that video games have a certain influence on people…especially the younger generation.

Could this be dangerous?

If someone plays Grand Theft Auto and then steals cars later, it isn’t going to be easy that that playing the game was the sole influence of his crime.

So, for arguments sake, I can’t find a great way of debating that video games DO in fact influence violence.

HOWEVER… I do believe it is easier to take the standpoint arguing that yes, maybe they don’t influence violent behavior, but they by all means don’t influence good behavior at all.

What’s the point?

Like I said, I don’t like shooter games of any sort, I find them lame and boring.

Okay, so they might not be the reason kids commit crimes and cause school shootings… but they are even more so not the reason for any sort of positive influence among anyone.

What’s the point?

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GTA cover art

PS3 advertisement

Crash Bandicoot