This is what Video Game Commercials Teach Us about Censorship

After I watched the most recent commercials for Assassin's Creed 2(see video), I noticed something about them. In a game about an assassin whose job is to kill, the commercials do not depict a single death. Why can I turn on CSI and hear the tale of the Las Vegas Stripper Rapist/Murderer/Cannibal but a commercial cannot show a virtual historical person being killed. Perhaps more confusing is that I can watch a sword make a bee line for someone's chest but the camera will cut away right before the contact. Is there anyone out there that doesn't know what's coming next? Has censorship gone so far as to forbid virtual death in a commercial? Or is it simply picking on video games "Up next on CBS: the crime lab at CSI:Miami tackles the grisliest case of child rape and murder they've ever seen." Why can we tease people with CSI, Law and Order, 24, etc. and the murders of real life people but we can't show a historical figure being killed by an assassin (many of the targets in the game are real life historical figures killed under mysterious circumstances, perhaps by an assassin)? Or is it simply alright to show corpses but not someone actually being killed?

The Impact of Video Games

What was the last thing you discussed with a casual acquaintance at length? I'm betting it wasn't a book. As I sat with a coworker discussing the most recent Call of Duty game, I got to thinking about the cultural relevance of video games. My coworker is almost ten years older than me, he is a veteran, and has worked as a mechanic. Other than our understanding of how computers work, we have almost nothing in common, yet we were able to have a lengthy dialogue about video games. Could we possibly do the same thing with a book? I doubt it. I'd be willing to bet that more young Americans today play video games more than they read for leisure. I know much more about video game history and different video games and how they compare than I do about classic literature. It is my opinion that in modern times, video games are more culturally relevant to young people than are books. It's been a few months since I read a book for leisure (a shorter record than most people my age I'm sure) but I play multiple video games every day. Video games do have their own culture and history, and I think many young people are more familiar with the works of Electronic Arts and Bungie Entertainment than they are with those of Chaucer and Whitman.

Health care and Video Games

So, we were asked to write about our blog topics and how they relate to health care. At first, it appears there is no relation between health care and video games. While I do not have current statistics with me at the moment, I can assume there is a link between the inactivity of video games playing and the obesity epidemic facing the youth of America (but I contend that reading a book is just as much exercise as playing a video game but we tell our kids to read)
Obesity is a main contributor to the massive health care costs in America (that and the free-loader problem) and it can only be assumed that video games have played some role in that. But they mustn't receive all the blame. Many games require activity by those playing them (the Nintendo Wii comes to mind). The question is, how much of an effect is this having, and what can we do to stop it?

You've Been E-robbed!

There are many online games that have entire communities with their own little e-economies (that doesn't really work out as a neologism does it?). With e-economies and e-currency come e-thieves. Game communities such as Runescape and World of Warcraft have their own currency, often in-game gold, used to purchase items to make characters more powerful. There are even people who buy and sell fake money with real money on sites like ebay. Oftentimes people try to take advantage of this. There are people who write programs to "gold farm" (earn massive amounts of gold) or resort to stealing from other players in order to sell said gold for real money. A man using phishing schemes in order to access and steal from accounts in England was recently arrested on misuse of computers charges. I find this to be a very strange occurrence that a man was arrested and charged with a real crime for stealing fake money which he used to make real money. Is suppose it is a real crime if he obtained the money in a fraudulent manner but I think it would be very tough to prove that a crime has been committed. Perhaps English laws differ but I think a good attorney could get him off on these charges.

War Crimes and Video Games

I recently read an article from the BBC about a study on the amount of war crimes in video games and how it affects the player. The article focused on several games and studied how they treat war crimes and whether or not the characters in the game follow the Geneva Convention rules for war. And guess what, most games don't. Is it at all surprising that video games don't follow Geneva convention rules? I've played the majority of the games the have listed as part of the study and quite of few of them involve but discourage innocents being harmed in the crossfire. Many games fail the player and make them start over if several civilians are harmed. Sure it doesn't make you sit through a lengthy court martial, but there are consequences for actions. Game makers strive for realism, and what's realistic about door to door fighting in the army if it all takes place in a ghost town with no civilians to worry about?
The article mostly focuses on Modern Warfare 2 and it's controversial airport scene. I've played through the game myself and I'd like to mention some things that many media sources leave out. First of all, the game asks you if you would like to play this scene. It gives you the option to skip it entirely without participating because it may be offensive. Another important thing to mention is that the game makes it very clear that you are participating in a terrorist action. This terrorist action results in a US war with Russia in which the entirety of Washington DC is turned into a warzone. I think this makes it clear what the implications of your actions are and what results from killing innocent civilians. The a game does not reward you for killing people, it is simply part of a story line no different from an action movie or film.
I do like that the article mentions some statements by someone who is "in touch" with the gaming community. I think his words are very true when he says no one denounces books for violence or protests James Bond's shoot first, ask questions later style of conducting business. Many people target video games unfairly because of the active participation of the gamer. The fact of the matter is that video games tell a story, and many gamers would feel let down and left out if they did not get to participate in every aspect of that story.

Here is a link to the BBC article:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8373794.stm

Call of Duty Gives Back

Here's a staggering statistic: there are about 500,000 unemployed veterans between the ages of 18 and 64 in the United States today. What does this have to do with video games you ask? Well, anyone who is into video games has heard of (and probably already purchased) the first person military shooter Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The latest release in the critically acclaimed series broke sales records and the game's developer, Activision Blizzard, has decided to set up the Call of Duty Endowment in order to assist out of work US veterans. The endowment has already given over one million dollars to veteran-assisting charities and much of that money is coming directly from the sales of Call of Duty games. So if you think video games aren't culturally relative, think about this: on it's release date, COD:MW 2 sold 4.7 million copies in the US and UK alone for a total of $333 million. That's more money than some movies make in their entire cinematic run. Call of Duty isn't only invading millions of US and UK households, it's also giving back to the veterans who inspire the stories it tells.