Are Violent Video Games Training People To Commit Crimes?

Here we go again, the never-ending blame game of linking violent video games to real-world crime. The latest attack on violent video games comes from a State Representative in Illinois. Representative Marcus Evans Jr calls for the sale of violent video games like Grand Theft Auto V to be banned in his state. The reason for the ban is debatable, but Rep. Evans believes a recent uptick in carjackings is directly linked to individuals being influenced by violent video games. Before we continue discussing the proposed ban, let us dive deeper into some of the so-called violent video games to better understand what is causing this uproar.

Grand Theft Auto V

Grand Theft Auto V is an action-adventure game released by Rockstar Games in 2013. Rockstar's open-world video game quickly became a smashing success, earning more than $800 million in the first day of sales and eclipsing $1 billion in three days. Grand Theft Auto V earned Game of the Year honors from many publications and is considered one of the greatest video games ever made. However, the game's success did not come without controversy. Grand Theft Auto V came under fire for the way the game depicted violence and women. Murder, drugs, sex, and torture are just some of the issues voiced by critics of the extremely popular game.

In 2014, a Change.org petition forced Target stores in Australia to remove the video game from its shelves. Target executive Jim Cooper spoke about the decision. He said,

"We've been speaking to many customers over recent days about the game, and there is a significant level of concern about the game's content. We've also had customer feedback in support of us selling the game, and we respect their perspective on the issue. However, we feel the decision to stop selling GTA5 is in line with the majority view of our customers."

Call of Duty

Guinness World Records has verified the Call of Duty franchise as the best-selling first-person shooter game series in the world. Since its release in 2013, Call of Duty has expanded their brand beyond just video games. Trading cards, playing cards, and action figure toys are just a few examples of the franchise's expansion. While Call of Duty doesn't have the level of controversy Grand Theft Auto V has, it has its share of baggage.

The most noticeable issue critics have had was with its Modern Warfare 2 game. A level on the game had you posing as a terrorist and shooting your way through an airport. While you did not have to attack innocent civilians to reach your destination, the ability to gun down bystanders was allowed. Call of Duty later made a patch that gave the player the option to skip this segment. However, critics still cried out, given the gameplay is similar to mass shootings. Over the years, various people have admitted to playing Call of Duty, leading to horrific mass shootings. Though it is hard to prove, the link between mass shootings and Call of Duty has been its most significant controversy.

Now let's see what Rep. Evan's proposed bill to ban violent video games is all about.

According to the bill, video games that allow a user or player to control a character within the video game that is encouraged to perpetuate human-on-human violence in which the player kills or otherwise causes serious physical or psychological harm to another human or animal would be classified as violent and would be banned from selling in the state of Illinois.

However, various states have had similar legislation proposed in the past, to only be overturned by higher courts based on first amendment rights. With that being said, this bill proposal will very likely never see the light of day.

What do you think? Are violent video games to blame for the violent acts that happen in the real world? Let your voice be heard! Check out all of our social media links below and tell us how you feel!

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Source(s):

Gameverse, BBC, Fortune