h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It works now.

Hi there, EchidnaZ,
Your piece showed up on my PC this Monday,am.
Personally, as an old bloke of 65, I am not into computer games. I have nothing against them particularly, except those, like the one you are reviewing, that contain and encourage (even as a source of entertainment) any form of violence, theft, etc., in the younger members of the global village. God knows, we have enough of it in real life. Such is the mental attitude of many users of these games, that there is a consequential trend towards anarchy in the world. Civilizations have perished under such influences in the past.
That said, your writing is entertaining, and you seem to be getting some sympathetic reviews. I wish you the best of antipodean luck with your review.

Ronbloggs

I'm afraid I'll have to go against you on this one Ron. GTA does not encourage violence, and I should know as I've been playing it since I was twelve. And your belief that the game is going to cause the downfall of civilization is just silly.

No offense.

Hi GodBen,
Well, you know us old geezers GodBen, we have strong views about such things.I respect your point of view, but I think 'silly' is a bit strong!
I take no offence, however. What you have to appreciate is that these games have a great influence on young minds that may not be as reasoning as yours in their attitude to them. It is an undeniable fact that one single gunshot by an unbalanced mind really did trigger the carnage that was the first world war. It took just one guy with a strange mentality to kill those millions. History bears witness.

Regards,
Ron

Yes, people killed each other before Grand Theft Auto was made. Those people who play the game, then kill someone, are obviously mentally unstable in the first place and using the game as an excuse.

After all, Vice City sold 30 million copies over the past two years, yet there has only been a handful of incidents claiming the game as fault for a murder.

I'm not saying that games like GTA do encourage violence, and I've never played or seen the game so I couldn't say anything definitive about the content, but it irks me that we've become so desensitised that we kill people as a recreational activity (albeit virtually). What does that say about us as a society?

Sorry GB I would come to your rescue with big words, statistics and logic...but I'll just get too wrapped up in all of this so I'm running away. Sorry

You're working under the mistaken impression that all you do in the game is kill people, but that's not what it's about. I enjoy it for the ability to drive around fictional cities at break-next speed. I like getting into planes and flying from one city to the next.

The truth is that there's very few games where you don't go around killing people, in one way or another. GTA just has a bad reputation.

I was just using GTA as an example of one of the many games that involve violence. I myself don't play any video games, and never have, so I probably shouldn't be one to talk, but it just annoys me that it seems that one of society's favourite pastimes is killing people in video games. I know I'm making a huge generalisation - just commenting.

They're not real people, and GTA teaches you not to kill people as the police will come after you if you do. See, it teaches morals.

I know they're not real people - all the same, violent video games cause people to become comfortable with violence, as do other things such as violent tv shows and films. People see violence as normal, they stop caring when some atrocity happens, because they've seen worse in their video games or movies. This is what bothers me: that violence is so normal, such a part of life. We come home after a long day and relax by killing people. Yes, they're not real people, but the idea is the same. No wonder the world likes to start wars instead of seeking peaceful solutions.

most people in the western world live far less violent lives than they would have throughout most of history
I find the idea that video games, films etc cause violence laughable
personally I suspect people enjoy them because they provide an outlet for emotions and adrenalin that isn't otherwise there in our relatively safe lives

I've played computer games since I was 14 or so - some of them violent, some not. I liked playing them a lot more when I was younger. I've lost interest in most of them these days (now that I'm in my thirties) but I was attracted to GTA VC by the graphics, which are much, much better than the ones in games 20 years ago. Anyway, I assure you that I've never been in a fight or used a gun or stolen a car or driven recklessly or killed anyone in real life. My criminal record in real life consists of riding a bicycle past a stop sign when I was 16 (there wasn't any traffic around). But I do agree that games like VC are more suitable for older kids or adults than young children, who are more impressionable.

I'm not at all saying that games like GTA are the *cause* of violence - more the other way around. The overall violence and accustomation to violence in modern society is shown through violence in the electronic media. I just watched a movie with a bit of violence in it, but that doesn't make me want to go out and shoot someone. It's annoying, though, that people feel a movie will sell better if it does have violence, and it is somewhat disturbing, if you'll allow the expression, that people will pay $10 US or whatever the equivalent is in your local currency to see violence played out on a huge screen.

maybe but 100 years ago they'd have been watching bare knuckle boxing or dogfighting and the violence would have been real

2000 years ago they put slaves, that were conquered in battle, into big arenas and had them fight to the death.

I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but the overwhelming majority of films imported by us, here in the UK, containing what is referred to as
'gratuitous violence', originate from the United States. They are produced because they satisfy a demand in the general populations of most modern societies. Even the British films containing violence are financed largely by American money, and many UK films are made in the US! We are equally guilty here in the UK of contributing to that demand for 'blood' albeit the artificial red stuff!
Incidentally, have you read the top of the news headlines for this morning? Yet another multiple shooting incident in an American school. Remember the one in Russia? It is becoming endemic I fear.
One contributor to this conversation thinks the idea of screened violence and violent video games 'laughable' relating to today's 'safe society'. Here in Britain, murder and rape incidents in the immediate post war years were relatively rare and were national headlines when they occurred. Now, shootings and sex attacks are a weekly event in most of our large conurbations. Violence and death are NEVER a laughing matter, in any part of the world, especially in the so called civilized nations.

Ronbloggs

Todays society is by no means perfect, but violent games and movies reflect life, not the other way around. People who go out and kill other people don't do it because they saw someone do it on TV, they do it because they have serious psychological problems. Why are there more messed up people these days? Who knows, it could be the food we're eating nowday.

From BBC News online: "The FBI said it was too early to speculate on a motive for the shootings, but Weise's fellow pupils said he was teased because he always dressed in black."

<>

Precisely. And I think it's silly to dump all the blame on the US. The violence is being marketed to the UK and Britons are buying it too. It has nothing to do with where it originates, though I wouldn't be surprised to hear about a higher level of violent nature and machoness here. I just looked out the window and saw a Hummer go by.