As we all know, video games are dangerous to the mental health of children. In mild cases children are content to simply slaughter neighborhood cats after a session of Grand Theft Auto; but, in more serious cases, children have been known to go as far as mass genocide following a round of Mario Sunshine. With all of this ambiguity, how can parents tell how screwed up a particular game is going to make their kid?
That was the question plaguing the minds of top researches at the University of Carme early this year. After receiving a grant from the U.S. government, the researchers quickly developed a series of tests to see what characters in video games caused the greatest amount of violent behavior in children. What follows are the most violence-inducing characters they found.
When the participating children were instructed to play games that involved fighting beings of an alien race, the results were disturbing indeed. Without fail, these seemingly innocent kids turned into unfeeling dealers of death. They roamed the video game world, killing mercilessly; and, when told to end their session of play, they often used violent words such as “no,” “please, can I play some more,” and “what are these things that you have stuck to my head?”
Games that include these characters: the Halo franchise (including the upcoming Halo 3, do everything you can to petition against its release), the Quake franchise, and Starcraft.
While playing games that involved ghosts and other supernatural beings, the children showed a rather peculiar pattern. At first they were reluctant to immerse themselves in the game; but later, after becoming accustomed to the game, they no longer had any qualms about dispatching their enemies. The researchers believe, after extensive consulting with world-renowned child psychologist Jack Thompson, that this odd behavior can be attributed to the children training themselves to be cold, hard killers.
In fact, some organizations believe the government purposefully allows these sorts of video games to remain legal so that, in the event of a supernatural attack, they will already have entire battalions of trained soldiers. Through use of the photo-realistic graphics available today, developers are able to make games so lifelike that they train children to become finely tuned killing machines.
Games that include these characters: Geist, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon, and Pacman.
It is a widely accepted fact that children who mutilate or kill animals have a much greater chance of growing up to become serial killers. This fact is especially disturbing when you think about how often animals are portrayed in video games, specifically turtles. Surprisingly, players of many games are often asked to kill these turtles without a second thought. And, even more troubling is the manner in which they kill them.
What are the methods of choice for murdering these poor turtles by children across the nation? By crushing them, burning them (much like Adolf Hitler did to the Jews), and in some cases by digesting them.
Games that include these characters: The entire Mario franchise, Yoshi’s Island, and Super Smash Bros. Melee.
The researchers conducting this experiment were especially concerned with the effect zombies had in video games. In addition to the “murder training” provided when other characters were featured, the inclusion of zombies demanded the children develop superior accuracy. As we all know, zombies can only be killed by destroying the brain; this fact forced the children to learn to aim for the head when disposing of their virtual foes.
The real-world application of this training is astronomical. Disaffected soldiers, hitmen, crooked cops, and mafiosos are all known to use this “headshot” technique while murdering innocent people. Children who have grown up playing games featuring zombies are effectively trained assassins.
Games that include these characters: The Resident Evil franchise, Counter Strike Source (with modification; of note: Counter Strike is one of the leading “killer trainers” on the market), and the upcoming Left 4 Dead (be sure to petition for its ban!).
In our society we try to teach acceptance of all cultures, religions, and opinions; yet many games are teaching kids the exact opposite. Games that include demons advocate the cold-blooded murder of any beings deemed “evil” or “satanic.” Kids are being taught to associate demons with “bad,” which only fuels intolerance of people who practice alternative religion.
Satanists, Wiccans, Pagans, and many others are sure to be the targets of hate crimes if these video games are not banned immediately. Even in a tolerant society such as ours, there is an underground video game culture that breeds hate and discrimination. However small this gaming culture is, it is sure to eventually have serious affect on our society if it is not stopped.
Games that include these characters: The Doom franchise, the Diablo franchise, and the Silent Hill franchise.
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