The Other Side of Glory
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”
Edmund Burke
I know I will receive some hate mail after this, but I felt I had to speak against what I find despicable.
I humbly offer my opinion as to why I will never spend $1.00 or one minute buying or playing any Grand Theft Auto game from Rockstar. The following stories are all true in every detail, though some of the details have been omitted because of the people involved.
A cousin of mine was coming home one day, and as she walked in the front door, a group of men were walking out. One of the men turned to her and told her, “We weren’t here and you didn’t see us. Forget we were here.” She then proceeded in to her bedroom where she found her husband, a drug dealer, had been injected with a lethal dose of narcotics. He died in front of her. The men that left the house were all gang members, hardened and ready to kill at will.
My aunt had people that lived below her, a man and his two sons. All of which were involved with gangs, the father being a ‘veterano’, or veteran in Latino gangs. Inside of a span of about four months, the two sons were killed, as was the father. The house was later attacked with a molotov cocktail and the entire residence was burnt to the ground, leaving my aunt homeless because of the chain of events that transpired in a gang member’s life — events that did not involve her in any way, shape or form.
One night, as my mother was asleep, there was a great ruckus outside. When she peered carefully out the edge of the curtains, she could see that there were hundreds of youths running through her neighborhood engaged in an all-out gang fight. They were running through her lawn, jumping her fences as well as those of her neighbors on the street. They randomly beat up a girl that had the misfortune of getting caught outside in this hurricane of wanton violence. Though nothing happened to my mother, there was still the victimizing of the people; the peace and the calm in the neighborhood as there had been great violence heaped upon some and the shattering of the peace to the rest.
The real result of real life violence.
Why am I re-telling these stories? Because recently, I realized that so many people are so in love with the latest Grand Theft Auto game, and think of it in such a good light that my stomach began to turn as I thought about what real life was like compared to this glorified mimic. The idea that bothers me so much about GTAV and the series, is that the creators have gone to the lowest depths of social behavior to entertain for profit and gain.
I have enough knowledge of the games to know what the action is basically about, and frankly their selling points and ad campaigns are enough to see that this is strictly lowest common denominator stuff here.
Living around the greater metropolitan Los Angeles area all my life, I have been witness to the nightly parade on the evening news of crying mothers that mourn the loss of children that have been killed or wounded by gang violence whether or not the victims were involved with crime, often times, they were nothing more than innocent bystanders. There are enough victims that are infants or the elderly or innocent, that fall in the category of ‘collateral damage’ in the violence of others fighting over concepts as petty and trivial as spray painting over someone else’s graffiti or fighting to control a street or it’s drug traffic. The innocent often paying the highest price as they are in no way involved, except for the fact that many families are unable to pay for a better life away from gang and crime infested areas. The inner city is so riddled with such problems that the responsible groups in this world are working tirelessly to pull at risk youth out of the gang life, through social and work programs.
I’m not going to show pictures of GTA 5, because this is the reality some people know.
Games like this simply glorify a life that is destructive and illegal, and though there will be many reading this that will criticize me for my views, I offer it as a reminder that the gameplay in games that aspire to be ‘innovative’ are really simply glorifying the lifestyle that brings pain and suffering to so many.
There are those that will say that games don’t make someone more or less violent or that this is not a handbook to a life of crime. This is true. I will not say that the people at Rockstar are smart enough to make such a ‘handbook’, but it does shine a favorable light on this illegal activity when so much of the crime is progressive to the game, wherein one has to do criminal things to progress in the game.
Looking at the Rockstar website, I glanced at the games that they listed as their properties and it shows a repeated pattern of games (non-racing for the most part) that are mostly rated M to AO (adults only), listing close to all the attributes that the ESRB use to deem them as such.
Their website has a ‘Corporate Information’ panel that lists their ideals and statement as a developer, but in reading this, I was disappointed that their most ‘innovative’ and ‘progressive’ ideas flounder like a pig in the mud and filth of society’s ills of rampant violence and thoughtless crime.
From the gameplay I have seen, of previous games in the series, I have seen the user walk down a street, beat an innocent man to the ground with pretty much anything he can get his hands on, like a club or a bat, and take the victim’s money. And I have also seen the user paying for the services of a prostitute and then beat said prostitute to retrieve the money just spent ( granted this is a previous game, not 5, but still part of the ideas that are put forth in the game franchise from Rockstar as a whole). This is still a facet of the game that people can simply walk up to a random person and assault them without provocation.
The promotional video from Rockstar features a car chase, which has been the bane of Los Angelenos for a long time — and at times, with deadly outcomes.
In the game one can run over innocent people with your car. To those outside of Los Angeles, who may not know this, there have been two notable stories wherein a person who is troubled has used their vehicle to do this very thing. The people have taken their vehicles and driven into crowds at farmer’s markets with deadly results. This is a true tragedy and a despicable act, that hey now, we can emulate for kicks as we drive through the city. In the name of any civility, this should never be part of a game.
There is another issue that disturbs me. The game openly uses the N word. We as a society have worked to rid this word from our vocabulary by choice, knowing that it is a pejorative term and offensive to those within and outside of the African American community. Currently its use is mostly confined to racists and people with no moral compass. This game uses that term and it’s more ‘casual’ usage, ending in ‘gga’ to a degree that in a sense, we are teaching that though we have a freedom of speech, this word is again fair game. I am not African American and so I write this from the point of view that hearing it offends me because of its casual use for profit and entertainment as well as the thought that we should be more sensitive.
In preparation for this article, I watched a lot of YouTube videos of gameplay and was sickened by the rampant vileness that allowed the user to attack innocent people and the user to carjack other people and shoot them. This is truly a crawl through the depravity of the minds of the people at Rockstar games, that take a sick pride in a growing fan base of people that think this is cool to play this way, when those that have experienced it firsthand are what we would call victims. In addition, I asked friends that are playing the game, and though I haven’t (or will never) played the game, my research panned out. This game bothered a hardened gamer that said this game is ripe with all the ingredients to make a disturbing statement of what we will accept as entertainment.
In addition, there are stories of the games fans openly berating those that chose to speak out against the game’s over the top content which includes rampant drug use, gross mistreatment of women, and torture. The supporters of this game that would go to those lengths, only prove further that this is a game that has no real redeeming value but to show that this is a form of entertainment that does not understand the reality of it’s own content and how people that have lived it don’t see it as entertainment.
I ponder how far we will go to be entertained in this environment? Would we embrace a game where we can be rapists? Would we want to be the terrorists that attacked the World Trade Centers? Would we clamor to buy a game where we are drug pushers? Do we want the trophies that come with that and take pride that we crashed our planes right, or sold enough drugs or…or worse?
I agree games can be gritty and hard-bitten for entertainment, (and aimed at adults, though far too many times, games like this wind up in the hands of the youth) but this seems to dig almost too deep at a culture that really thrives and exists and is not the glorious existence that games make it to be, but instead nurtured on the rampant victimizing of people.
I know the voices out there will tell me to play my Spongebob games and leave the big-boy games to the big boys, or to go change my diaper after my whinging is done. I do recognize the freedom to develop and create the games we want and to play the games we want, but I fear what it says about us as gamers, as a whole, when this is our declaration in a loud voice, that we want this as achievements to hoist and to use as entertainment. I do apologize to my friends on my PSN friends list that are playing this, as many of them are deep into the game, as I am not attacking them or the players personally. I am sorry to see that it represents a reality that for some is no game. There are no trophies, no power ups, no cheering. This game is designed to be entertainment, and it should not be. Too many people live this, and do so in fear. I am sorry anyone ever played this game, because these experiences should never be lightened or entertaining, especially when some have seen it’s real effects in the real world.
For the first time as a writer, I am sick after researching an article.
October 23rd, 2013 by FEMAELSTROM | 21 comments
FEMAELSTROM came to Home in June 2011 and never wanted to leave, even at weekly maintenance when he usually gets booted. The sand box environment appeals to the explorer in him and often is out and about as he ‘geeks’ out dressed like some sort of sci-fi character, while he people watches in popular public spaces. An artist and writer, FEMAELSTROM loves making friends and meeting people. He loves sci-fi and decorating Home estates and loves to respond “here” when people ask “where are you from?” in public places.
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Great article. It take a lot of guts to say that out loud in the gaming microcosm. Congratulation.
Too often we hear the “games are just games and there’s nothing wrong with that” or simply “Thats why we can’t have fun”.
The human mind is weak and easely “impressed”. About time we as gamers admit it.
Thanks for giving a voice to the silent mass.
I only have one word for you Strom, AGREED.
The thing is, games are one element that is based on real life gang issues there are plenty of other media glorifying it aswell. None of these invented it. Morally how they get into the wrong hands and then how these people continue to use them is where the problem is. Id rather have that content in games though as it’s difficult to hide playing a game than it is watching a 2 minute clip on the internet. Some of those clips are truly sickening.
Yes I haven’t watched the news for about three years now because I got tired of all the sickening things I was seeing every day. But I think the thing about this game and its predecessors that is off is that they glorify what is going on in it. From what I understand there is no way at all to play this games storyline without doing things are morally wrong and you would never consider doing in real life. Games are supposed to be entertaining but using entertainment in this way is distasteful.
This was a great article Strom and no easy answers. I remember showing my Grandfather Metal of Honor on the PS2. I though he might be interested because he was in WW2, instead he was kind of horrified.
It’s all about perceptive I think.
The most sickening cost if life were in the world wars long before consoles were invented. In fact is it that console games and the media that glorifies violence have got worse. Or have we as people now have a higher moral standing. It wasn’t that long ago that even the laws of the US were that low morally
This game could be considered a pyrrhic victory on so many levels.
I have bought GTA V and enjoyed some elements of it. Mainly graphics and the huge map. But I have to agree with you too Strom that they really did go overboard with the violence, sex, and racism in this one. I mean the other games were bad enough, but this one goes way over the top in those areas. Some of the story elements actually made me feel sick to my stomach. It’s sad seeing game developers have to lower the bar every time a game like this is made. And not just to satisfy violent a gamer’s blood lust. But to try and cause controversy to bring more attention to their game. And another sad point is there will be many under aged kids who will manage to get their hands on this game despite the mature warning on it. Simply because the parents don’t care, or think their kid can handle it. But I think this will be the last game in the series I ever buy again, because I don’t want to buy into this violent gaming media anymore. I avoided many other games because of the violent content, so this should be no different. Very good article Strom. It definitely made me think.
Very well said Strom, well made points all the way through this article that I absolutely agree with.
GTA also happens to be one of my favorite game series though. Why?
I see the satire. I see the irony. I can see that what Rockstar do with the GTA games is basically hold up a fun-house mirror to society -- gennerally American society at that. The problem it seems to me is HOW one plays the game. I play in such a way that I can easily entertain myself for hours without hurting/maiming/killing anyone. But to me, that’s part of its beauty; the freedom of it.
Possibly though, since I can easily determine the difference between a game that’s a parody of US culture and not a guide to life, I can sit back an enjoy the humour. It’s dark humour for sure, but no mistake, this is Rockstar laughing at the madness of the world we really have created for ourselves.
As for the N word; I think it’s rather clever. Being totally white bread I can’t (or wouldn’t ) ever use the word myself in a casual or insulting way. Yet the African American’s that had been subjected with the word took that, and turned it around to be used as an exclusive endearment. It’s irony again, and it makes me smile sometimes.
I think the world Rockstar have made in GTA5 is a fantastic place; it’s majestic, it’s beautiful and it’s deep -- literally. Instead of watching “I killz Da hookaz LOLZ” vids on YouTube, come check out the (hopefully) inspiring photography I’ve been doing in Los Santos. <-- This right here is why it's such a great game; instead of using this created world for murder and mayhem, I use it for discovery, wonderment and the creative. Just like the world we all live in in real life, it's up to the individual to treat it however they think is best.
I will say this of your comment KF. I do not agree, with all respect. I do not see this as any form of satire. Usually satire is when we do it in a sardonic nature, and apart from what we satirize.If we satirize a political leader, we don’t engage in the action of the one being mocked, we stand apart and point at how bad they are, mimic and mock it, not actively participate. This game includes the user in the evils and involves the user in a way that your actions progress the game. This is not a fun house mirror in that sense. In regards to the use of the N word, maybe some in the African-American community have turned it around for their own use, but I still don’t think that outside sources, like these games should further that use. It can then be seem as more acceptable, as we commonly see in the more thug places in Home. Maybe it is crafted well and rendered well, but the problem is that to progress through the game, you need to be all the things in the game. One does not buy the game to simply stand the avatar and look around.
True, I didn’t buy the game to just look around a lot; but I do my fair share of it. Just last night I got my certificate ordaining KrazyFace as a Minister from its own internet. I thought about joining a cult too but then decided splashing cash on a fancy motor was a much more fun idea. All of that time was spent with my avatar using his phone while sat on his plush couch in his penthouse apartment, listening to Worldwide FM; an enjoyable ecclectic mix of tunes! Afterward I watched Masturbating Monkeys win America’s Got Ta… I mean Fame or Shame, sorry. Once my new car had been delivered, I drove it down to the nearest Los Santos Customs and spent ages on perfecting it. Okay, so after all that I rammed it down the highway’s throat at 198MPH with the top down and blasting Channel X, but fun’s fun; right?
I won’t pretend I don’t like a good ol’ shoot out, and again R* have borrowed the better mechanics from their other games, but just because I can bludgeon a random in the street, would I want to? No, not even in the virtual. And therein I see your argument; the option is there. It also coerces you into doing various things to nudge the story along, like Trevor’s torture scene. Torture is really not my thing, I ended up using the same thing for that whole scene so I could just get past it. Thing is, I really don’t like Trevor anyway. His opening scene involves him killing one of my favorite GTA playable characters, Johnny from The Lost. From that moment, I found him hard to use, in fact I avoided using him for most of the game. Frank n’ Mike I can relate to, but Trevor is basically just a head-case.
Anyway my point is, with my Online GTA guy I can play MY way rather than the other 3, and that mostly involves rollin’ around in cool cars laughing at shops called Touching Cloth (carpet store) or Crucial Fix (Jamaican Coffee house) while soaking up the radio -- GTA’s concentrated source of satire. Once the heists get released I’ll be uhh, helping to relieve their burdens but again, these are meticulously planned flights of fancy, not just senseless murdering.
While I play it mostly as myself (quite peacefully), it’s games like GTA that allow us to step over the lines we’ve drawn for ourselves in the sand. They afford us a deeper look into ourselves, or even just the ways and means to safely practice things we know are terribly wrong in an environment without consequence. Where you may see an influence to horrific behaviour, I see countless fictitious possibilities in a reflection of our western world. You may see 20 innocents being run over in a police chase for fun but I see the hilarious iFruit, ProLaps, Hinterland, Life Invader, Bleeter, Mimes on fire and power ballads in a helicopter as I skim the baby-pink bleached clouds of the tumbling horizon.
As Olivia has already said, I think this is a perspective discussion.
Sorry, but you can’t comment on this after watching a few YouTube videos and “having a sense” of what it’s about. GTA has always been an over-the-top skewering of the violent stereotypes that America projects. That the user participates in these actions doesn’t make it any less of a parody.
Much of what you wrote would be a fair criticism of GTA: San Andreas, but Rockstar has taken a very different approach here. Franklin’s story is one of continual betrayal and danger, unlike Michael and Trevor, who choose a life of crime, Franklin was born into it. He’s a smart, hardworking, likable character who’s trying to get away from the danger that surrounds him while at the same time trying to be loyal to the people who’ve kept him alive.
I came into this game expecting to be turned off by Franklin and his story, but I wound up liking it a lot. Yes, the dialogue is straight from the ‘hood and you’re going to hear a certain ethnic slur more times in one dialogue exchange than you did in all of Django Unchained, but it doesn’t stop these characters from eliciting sympathy.
The enemies, from the Lost Motorcycle Club to the Merryweather mercenaries, are cartoon representations of reality, far less genuine than the troops that get gunned down in a Call of Duty game. Most of the shootouts take place with these types of enemies. Random killing isn’t required, and it usually ends up with a visit from the police.
If you actually play the game, you’ll see that there’s a very clear and intelligent organization to its approach. It doesn’t glorify violence, it makes fun of those who glorify it. There’s nothing here that’s anywhere near as morally challenging as the airport massacre in Call of Duty, because there’s nothing in this game that’s an approximation of real life.
It’s fair to say you don’t understand it, and it’s fair to say you deplore violence as entertainment. Those are both reasonable points of view. What’s not fair is to judge a game based on a few snippets of video that you’ve seen online, or the reports from people you’ve talked to. Without the broader context, it’s easy to paint the game as a murder simulator. With the context, you’ll discover that it’s anything but that.
Hey HIW, thanks for the comment, but again I do not agree with a comment made by a friend of the magazine. I did not simply watch a few random minutes. I watched hours. So I do have an idea of the game play that is offered. The personal references are people who I trust with out question, and their input was invaluable as it served to congeal the videos. Further more, in my opinion, which is why I will not buy the game or any game of the series, the fact that the game requires the user to participate in violence to progress the game, makes the context not as important. As to the Call of Duty airport massacre, at least the game makers did give the player the choice to not do it and it not effect the game’s story line.They recognized the ugly nature of the task at hand.I did as any parent should, a lot of research and investigation that lead me to make an informed decision of the game and it’s content with out having to actually buy the game, and that lead to me deciding to not invest any money into Rockstar’s bank account. Regardless of context, this is a game that is dipped in the worst mentalities and is not a satire or parody. It is selling violence and the worst forms of human behavior for profit.
But isn’t selling violence and sex for that matter what most Hollywood action movies do? I mentioned in my comment below but I see people that enjoyed RDR that are appalled by grand theft auto. Both are rockstar games and both share so many things in common with the exception of the moment in history in which they occur. Saying that grand theft auto promotes antisocial behavior is like saying Pac-Man promotes exercise and the consumption of fruit. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t want people to play any video game and then rely on that to model their life experiences. Violence on TV, movies, in song lyrics or what ever media is only a representation. How you allow that to affect you is your responsibility. I am confident that I will not go forth and start a meth lab or steel cars or run after blue ghosts or of evasive fruits. I will not make amazing sniper shots that decapitate the heads of my enemies to show them that my way of life and my point of view is more righteous than theirs. Kudos on writing an article that sparks such a lively conversation. I hope that during this conversation no emotions or personal feelings get drug from their car and beaten to the ground. I enjoy a good intellectual debate over opposing perspectives but never at the cost of civility. I’m not saying that that is happened I am saying that so far everyone has spoken their truth with dignity. I find that to be refreshing and entertaining!
Let me start this comment with mentioning that I never played GTA nor Call of Duty, since the settings of both game series don’t appeal that much to me -- which means, I don’t care much for the entire gangster setting of the GTA series, and I especially dislike games with a rather realistic war setting, which is the case with CoD and Battlefield.
I actually wanted do respond to the article itself first, but this particular sentence made me cringe so much that it will get top priority from me:
“As to the Call of Duty airport massacre, at least the game makers did give the player the choice to not do it and it not effect the game’s story line.They recognized the ugly nature of the task at hand.”
So, you are actually saying that it’s okay to include such a playable scene just because it’s skippable? You do know that it only was made skippable after massive complaints about the scene, do you? It’s also still part of the game’s plot.
The game makers could also have easily opted not to make this kind of scene at all. But hey, if you want to make sure your game gets lots of attention, you gotta need some controversy, right?
Anyway, after that short rant, now to the article itself.
As I already stated, I never played Grand Theft Auto myself. It’s partly because I usually play on Nintendo systems, and I only bought a PS3 for a few games which aren’t available for the Wii (U), but it’s mostly because “gangster ballade” theme that is common to the series that doesn’t appeal to me. I do like the sandbox genre itself though, since I’m a huge fan of Minecraft (of course, comparing these two games is a huge stretch) and I also like LEGO City Undercover, which is essentially like GTA (except it’s with LEGO figures and thus kid-friendly, it’s also full of pop culture shout outs and parodies).
Your article is very interesting, as it brings the “violence in video games” debate from a more understandable (and genuinely more justified) point of view than the “violent video games are evil!” complaints.
What irks me however is how frequently you disagree on how the setting of GTA is intended to be satirical. I don’t want to get into a deep argument about this since I can hardly judge it by myself, but satire is sometimes rather subtle. You also overlook in your definition of satire that a major aspect of video games is the incorporation of the player, and if the developer keeps that in mind, they can use it for great emotional effect.
A very good example for incorporating the player is Shadow of the Colossus -- the game manages to make you feel sorry for the huge colossi you slay without forcing that guilt on you. And yet, you keep hunting them to reach the initial goal of the plot, no matter the cost.
Granted, SotC is more of a melancholic fantasy tale, but the same concept of incorporating a player (and his feelins) can be used for the intend of satire or parody.
Anoter thing of importance is, that GTA seems to make it (despite all it’s similiarities) very clear that it’s a fictional story. As stated by others, it mocks the society in which it takes place.
And while it might sound lame, there’s also the important fact that there’s still a huge difference between real violence and beating up a random NPC (be it just a civilian or an actual enemy) in a video game… both in the general context and to the player itself. The victim of the latter isn’t much more than a bunch of polygons with a written AI, who simply exists within the game’s setting for a more or less specific purpose, and enemies in particular are not much more than obstacles from that point of view, as they don’t serve any other purpose than that of preventing the player from proceeding further in the game, thus killing is just defeating that obstacle. Going on a rampage through a bunch of NPCs is usually not much more than going crazy und doing stuff that you would never do in real life simply because you can do it in a video game.
That said, I personally don’t like video games who are over the top violent, especially not if it’s a somewhat realistic scenario.
A wonderful and heartfelt article. Well stated. That said, I don’t totally agree. To find offense with this game series to me seems kind of like picking and choosing. I agree some of it can be graphic and show parts of our society that we are not proud of and already get our quota of on the nightly news. But, this could also be said of almost all first-person shooters, war games,Street racing games like hot pursuit and so on. Street crime is a terrible thing and I don’t think anyone disagrees with that. War also is a terrible thing and has been around since man could lift a stone.
I love the Battlefield series of games and eagerly await the next one. I enjoyed the midnight club series of games. Modern warfare, Assassins Creed, Halo, Street fighter, frogger, Pac-Man… If held under a magnifying glass there are so many video games that contain questionable moral foundation. Rockstar games also made Red Dead Redemption. Basically grand theft horse. RDR is not that much different from GTA. But because it was set in the early West instead of modern times it gets less scrutiny. There is still killing of innocent people and animals. There are still collateral damage from high-speed chases. There is fatal brushes with the law. But they do not use the N bomb. The most rampant use of the N bomb in grand theft auto comes from the soundtrack created by rappers. I do not condone the use of the N bomb. But to make it taboo for some races to use while some in other races use it like punctuation yet are offended when a person of a different color uses it is reverse discrimination. And when it all comes down to it it is a sound that is made by our mouth and we choose to be offended by the meaning we give to that. Don’t get me wrong, those of you who know me will know that I would never condone words of hate. But words are only as powerful as the power we give them.
As you stated at the beginning of your article you anticipated getting hate mail for your views on this game. I too share that concern for my views. This is not the first time I have defended this game, not that it needs my defense. And, anyone that knows me knows I have high moral values. And please don’t misunderstand my point of view as being argumentative or discounting your valid opinion of this game. The perceived negative aspects of this game have been controversial and understandably so. But as I stated before so many other games share the offensive aspects.
I don’t think Rockstar presents this game as a life model, maybe more as a cautionary tale. In James Bond movies many evil extras get killed without knowing their back stories or their motivation for why they are there. Out of convenience we assume they are lacking innocence. In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the whole story centers around… Spoiler alert… Teen suicide which we can all agree is also a hideous part of society. Grand theft auto to me is kind of like spicy food, you don’t want it for every meal. How it affects you often depends on how you ingest it and what you do afterwards. Some people don’t like spicy food, some love spicy food but not what it does to them. Now I’m hungry and lost my focus on where I was going with that. I respect your opinion and I know that it comes from a kind and gentle man, which is all the more reason to respect your opinion. I hope my opinion has not come off as anything but my opinion and never intended to be confrontational. I also hope that people that play this game have been ingrained with the tools needed during their upbringing to differentiate between right and wrong, good and evil, moral and depraved and have a good handle on common sense. Common sense to me is becoming an oxymoron.
I enjoyed the article, I respect your perspective, but I also love this game. But I don’t love this game so much that I would shoot you in the face and steal your car while screaming profanities…
Does anybody else see the irony that such a goody two shoes as myself has been such a vocal supporter for such a controversial game? Don’t ask me why I invest my time in doing so. I am all for promoting morals and bettering society and leading by example. But I also believe that games such as grand theft auto allow us to explore a darker side while causing little to no tangible harm to others. Not like trolling in Home…that does have real consequences.
There, I’ve said my piece. Let’s see how it’s received. And before anyone replies to this, please understand that this opinion of mine is not set in the stone of my soul. I’m keeping an open mind. I see very valid points on either side of the issue and am almost straddling the fence. This opinion was mostly presented to add to the discussion and maybe broaden the focus.
I’ve never played any of these games except Frogger, a little RDR, and Street Fighter (on Home)because I wasn’t allowed to and because I didn’t want to. I’ve seen a few minutes here and there of other people playing them, but I’ve purposely avoided promotional videos, knowing the types of violence in these games. I don’t find any of the games acceptable as entertainment.
So maybe I’m not entitled to comment here, but I’m going to anyway about one point you made, Ollie. You know I love you, but my parents taught me better than to use “everybody’s doing it” as an excuse to misbehave.
I hope I didn’t imply that just because everyone’s doing it it’s okay. My point was more to the fact that everyone is exposed to it in one form or another. How they choose to relate to it is not the responsibility of the game developers. I understand both sides of this argument. I am in no way trying to convince anyone that is offended by it to go out and buy it. Nor am I trying to devalue their opinion. I find that people that are offended by this game to be of high moral value which I deeply respect. And I fall short of saying get over it it’s just a game. My point is that it is our responsibility to know how to differentiate between good and bad and virtual and real. Having the opportunity to experience things that are polar opposite to our personality traits and not having it induce a tangible harm is not what I consider misbehaving. It is a vicarious experience that on some levels could have some value. I despise real life violence and crime and would never promote it. Virtual violence and crime I have found somewhat entertaining. Does that make me a bad person? Should I be judged socially for manipulating pixels that represent things we might find objectionable in real life? I have worn some outfits and Home that I would never imagine doing so in real life. Not that they were too suggestive or revealing but still outside of my comfort zone in the real world. Does that make me a virtual slut? I guess my point is where is the harm and if there is harm where do we draw the line? This game invokes strong feelings on either side. I remember watching the movie Jesus Christ superstar with my grandmother who was very religious. She did not see it as a alternative telling of a story she knew so well. She interpreted it as disrespectful and was offended. It’s all perspective and how we choose to let things affect us. I enjoy grand theft auto. Those who know me might be surprised by that because it is such a polar opposite of my personality. But that just may be why I enjoy it because I know who I am and how I am and know that I can handle the situations presented in the game without letting it affect who or how I am. I truly did not expect to be so vocal about all this. And would once again like to reiterate that I am not judging anyone for their opinions about this game and I respect all points of view. I’m not even saying that I’m right… Oh wait… Yes I am… Just kidding.
I’m going to add this thought: We’re all sensitive to something. Children going to war? The elderly being mistreatment? Rape? Breast cancer? Animals being mistreated? Bullying? Think of what your “sore spot” is and then think if you would like seeing a game being made about it for people to enjoy themselves “pretending” to do something they would never do in the real world.
That criteria could apply to movies as well or any form of media. It’s all a matter of taste and perspective. If it bothers or offends you, then by all means steer clear of it. I know you to be one of the sweetest people I have ever met and frankly I wouldn’t be very surprised if this game appeals to you. That said, although it may not appeal to you and it may offend you, it still has its place. And if it does not offend me and I find it appealing, I hope this would not change anyone’s opinion of me especially yours! You are my adorkable Kass no matter how many virtual NPCs I may kill.
It’s a great game that had more money spent on it than the last James Bond movie and will make more money than it as well. Is any worse than some of the music I grew up with that was based on sex, violence and profanity. Does it make someone a bad person for watching, listening or playing something glorifys violence. How many game players versus film goers or music listeners are influenced to the extreme point of copying what’s in these media’s. How far do we go, do we want a demolition man kind of world and have joy joy feelings to everyone.