Well personally I find the GTA games alright, but they get tiresome quickly and thus I rarely play it for more than a few minutes. However I do know people that are addicted to it (people that strive to complete the entire game and talk about it all the time) but I can't imagine them going out and shooting everybody because of this addiction (and they do seem to be addicted)

Well there are different levels of adiction...

I know many people that are really stuck on a game and don't wanna leave the computer without finishing it (playing a game for 16 hours a day or more - if they have the time). But that's 'just' being hooked.
They never showed other signs of adiction.

The difference would be the same as with alchohol:

1) People who enjoy it and drink a lot of it, but not to get drunk and do not have the need to drink it - so they can live normaly without drinking alchohol (the same could apply to people who love chocolate)
2) People who drink frequently and get drunk, but can still function normaly, because they sober up and they don't have the need to drink or to be drunk constantly (border line cases).
3) People who need to be drunk. These people can't stand the state of being sober (adited).

The friends you described are probably in the 1st category. Like the game a lot, play it a lot, talk about it a lot, but they could discart it without any problems what-so-ever (if you can easily stop doing something without having the need to do it again you're not addicted yet).

''it's a game made for adults not made for kids.''

It doesn't matter how old a person is aslong as they call tell the difference between Right and Wrong, there are people aged 18+ that still dont understand why killing people or doing things that harm others is wrong. Wherby there are many intelligent young gamers that can easily tell the differenecs between what they should do and what they shouldn't. What difference does age make aslong as the person understands what they are doing in the game can and should not happen in real life.

Also, I really am growing fond of the way one persons wrongs is suppousedly caused by one single cause (a videogame). Surely the person has to be (for lack of a better word) ''wrong'' in the first place. Video games dont brainwash people.

People are born Good OR Bad in my opinion.

I don't think anything except severe emotional trauma could change a persons perspective on morality.

Thats my two pence and yeh... im a british teen, so what?

Want me to smash your face in with a baseball bat?

Learnt that off of this cool new game I got called GTALondon3D :ph34r:

Oh and just so you know... not every teen in the world is a young vandal with no brain! :tai:

connection between violent games and violent behaviour was never proven.

but there might be correlation between violent behaviour and wanting to play violent games.

Short And Sweet, shame about the grammar.

Good point though.......

I figure if a person is unbalanced people will always try to blame something for what made them that way and so other idiot will file a law suit.

Attilla the Hun and Genghis Khan despite their brutal conquests and murderers officially did not play any violent video games. People blame comic books, novels, bibles, tv commericials, Roleplaying games, and even Twinkies for committing crimes. I used to play Super Mario Brothers alot when I was younger, and you could say I was addicted to it. However it never drove me to jump on a turtle shell and try to kick it down a bottomless pit.

And I do agree they have the rating system for a reason, but its easy to get an adult to buy you a game if you have older friends or parents that buy you anything just to shut you up.

But I don't believe books, movies, twinkies, or even guns cause the problem, its all the matter of the individual and how their mind works. That and parents that don't pay attention to what the hell their kids are doing and are ready to sue everyone in sight when their kid goes on a shooting rampage.

P.S. Punch, I loved the article

This case is a matter of view. If somebody wants to blame a criminal act on the a violent video game, he can. and the media will support it. Shame.
You watched the news recently right? The news are full of stories like: "KID GOES ON SHOOTING RAMPAGE BECOUSE OF *VIDEO GAME*! - Little Billy(12), after finding his father's revolver in the bedroom drawer, gone on a shooting spree at his school, killing 3 teachers and 7 pupils. After the police arrested him he told:"*VIDEO GAME* made me do it. I'm innocent!"(or something like that). The social worker told us that Little Billy was under a massive shock after the incident. Anti-Video Game activists protested in front of the school today, claiming *VIDEO GAME* is a threat to the children and demanding *VIDEO GAME* to be withdrawn from the market..."
Substitute *VIDEO GAME* with any M+ video game.
I have two problems with this.
First, the pistol. "in the bedroom drawer". Little Billy's father was irresponsible, thus leaving his child subject to violence. ANYBODY can have a gun in the US, it is stated in the constitution. But not just peaceful citizens can buy a gun, but anybody like criminals, maniacs etc. There is a problem with this. A bun must be applied on guns.
Second, a videogame in itself cannot cause such acts. If somebody is mentally instable, he is more prone to commit violence, regardless of any video game he plays. But if somebody has a normal self-esteem and mind, he wont do anything like that, regardless of any video game he plays.
This is all about common sense. If somebody can make a difference between reality and a game, won't do violent crimes becouse of games. If sombody can't thats becouse of somekinda illness, and that needs to be treated.

I have some personal opinion on this. The kid was smart! <_< Two birds with one stone, clever :ok: First, he killed the techers and classmates he hate, and innocently blamed it on *VIDEO GAME*. Haha, this is good :D Of course he was shocked, who wouldn't after killing 10 people? ^_^ He knew that everybody will take pity on him, and he will be free in no time, and the media will blame the company made the *VIDEO GAME*. After seeing this, some other criminals tried to do the same and blame their crimes on GTA od whatever... shame.. <_<

Truthfully, the perserception of right and wrong is totally different for all. One (easy to beleave) perseption is that its all the parents fault. If they dont see the large M (or in the case of PAL games 17+.) on the box, they're failing all responibilty as a good parent. Of course, thats what I beleave, seeing as soon as the ESRB took control, they looked into it.

I beleive it is the parent's responsibility to decide whether their child is mature enough for a game. A parent should be able to buy violent games for their children but it's their responsibility if it turns out the child is not mature enough. Most teenagers are mature enough to play GTA without turning into psychotic killers but not all are, the ratings are there to protect that minority.

I played Deus Ex (aparently I should have been 17) at the age of 12. My parents didn't really care, the blood is not very bad, the dialogues, whilst adult, are not overly offensive.

The only 'adult' thing in it is those two lesbians in Hong Kong.