Why Videogames are not Real War

[GriffinSentinel]

More GP.

Why Videogames are not Real War



While critics of videogames would have you believe that they are efficient little murder simulations, an NPR editorial from Benjamin Busch begs to differ. Who is Benjamin Busch and why does his opinion carry more weight than most? Because he is an United States Marine Corps infantry officer who has served in Iraq on two combat tours.

Busch talks about the war games of youth - playing war in Brooklyn where kids played Allied forces and Germans and controlling the flow of war in a sandbox filled with army men. While the medium has changed since those days, the way war is played has not.

Busch points out that the reason that video games can never be like real-life war is that they do not usually contain elements that are unfair like real-life "invisible snipers" that pick off your friends. Here is a portion of what he says about that:

"When I was a boy, I was given plastic army men. I arranged them in the sandbox behind our house, and I killed them. I voiced their commands and made the sounds of their suffering. I imagined their war — and I controlled it. But I lost those magical powers as a Marine in Iraq.

We know children are immersed in digital interactivity now, and the soldier of today has grown up on video games. It is becoming a new literacy of sorts. Playing and risking your life are different things. In the video war, there may be some manipulation of anxiety, some adrenaline to the heart, but absolutely nothing is at stake. "

Busch goes on to say disparaging things about Medal of Honor, but also defends it in the same breath:

"I honestly don't like that Medal of Honor depicts the war in Afghanistan right now, because — even as fiction — it equates the war with the leisure of games. Changing the name of the enemy doesn't change who it is.

But what nation or military has the right to govern fiction? Banning the representation of an enemy is imposing nationalism on entertainment. The game cannot train its players to be actual skilled special operations soldiers, nor is it likely to lure anyone into Islamic fundamentalism. It can grant neither heroism nor martyrdom. What it does do is make modern war into participatory cinema. That is its business."

[toby2533]

I agree with some of this growing up we had wood or plastic rifles and played as US army vs Japs, german and VC (grow up watching Vietman on evening TV). Also played with little plastic soliders and it really never made me a worst person. I think each generation has there own wargames they play as kids. The big one is now the FPS i would say yes i don't think anyone under 16 or 17 should paly them. This is more a parenting issue then a gaming issue. Me being a gamer (not a good one) has a better idea when my kids will buy games which one to buy and not. I think coming done hard on the company is wrong. If anything they should make a parent sign document at the gaming store saying they will not let someone under the age of what ever to play that game. Watching my kids in 2nd and KG i wonder what ever happened to parents being parents.

[Bull3tBait]

Watching my kids in 2nd and KG i wonder what ever happened to parents being parents.

I remember the days when my brother used to set up his plastic Army men in epic battles. I also remember him taking a lighter to a stream of deoderant or my hairspray and melting them with the flamethrower from hell. I remember calling my mom and telling her that he almost set the house on fire because he did this in his room and not outside. He put them in microwaves (when microwaves first came out) to see what would happen.

To be honest. I would rather have my kid playing it on a video game than risking an exploding can or a house fire. It wasn't that my parents were bad parents. It was because we were latch key kids because both my parents worked. You all know how underpaid you all are/were. Once we were old enough to stay home unsupervised, my mom went to work to take some of the pressure off. I mean really, how many kids aren't latch key these days? It's the reality of things and that's not going to change. The only thing that will change is affordable ways to keep the kids entertained and out of trouble. Heck after school programs and stuff cost a fortune these days too. Football cost me $250 last year. Baseball isn't much better.

[toby2533]

I almost cought the house on fire twice once was setting a plastic model p-38 on fire and throwing it out of the 2nd story window around 5 to6 grade and 7th grade took all the powder out of the pop things you pull the string then they bang with paper flying out took about 2 dozen apart and created a home made bomb in a paper towel roll lite it in the sink bang cool until I looked up and the drapes were on fire,thank good for the water sprayer so close, old man slapped me so hard I dented the refirgator then I hit face first in the dog dish and sat there until the old man finished dinner and went to his lazy boy. I was a lactch key kid from 2 grade on.

[ApollosArrow89]

I for one can't tell about the old days as im probably one of the youngest in the clan at 21. But i did have the plastic army men and would do all kinds of stuff to them. As a young one i like to say, i grew up with video games such as Mario and Star Fox. But now a days they got MW2 and BC2. Kids are exposed to these games and sometimes they cant seperate real from reality and they do dumb stuff that ends up on the news.
Majority of the complaints come from the parents of these kids and they say that video games are ruining these kids minds or its the video games fault with what the kid has done.

I for one say that it is the parents fault with not being educated about the video game industry and a knowledge of the video games. Parents need to learn about these games and not listen to what there kids are saying about the game. Kids will lie about the game just to get it and when the parent buys the game and se the kid playing the video game. They complain that its too violent and shouldnt be available to their son/daughter. Well its their fault for not paying attention or even having some knowledge of the game.

[Bull3tBait]

I for one say that it is the parents fault with not being educated about the video game industry and a knowledge of the video games. Parents need to learn about these games and not listen to what there kids are saying about the game. Kids will lie about the game just to get it and when the parent buys the game and se the kid playing the video game. They complain that its too violent and shouldnt be available to their son/daughter. Well its their fault for not paying attention or even having some knowledge of the game.

True for all those parents that don't play games. At some point down the line I can see me in TDM against my son and his friends. I actually think it would be cool if I regularly kicked their a$$es at it. Anyways, his game time is limited and although he likes the idea of the FPS games, he is better at the Lego games and he likes games you can run around and explore on. (he doesn't follow the storylines). Like the Private Free Roam in Red Dead Redemption. I will let him roam around there because he likes to race the horse around or my Bull to find animals to hunt but gets totally frustrated with the gang hideouts. OK I'm a bad mom for letting him touch RDR when he's only 7 but I don't see any harm in letting him explore that part of the game. No way will he be doing the storyline. I sit with them when they do their homework and to eat dinner. Then when they play, I play. I just get interrupted to look or help with something a lot. And always at the worst possible moment.

[Amiable Horde]

In reference to it all, you have to think that most parents now grew up only using their imagination depicting how war really is. The enemy was whoever they imagined them to be. Like stated above about the army men: they are all green, the enemy was just a choice of the controller. With this modern world we are able to visually create the enemy and very much so graphically cause suffering. Tied in with the media today on who is the enemy, what does the enemy do, and how do you make money off of it? Terrorism is the enemy and the people that support it. So, it would only make sense that you would use a group that is obviously known to do so.

Regardless, war is always going to be sensative material, especially to those who never truly see it or experience it. To compare war to war related entertainment is just another lash out on their feelings about the real events that are happening.

Make me think about where war hero's come from. Are they the ones that never saw military related movies, played with army men, played war with their friends outside, and read war books? or are they the ones that were not allowed to associate with such things? Never know.

[toby2533]

Perfect example I just got MOH and there were 3 teenagers in front of me getting it and a son & mother getting it. After the 3 boys walked away I ask the clerk why he did not card them. He said he know they were 17 they were school uniform and I told him he was full of BS and that reason the government will start controlling games and what is in them. The lady with the kid then looked at the game and must have noticed that it was 17+ M she then gave the game back to the clerk and the kid looked like he was going to cry. Game stop need to start enforcing the rules just like the movies.

[jack]

Game stop need to start enforcing the rules just like the movies.

I couldn't agree more.

[David_3033]

I once had this kid once outside of gamestop stop me on my way in the door asking if I would buy him this (can remember) game. He couldn't of been but about 10-13 years old. I thought he was trying to sell me some drugs at first the way he was acting. I told him no and that if he wants it he needed to talk to his mom and dad not some random he sees in the parking lot.

[jack]

friggen kids .

[GriffinSentinel]

I once had this kid once outside of gamestop stop me on my way in the door asking if I would buy him this (can remember) game. He couldn't of been but about 10-13 years old. I thought he was trying to sell me some drugs at first the way he was acting. I told him no and that if he wants it he needed to talk to his mom and dad not some random he sees in the parking lot.

I could be evil and teach him a couple lessons by telling him you would get the game for him, take his money, walk in buy the game and another and walk to your car saying he never ask him to buy the game or gave him money. Is that too mean or just right?

[ApollosArrow89]

I once had this kid once outside of gamestop stop me on my way in the door asking if I would buy him this (can remember) game. He couldn't of been but about 10-13 years old. I thought he was trying to sell me some drugs at first the way he was acting. I told him no and that if he wants it he needed to talk to his mom and dad not some random he sees in the parking lot.

I could be evil and teach him a couple lessons by telling him you would get the game for him, walk in buy the game and another and walk to your car saying he never ask him to buy the game or gave him money. Is that too mean or just right?

Why that is just plain genius Sentry. That would hurt the kids feelings but the main question is did he give u money for it? No, then the game is yours and just laugh at the kid while u walk away. If i dont get anything out of this then i dont give u the game and i get to enjoy it for myself. Oh ur crying? Well too bad i drink little kids tears for breakfast. A good diet i must say

[toby2533]

Plus now you have to worry if the kid is packing a gun or knife.

[Amiable Horde]

Plus now you have to worry if the kid is packing a gun or knife.

... that would be hilarious... sort of.

imagine a 12 y/o pulling out a peice on you saying, WHERE'S THER MERCHANDISE MAN!

[jxspyder]

Parents need to be parents. End of subject. There's a reason games are rated. If you're too busy to take care of your kid, and just plop him down in front of the tv and hand him a controller, then you're too busy to tell me that I can't play a game because you don't approve of it.