Violence and Video Games from a Design Perspective

Breaking the “good/bad” dichotomy for the sake of more diverse games

While games proceed to permeate pop culture, their influence in society inevitably continues to be questioned. Different studies argue on both sides of whether the impact of video games is positive or not, and even on the degree or spectrum in which such influence is manifested.

This discussion is well summarized by Anderson et al. (2012), which states that there is an apparent overreaction on both sides: one side claims video games are training generations of killers, while the other claims video games do not affect players at all and are merely entertainment. Both sides are clearly, and scientifically wrong. As the authors state:

The simple good-bad dichotomy frequently posed by the general public and the press is innappropriate.

However, gamers often neglect the topic of violence and video games, as it is perceived as an offense or attack on games. This position only enforces the wrong dichotomy of the subject and forbids the gaming community from engaging in a productive discussion on its positive and negative outcomes.