Violent video games - Essay Example

a popular source of entertainment for many members of society, some critics have raised concerns over their effects on the behavior of their enthusiasts. More especially, they note that violent video games lead members of society to be violent in behavior. This paper will analyze the extent to which violent video games cause their enthusiasts to behave violently. Many video games have scenes that depict violence or aggression as noted by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (2014). For a video game to be categorized as violent, it probably falls under the category teen, mature, or adults only.

Under the teen (13+) category, the content descriptors for include: talks on alcohol, comic mischief, and language that is a bit harsh (Hughs 2007). Examples of games under this category are The Sims 2 Kitchen & Bath Interior Design Stuff. Under mature category, the rating takes into consideration the presence or absence of suggestive themes, blood, language that’s strong, violence, harsh humor (Hughs 2007). One example of a video game that falls under the mature category is Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

In the adult category, content descriptors include blood and gored blood scenes, intense violence, nakedness, strong language, strong sexual content, and use of illicit drugs. One video game that falls under this category is Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (Hughs 2007). Whatever the category, a video game is considered to be violent in nature if it generally features violence, strong language, and weapons. Weapons used in some violent videos include chainsaws, machine guns, machetes, and grenades that make the killing bloodier (Ferguson & Garza 2011).

Some violent video games are event characterized by gang warfare that include killing of police and pedestrians, shooting while driving, and racial factors where white heroes kill back victims as noted by Ferguson and Garza (2011). Some of these have the player advance by the making their killing most horrific.