Violence in Video Games

            I grew up on video games. I can remember waking up every weekend morning and hopping on to play some Tomb Raider with my mom. My dad and I would play Super Mario and Donkey Kong throughout the afternoon. The memories I made while playing video games in my childhood may not be the average memories one gets from video games, but they have definitely had an impact on my life. Because of this, it is hard for me to understand the topic that video games cause violence in young adults and may lead to increased violent behavior later in life.

            To me, video games have always been a social object. They allow friends to come together and focus on one particular goal. Solving puzzles and powering through levels weren't my only memories of these times, however. I can remember actually bonding with the people I was playing the games with. Picking up a PlayStation 1 controller brings on the strongest nostalgia of my childhood.

            I feel like non-gamers get hung up on what the games are teaching us. I can agree, some gamers do abuse video games, and can use them in a negative manner. I can't speak for everyone, but games, to me, offer just another way to build relationships. One of the best ways to get to know someone is to play a stressful and complicated game with them, and just attempt to solve the puzzle. Personally, games don’t seem like much of a negative, but might actually be used positively if used for their intended purpose.