Ethics in the Video Game Industry
Brandon Vivian
University Seminar
October 22, 2012
Ethical Debates in Video Game Design
Like any industry, the video game industry certainly has its fair share of ongoing ethical debates regarding the sort of content that designers should be allowed to place in their games. The issues themselves are indeed ethically questionable issues, with potentially consequential results. I have chosen four that highlight the importance and nature of some of these debates.
One of these debates is about excessive violence in video games, and whether it 's ethical to produce games with high levels of gore and extreme violence. Many people, particularly parents, believe that these sorts of games can lead to aggressive behavior in children if they 're played frequently, and that it will desensitize the children to violence. Though studies haven 't been thoroughly conclusive, it is believed that video games pose a greater danger than other forms of media, such as movies and comics, because the player is put directly in control of causing it, and directly experiences it through the persona of the main character [Ethica]. It 's believed, for example, that violent video games might have been a factor influencing the Columbine shootings in 1999, as both the perpetrators were known to enjoy playing violent video games. As video games become increasingly realistic, the fear that in-game violence will carry over to real life has also rose. Attempts to pass laws preventing the creation of these games, though, has been struck down as a violation of freedom of expression. This means it is in the hands of the designers to make the call themselves.
When the industry was just starting out, it was argued whether or not video games should even be allowed to be made that were about war. People believed that these sort of games portrayed war in an almost positive way, and created the illusion that war was fun. As the industry matured, most video game developers began working in ways to
University Seminar
October 22, 2012
Ethical Debates in Video Game Design
Like any industry, the video game industry certainly has its fair share of ongoing ethical debates regarding the sort of content that designers should be allowed to place in their games. The issues themselves are indeed ethically questionable issues, with potentially consequential results. I have chosen four that highlight the importance and nature of some of these debates.
One of these debates is about excessive violence in video games, and whether it 's ethical to produce games with high levels of gore and extreme violence. Many people, particularly parents, believe that these sorts of games can lead to aggressive behavior in children if they 're played frequently, and that it will desensitize the children to violence. Though studies haven 't been thoroughly conclusive, it is believed that video games pose a greater danger than other forms of media, such as movies and comics, because the player is put directly in control of causing it, and directly experiences it through the persona of the main character [Ethica]. It 's believed, for example, that violent video games might have been a factor influencing the Columbine shootings in 1999, as both the perpetrators were known to enjoy playing violent video games. As video games become increasingly realistic, the fear that in-game violence will carry over to real life has also rose. Attempts to pass laws preventing the creation of these games, though, has been struck down as a violation of freedom of expression. This means it is in the hands of the designers to make the call themselves.
When the industry was just starting out, it was argued whether or not video games should even be allowed to be made that were about war. People believed that these sort of games portrayed war in an almost positive way, and created the illusion that war was fun. As the industry matured, most video game developers began working in ways to
Cited: Becker, David. "Game creators tackle ethical issues - CNET News." Technology News - CNET News. N.p.,n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2012. <http://news.cnet.com/2100-1040-867451.html>. Dang, Jimmy, Jin Lee, and Chau Nguyen. "Playing With Ethics: Video Game Controversy." Ethica Publishing. Ethica Publishing, n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2012 ethicapublishing.com/ethical/3CH12.pdf Reeder, Sara. "Computer game ethics." Classic Computer Magazine Archive. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2012. <http://www.atarimagazines.com/ compute/issue137/10 0_Computer_game_ethics MLA formatting by BibMe.org. I neither gave nor received unauthorized aid in completing this work, nor have I presented someone else 's work as my own. Signed, Brandon Vivian.