Context, Evaluation/Analysis, Benefits/Uses
Entertainment Software Research, 2005
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"I am prepared to believe that video games can be elegant, subtle, sophisticated,
challenging and visually wonderful, but I believe the nature of the medium
prevents it from moving beyond craftsmanship to the stature of art. To my
knowledge, no one in or out of the field has ever been able to cite a game worthy
of comparison with the great dramatists, poets, filmmakers, novelists and
composers."
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"About 90 per cent are people running around shooting at something."
-Film Critic Roger Ebert
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“[Video game creators] control the delivery of the information. We give players a
setting and a framework, we control what they see and do. So how are we not
authors?"
-game director Brendan McNamara
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“We can debate what art is, we can debate it forever. If the experience
moves you in some way or another… Even if it moves your bowels… I think
it is worthy of some serious study.”
-novelist and director Clive Barker
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South Korea Turns PC Gaming into a
Professional and Spectator Sport
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http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,399476,00.html
http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=22425
http://www.mongabay.com/external/pro_video_gamers.htm
Madden NFL in the United States
- Madden Impact on Pop Culture
 Who is the best Madden Gamer?
Madden Challenge, Madden Bowl and Madden Nation
 Madden Curse
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Where it began. . . .Doom was a 1993 computer game by
id Software, considered one of first and most popular
violent shooters. Distributed as shareware, Doom was
downloaded by an estimated 10 million people within
two years, popularizing the mode of game play and
spawning a gaming subculture.
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The “apparent” connection between the game and the
Columbine Massacre in the United States.
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The best way to solve a problem is to eliminate the source of the problem.
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Problems are basically black or white, right or wrong.
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Use instinctual, rather than thoughtful, responsible behaviors to react to problems.
-Screen Smarts: A Family Guide to Media Literacy, by Gloria DeGaetano and Kathleen Bander © 1996.
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"…If violent videogame play indeed depicts victims as deserving attacks, and if these video
games tend to portray other humans as ‘targets,’ then reduced empathy is likely to be a
consequence of violent videogame play, thus putting the player at risk for becoming a more
violent individual.“
-Dill and Dill (1998)
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Violent Games and Stimulus Addiction
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there is a "general lack of support for the commonly held view that playing
aggressive computer games causes an individual to feel more aggressive."
-Scott(1995)
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"…Research which exposes children to short clips of violence and observes
their behavior immediately afterwards does not have the potential fully to
contribute to our understanding of such a complex cultural product…."
-The Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation
In a study by Anderson and Ford (1986), university students who played a
"highly aggressive" video game (Zaxxon) were not more hostile than a
group that played a less aggressive game (Centipede) for 20 minutes.
In studies by Ballard & Lineberger (1999), Scott (1995), and Winkel et al.
(1987), the level of aggressive content in video games had no effect on
subjects’ aggressive behavior.
Sex, Violence and Video Games and the Limits
Do Video Games Go TOO Far?
Click image to view video clips from each game
WARNING: Content is VERY graphic and may be unsuitable for certain audiences
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Banned in Australia
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A $246 million lawsuit was filed against video
game series "Grand Theft Auto" by the
families of two people shot by teenagers
apparently inspired by the game.
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Hot Coffee mini-game Controversy
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Media blames brutal child murder in the
United Kingdom on Manhunt
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Manhunt 2 depicts the escape of an amnesiac
scientist and a psychotic killer from an asylum
and their subsequent killing spree
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Manhunt 2 banned in United Kingdom and
rated “Adults Only”.
• Brain Candy
• Learning Opportunities with Video Game Technology
▪ Learning environments are enhanced when cooperative student teams were placed
in the creative process using video game technology
▪ The teams that were successful were diverse in terms of gender, majors, age, and
understanding of gaming or technical development
▪ Successful teams also had a capability to thrive in an open learning environment
with few boundaries.
▪ The teams that were less successful showed less diversity and seemed to have
difficulty operating as a team in an open environment.
-Abilene Christian University faculty research, 2005
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McDonald's Video Game
(Double-click logo to play)
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Starbucks' Planet Green Game
(Double-click logo to play)
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Recruiting Kids a free downloadable video
game used to as a recruiting tool for the
United States Army
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United States vs. Middle East US Army game has players battle “insurgent
camps”
 “Night of Capturing Bush” developed by Global
Islamic Media Front players can assassinate
President Bush
Online Gaming:
Social Networking or
Gaming Addiction?
Click to play video
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Online Gaming Addiction – Myth or Reality?
Unhealthy Habits on Gaming addiction
As Powerful as Drugs?
South Korean Dies after playing 50 hours
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Play one of the controversial video games or
interview someone you know who has played
them and discuss what you think.
Play one of the “socially responsible” Games
and discuss what you learn.
What other educational benefits can we find
in video games?
Second Life
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DOES PLAYING VIOLENT VIDEO GAMES CAUSE AGGRESSIVE
BEHAVIOR? By Jeffrey Goldstein, Ph.D., University of Utrecht,
The Netherlands
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Summit on Educational Games
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Extract from “Masters of Doom”, David Kushner, Random
House New York Publishing.
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Legislation concerning videogames around the world