Controversial Video Games

Over the past few decades, video games have become increasingly popular and have advanced technologically. Unfortunately, as society grows and adapts, the companies behind video games have become adding explicit content as a result of popular demand. 

Grand Theft Auto

Grand Theft Auto V is an open world, action-adventure video game, set within the fictional state of San Andreas (based on Southern California). The single-player story follows three criminals and their efforts to commit heists while under pressure from a government agency. 

GTA V has sparked a lot of controversy in relation to its violence and representation of women. There is a mission featured in the game that requires players to use torture equipment in a hostage interrogation which audiences felt was in poor taste, although agreed that it was needed in order for the story to make sense. 

The game became subject to widespread online debate over its portrayal of women as prostitutes and strippers, and actress Lindsay Lohan even filed a lawsuit against Rockstar over the allegation that a character in the game was based on her. Target pulled the game from their stores as a result of a Change.org petition against the violence toward women in the game.

Stefan Pakeerah Murder

On the 28th of July, 2004, a 14 year old boy was murdered by a 17 year old and Pakeerah's parents blamed his murder on a video game. He was stabbed and beaten repeatedly with a hammer in an attack that supposedly mimicked gameplay in the video game 'Manhunt'. 

His Mother said "I think that I heard some of Warren's friends say that he was obsessed with this game," she said. "To quote from the website that promotes it, it calls it a psychological experience, not a game, and it encourages brutal killing. If he was obsessed with it, it could well be that the boundaries for him became quite hazy."

Does screen violence have an effect on viewers? 

The fact that people have been murdered as a result of their killers being influenced by screen violence should be all the proof we need that this is indeed the case. However, it can be argued that these killers have deeper issues and these video games just set them off. I also find it ridiculous that my next door neighbour allows his nine year old son to play GTA, which is an 18 restricted game. There needs to be serious consequences for parents who do this, and less violence in games which creators know the younger generation are going to play.