I thought i'd share my post i wrote up in one of the Modern Warfare 2 threads.

----------------------------

When people reply back "relax it's only a game" you are setting games back, i mean sure you play it and you get tired of it and move on, just like you do with a movie, a book, and other entertainment medium.

and here is my point

are video games meant just for kids? i'm talking 8-13 age range MAX?

no?

then argue on a better platform then it's just a game.

when people read something offensive in a book or a movie, or a documentary they don't defend it by just saying "relax it's just a book".

---------------------------------

i only defend it because it's 1) part of the story 2) having it part of the gameplay makes it much visceral and poignent then watching it passively in video form, remember this scene STILL gives players a choice (to fire or not to fire) the same freedom that games like GTA, Fallout, inFamous and other open-world games allow.

Many movies, plays, literature, and even whole political philosphies and ideologies touch on topics we won't agree with even hating it.

Even the fear of some kid somwhere getting their jollies for killing the civilians is negligible. Because on that same coin you cannot stop some Neo-Nazi skin head in the south or Europe from getting their jollies when playing as the Nazi's in WW2 shooters, or old timey southern racists having a ball playing as the Confederates in some Civil war game (they're out there just not as plentiful as WW2 shooters).

If you want your medium to grow up along side you, then your gonna have to deal with situations and topics your not gonna like. like emorainbo pointed out. most shooters were used to make it black and white and simple.

the Game Overthinker made a great video on this whole topic. Here

As we grow up, and as we want our games to reflect deeper aspects, tackle and take into account deeper weightier issues, prepare for some games to take a reprehensible point of view or action. For instance Bioshock allows you to literally kill a little girl, Infamous allows you to kill innocent panicking civilians in the streets, GTA 4 allows wantonly murder and destruction in a real-world like modern day city, and Fallout 3 allows you to commit massacres of innocent civilaisn as well, argue that it is just a game. but like i said that only sets games back and doesn't really answer those who are argue video games are a bad influence.

Just because it strikes home because it reflects the real world so very close to reality (and the horrors of terrorism and war itself) doesn't make it hands off. in fact i'd argue that only makes a game even more interesting and more poignent. I feel that Modern Warfare 2 is gonna show gamers just how dirty and grey the war on terror is, that it isn't nearly as black and white as some would like to believe. Or it could very argue the opposite for some. The point is you come away from the singleplayer feeling more then just entertained after getting the bad guys.

-------------

It's cool if you want to save the princess for the millionth time till the day you die, but if you want some games to deal with topics and scenes that can be handled by an adult, expect to be offended.

In fact i am the exact opposite of Objectivism (Andrew Ryan in Bioshock), I'm more along the line of Rule Utilitarian (more of a collectivist), that is the villain in Bioshock 2 (Sophia Lam), i'm still excited for this game, even if it's gonna take a shot at my political philosophy. I've grown enough intellectually to understand that NO one philosophy politically is the key to success in all cases. I'm still gonna love the story, atmosphere and the bit of political intrigue Bioshock 2 is gonna provide for me.

As Shigeru Miyomoto had said "Video Games are bad for you? that's what they said about rock and roll"

In the style of the Steveo_the_Gamer.

the games i've bought and buying this winter.

Bought/Buying:

Pre-Ordering:

The Last Guardian

yeah. so far i have Assassin's Creed 2, God of War Collection, Final Fantasy 13, Gran Turismo 5, Dragon Age, and Alpha Protocol paid in full.

My God.. it's been a crazy six months for me this gen. wait... lemme start from the very beginning.

It was a couple of weeks before the Playstation 3 launched. I was completely psyched for it. then they showed off the $600 dollar price tag. nontheless i was determined to get one, but no matter how i cut it, it would take me well over a year to even afford the thing. Seeing how i had no other option i decided to hold off and watch and see how it would turn out. that spring of 2006 it seemed as if the PS3 was losing one exclusive after the other. GTA gone, that following year Final Fantasy 13 went multi as well.

The games that helped define the Playstation brand were now being shared with it's competitor the Xbox 360. needless to say i hopped on the 360. I would rip on the PS3 at a lot of turns. too expensive, lost most exclusives (at the time), lost backward compatibility. Plus the fanboyism was so damn rampant it was a huge turn off to even consider buying the console. seriously, for moderate gamers, extreme fanboyism is a huge turn off.

December 2008 i had the money for the 360 Arcade. in a short time i had a haelthy library for it. Mass Effect, Gears of War, (no Halo - played it don't really care for it's multiplayer).

March 2009, i was deciding on either getting the Wii or go all the way to get the PS3. in the end i decided on the PS3.

my first game was Metal Gear Solid 4, my first Metal Gear game, and still one of my absolute favorites.

The next game i got was Killzone 2, which to me felt like a real let down. didn't like the controls, i hated the characters you were working with ESPECIALLY Rico (Rico must die!).

shortly afterwards i really felt like i had buyers remorse. if Killzone 2 was the best the PS3 had then... wow...

well after a while i finally had enough cash onhand, i picked up Resistance 2 collector's edition, and the Resistance. bought Little Big Planet, picked up Dead Space and Bioshock (my first multi-plats).

Then i saw the E3 presentations of Microsoft and Sony. Microsoft an grade A+ show, Sony had a B. but Sony had pretty much all the stuff i wanted to buy and play.

=========================

since June 2009, i have only turned my 360 on twice. my PS3 has been on every day.

Playstation Home has grown enough that i go to it every two or three days to see what's new. i even plug it in to play in the Buzz, Resistance, inFamous, Namco Museum spaces, and can play their minigames for quite a while. check out the theater for the new trailers.

The last couple of days i've been Little Big Planet for hours at a time, there are some amazing levels. i mean brilliant ones, really really good stuff.

The only 3 things i'd like to see the PS3 get is 3 things the 360 has going for it.

Netflix, cross-game chat, and Mass Effect 1 and 2. (i then can game happy all on one machine).

Nontheless. as odd as it may sound to some folks. the PS3 is my favorite game console this gen so far, and it looks like it'll be that way for a long time.

Maybe a very few of you haven't seen my posts lately. more or less something has really been bothering me.

you see i hae a bit of a personal quirk. someone makes a slight comment (maybe it wasn't meant to be negative at all) and I take it the wrong way. been a problem, especially when i deal with my parents. and don't get me wrong i love them, but i am always hesitant when i'm in their company.

Now i do not come from a family, where you leave the house at 18. you see i'm 22. going on 23. i'm about to graduate from college, perhaps maybe looking for marriage. see i'm getting to that age where i start getting asked to drop old habits. gotta dress in prep clothes, gotta quit playing video games, gotta wear contacts, gotta start speaking in Arabic, gotta be more religious, gotta stop reading those sci-fi/comic books, the list goes on.

I guess what bothers me, is more of a personal problem, parent's trying to change everything about me just as i'm about to go into the real world. now's the time to worry.

In fact my parents take the idea that it was video games were the root for my social awkwardness. my brothers have all been in sports, the 'acceptable' thing a kid can do. ugh... I simply don't fit into their perfect little image of what they want their son to be. I'm smart as hell, i'm worldly, i am the most obedient of their sons, i'm into politics both national (of US and Saudi) and world politics. I'm a history buff. I'm into Sci-Fi, some Fantasy, some Anime. Into traveling the world, and yes i'm an avid video gamer, and movie goer. I don't drink, don't do drugs, and i don't party.

I've been raised playing video games, just as much as i've been raised reading encyclopedia's (yeah you better believe it.. i was given both on some birthdays). I can't imagine video games ever going away as my entertainment. but i do see it taking less of an impact just as i have other responsibilities come on.

-------

This goes out to the gamers out there, that are in the mid 20's, and up. How do you take it when people tell you video games are for children. That you should grow out of it and leave it behind?

thanks and peace out...