[OPINION] Do Video Games Cause Violence?: From the Thomasian-Angelican Perspective
by Karina Melencio
With UST Angelicum’s annual Senior High School Week coming to a close, we remember the myriad of healthy and lively competitions we’ve witnessed from virtual chess to online games like Mobile Legends, Call of Duty, and Valorant, which are all known for their ‘violent’ themes and battle-strategy gameplays. However, there is one common issue parents and adults alike take with games such as the latter, and it starts with the question of whether or not they incite violence.
WATCH: UST Angelicum’s SHS Week celebrates the Gods and Goddesses of Philippine Mythology (video by Joaquinne Tumbokon)
This seems to be a long-standing argument against video games since their rise in the market, and could be traced back to the late 90s, especially right after the incident of the Columbine High School Massacre in the US. In April 20, 1999, two senior high school students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, perpetrated a mass school shooting and an attempted bombing, resulting in the deaths of twelve students and one teacher, preceding their double-suicide. The incident was highly sensationalized and controversial because many citizens were left wondering how it could have been prevented. They seemingly found their answer in forming a connection between the incident and Harris’s and Klebold’s fascination with shooter video games like Doom and Duke Nukem 3D. This led the public to criticize the influence of such video games to students and young children, going as far as blaming them for the shooting.
However, it is rather telling that the public chose to investigate the student perpetrators’ hobbies and failed to apply the same logic to other forms of media. If video games generate violent behavior, how come this does not arise or even pose as a problem when put into the context of adults consuming action, thriller, or horror movies? After all, they have the same digital and online mediums, and make use of the same kind of stories and plotlines. One could argue that the act of simulating violence in a game is what makes it different from a movie, but on the other hand, when watching a movie we are submerged into fiction and give up certain realistic reasonings we have to enjoy the universe the story is built around. This lets us relate intellectually and emotionally to the movies’ main characters on a whole new level, even while they often lead the lives of detectives, spies, soldiers, and many others alike.
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Along with this, we must inspect the nature of the argument, which is very clearly and plainly seen: censorship. Video games are an established form of media through which certain messages and advocacies are communicated — censoring violence from video games would be equivalent to censoring the news media from exposing gruesome injustices people face in reality. In the US Supreme Court case Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association, the 2005 California law that prohibited selling violent video games to children without parental supervision was struck down. This is because the Supreme Court Justices deemed that “video games qualify under the First Amendment protection”, meaning that video games communicate messages — whatever messages those may be — in the same way books, music, shows, and movies do, and should be able to do so freely.
Lastly, and most importantly, it is irresponsible and imprudent to assume that the actions of the youth, whether violent, criminal, or simply aggressive, are due solely to the video games they had taken a liking to. It is important to identify the signs, of course, but as well as inspect each incident on a case-by-case basis. In the case of the Columbine High School massacre student perpetrators, signs of mental illness were blatantly disregarded. In their journals, they had written extensively of their feelings of despair, isolation, and suicidal thoughts, along with personal records of their erratic criminal and violent behavior. There was also evidence of Harris being clinically depressed and taking antidepressant medication. All of these other signs were ignored and tossed aside to fit a much simpler narrative that the public could digest. It was easier to understand the direct relationship between violent teenagers and violent influences, rather than face the consequences of not paying enough attention to teenagers that desperately needed professional mental help.
To explore further the effect of video games specifically upon UST Angelicum students, a few team players were asked why they played in the video game competitions in the first place, and how they felt afterwards. One player in the Valorant competition, Kerby Maté, shares his experience.
“Nakakaproud po na makita ang ibang Angelicans na may ganong performance in gaming. [For me] friendly competitions naman po ang naganap kasi para sa akin normal po ang pagiging hype and aggressive pagka nagcocompete or aiming for the win.”
Another player in the Call of Duty competition, Toni Lacsa, shares her experience as well, and why she thought to join.
“[I joined because] naglalaro po kasi ako ng Call of Duty every day, so naisip ko po sumali doon sa tournament para po makalaro ko rin fellow students ko. Masaya kasi siya laruin kaya sabi ko sasali ako; gusto ko lang ma-enjoy din yung SHS Week.”
When asked about her opinions on whether or not video games cause violence, Lacsa expresses that the older and younger generations view video games in vastly different perspectives.
“Para sa akin, hindi naman nag c-cause ng violence [ang video games] in real life. Mag o-one year naman na akong naglalaro pero hindi naman ako naging violent. Iba lang siguro yung tingin ng older generations sa mga video games na nilalaro ng [younger] generations.”
FINAL THOUGHTS
It is apparent that most of the players had seen these competitions only as opportunities to enjoy the virtual Senior High School Week alongside other students that had the same passion and interest for the games, just as anyone would with consuming other forms of media. In this light, video games can even be seen as something beneficial for students and the youth alike, as it encourages connecting with their peers despite the lockdown, healthy competition, and ‘aiming for the win’, as Maté expressed. Moreover, Lacsa’s sentiment of not manifesting any violent behavior even though she has already played video games like Call of Duty for at least a year also holds true for most of the youth. There are many teenagers and children within the younger demographic who have played at least one violent game in their life, such as the trending ‘Among Us’ game that gained popularity in the Philippines during the pandemic, but have yet to engage in any illegal or criminal acts.
It is important to remember, then, that one’s actions and behavior are complex and result from the many different factors affecting them uniquely in their own lives, not just one. Especially for the youth of today, who are in constant turbulence and imbalance — locked up in their houses amidst a pandemic and a polarized political climate, and violence encouraged more vividly by our leaders in real life than any video game. Thus, rather than making video games a scapegoat, it might be more beneficial to look deeper into the culture, environment, and other influences affecting the youth of the current generation to spark a more compassionate dialogue and actually address the root of their problems.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I am Karina Melencio and I consider myself to be an anxious, nervous yet driven writer that has written for as long as I can remember.
Being a news editor in my Junior High School journalism club and presently a literary editor in Tigercubs, I was able to learn closely from talented teachers and students alike. In my spare time, I like to cook and watch anime!
