"Everybody knows gamers are a bunch of lonely teen

boys"

Dr Stephen Harrington

"There exists in this country a callous, corrupt and corrupting shadow

industry that sells, and sows, violence against its own people. Through

vicious, violent video games with names like Bulletstorm, Grand Theft

Auto, Mortal Kombat and Splatterhouse.

...And then they have the nerve to call it "entertainment."

But is that what it really is? Isn't fantasizing about killing people as a way

to get your kicks really the filthiest form of pornography? In a race to the

bottom, media conglomerates compete with one another to shock, violate

and offend every standard of civilized society by bringing an ever-more-

toxic mix of reckless behavior and criminal cruelty into our homes - every

minute of every day of every month of every year."

- NRA Executive Director, Wayne LaPierre, December 21, 2012

Today:

• Assessing your current knowledge of video games

• Discussing many key myths about video games and their intersection with society

• Re-thinking the 'value' of new media forms

• Arguments you can use in your first assignment

Another Quiz!

• List the top ten international best-selling console/PC games of 2012.

• Can be any order!

• No computers/mobiles allowed!

• How many have you heard of?

• How many of these have you played yourself?

10 - FIFA13

9 - Lego Batman 2: DC Superheroes

8 - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

7 - Borderlands 2

6 - NBA 2K13

5 - Just Dance 4

4 - Assassin's Creed 3

3 - Halo 4

2 - Madden NFL13

1 - Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

• The most popular entertainment product of all time

• Earned over US$500M in 24 hours.

• Earned US$1B faster (15 days) than Avatar (17), and Modern Warfare 3 (16)

1 - Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

So what?

• That the games people play are incredibly diverse

• Games are played for a variety of reasons

• Yet we see games in very one-dimensional terms

• The games industry is very big

So what are the "myths" about video games?

• They are all violent

• They are "addictive"

• They are only played by teenage boys

• They cause violence

• They make players anti-social

• They make us "unhealthy"

But....

What is the reality?

Question 1

The average age of an Australian "gamer" is...?

Question 2

Percentage of Australian households with at least 1 gaming device...?

Question 3

Percentage of "gamers" over the age of 18...?

Question 4

Percentage of Australians over the age of 51 who play video games...?

Question 5

Percentage of Australian gamers who are female...?

Question 6

Percentage of "gamers" who play on mobile devices...?

Question 7

Number of years the average adult "gamer" has been playing games...?

Question 8

The most popular game type among male Australian gamers...?

(Out of: sports, puzzle, first-person shooter)

Question 9

The most popular game type among female Australian gamers...?

(Out of: sports, puzzle, first-person shooter)

Question 10

The percentage of Australian "gamers" who play games for 5 or more hours in one sitting...?

And....

What does actual research tell us?

(Brand, J., Digital Australia 2012, Bond University)

Let's see how you did!

Question 1

The average age of an Australian "gamer" is...?

32

Question 2

Percentage of Australian households with at least 1 gaming device...?

92%

Question 3

Percentage of "gamers" over the age of 18...?

75%

Question 4

Percentage of Australians over the age of 51 who play video games...?

43%

Question 5

Percentage of Australian gamers who are female...?

47%

Myth: Busted!

"They are only played by teenagers/boys/nerds"

Question 6

Percentage of "gamers" who play on mobile phones...?

40%

Question 7

Number of years the average adult "gamer" has been playing games...?

12

Question 8

The most popular game type among male Australian gamers...?(Out of: sports, puzzle, first-person shooter)

Puzzle

Question 9

The most popular game type among female Australian gamers...?(Out of: sports, puzzle, first-person shooter)

Puzzle

Myth: Busted!

"They are all violent!"

Question 10

The percentage of Australian "gamers" who play games for 5 or more hours in one sitting...?

3%

Myth: Busted!

"They are addictive!"

So what are the "myths" about video games?

• They are all violent

• They are "addictive"

• They are only played by teenage boys

• They cause violence

• They make players anti-social

• They make us "unhealthy"

So what are the "myths" about video games?

• They are all violent

• They are "addictive"

• They are only played by teenage boys

• They cause violence

• They make players anti-social

• They make us "unhealthy"

"They cause violence"

• See your reading!!!

"They cause violence"

"Lab experiments confirm what any gamer knows in his gut: playing games like “Call of

Duty,” “Killzone 3” or “Battlefield 3” stirs the blood. In one recent study, Christopher

Barlett, a psychologist at Iowa State University, led a research team that had 47

undergraduates play “Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance” for 15 minutes. Afterward, the

team took various measures of arousal, both physical and psychological. It also tested

whether the students would behave more aggressively, by having them dole out hot

sauce to a fellow student who, they were told, did not like spicy food but had to swallow

the sauce.

Sure enough, compared with a group who had played a nonviolent video game, those

who had been engaged in “Mortal Kombat” were more aggressive across the board.

They gave their fellow students significantly bigger portions of the hot sauce."

- New York Times, Feb 2013 (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/science/studying-

the-effects-of-playing-violent-video-games.html)

"They cause violence"

Cunningham, Engelstätter and Ward (2011) "Understanding the Effects of Violent Video Games on

Violent Crime", Social Science Research Network Working Papers

Video games are an increasingly popular leisure activity. As many of best-selling games contain hyper-

realistic violence, many researchers and policymakers have concluded that violent games cause violent

behaviors. Evidence on a causal effect of violent games on violence is usually based on laboratory

experiments finding violent games increase aggression. Before drawing policy conclusions about the

effect of violent games on actual behavior, these experimental studies should be subjected to tests of

external validity. Our study uses a quasi-experimental methodology to identify the short and medium run

effects of violent game sales on violent crime using time variation in retail unit sales data of the top 50

selling video games and violent criminal offenses from the National Incident Based Reporting System

(NIBRS) for each week of 2005 to 2008. We instrument for game sales with game characteristics, game

quality and time on the market, and estimate that, while a one percent increase in violent games is

associated with up to a 0.03% decrease in violent crime, non-violent games appear to have no effect

on crime rates.

(http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1804959)

"They make players anti-social"

• Majority of game playing is still 'solitary'

• But, 70% enjoy games played with others (e.g. physically together, or online)

• However, many more opportunities for competition, collaboration, social interaction

• Question of how we define "social"

• “I have enjoyed seeing the competition and challenge and excitement of winning with computer games, as well as the satisfaction of seeing one person teach another how to play a game, or use different strategies to win.” - Female, 62, Brisbane

• So do books!

• So does homework!

• So do many sports!

• Research is now suggesting the stimulation of the brain (incl. hand-eye coordination) has a positive effect on mental capacity...

"They make us 'unhealthy'"

A realistic approach...

• The "addiction" discourse

• Not completely unproblematic...

• Henry Jenkins: GTA3 like Birth of a Nation

• Major public concern usually stirred up through isolated incidents, un-representative or decontextualised examples:

• "Xbox Runaway"

• Saints Row The Third, Postal, MW2 airport scene

Conclusion

• Yet another moral panic?

• ... Based on "Effects Theory"?

• Your likelihood of believing the myths of video games increases substantially if you don't play them.

• What might that tell us?