Video Games, Past and Present

Video games have changed dramatically over the past decades. If you grew up in the 1980s, they were likely a part of your own childhood. Not all games were nonviolent back in the 1980s. Some games recreated warlike situations or involved “Al Capone” gangster plots. Fortunately, most of them tended to have innocent themes. Even those that had more violent plots most often had the player on the side of the “good guys.” However, to assume that today's games are still the same as twenty years ago would be a mistake.

Most parents are familiar with the debates about pros and cons of video games for children. Proponents claim that video games build hand-eye coordination and even help with problem solving skills, as the player must figure out the solutions to various puzzles. Those opposed to video games point to potential harm to children who cannot distinguish fantasy from reality. They argue that the overuse of games contributes to childhood obesity or deters children from important responsibilities, such as homework or helping around the house.

Regardless of the merits of these arguments, parents need to be aware of the content of today’s video games. Unlike days past, technological advances mean that newer video games may contain subject matter similar to what might be seen in R-rated movies. Here are some examples of the content of some currently available games:

• Combat martial arts games that reward the player for learning combinations to carry out lethal moves on your opponent, including decapitation, impalement, and other scenes of intense violence.
• The main character bullies other students after being bullied himself.
• A killer pursues the main player with a lethal set of weapons that the player can hear as the killer nears.

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