Nowadays, we can see ten out of eleven young people holding with game console. A video game is defined as ‘a game played by electronically manipulating images produced by a computer program on a television screen or display’ (Oxford Dictionary, 2005, p. 1964). Violence means the use of the drastic and mandatory power. It basically refers to fight or murder between individual and criminal groups. Most of the popular video games always involved this kind of scenes of violence; it trends toward modern playing style. This kind of games called violent video games. The first called ‘video game’ was created by William Higinbotham. In 1958, the game played on a Brookhaven National Laboratory oscilloscope called ‘Tennis for Two’ (Bellis, n.d.). The game was only played tennis, but the situation now is different. Many people believe that video games have not just an entertainment, has become a cultural happening. Some people put the video games as an art. There are also people think it had negatively affected the community, particularly the physical and mental health of young people. In addition, the screen of the violent video games will make negative to children also young people.
In year 2010, the research of best video games from Digital Trends, most of the top 15 video games are attributed to violent video games. For example, Battlefield Bad Company 2 Ultimate Edition and Call of Duty: Black Ops (Fleming, 2010). These are part of battles video games. In 2004 on September, a person imitated a violent video game to kill his friend. At that time, he was only 17 years old and he was sentenced to life imprisonment after murdering. Parent of the sufferer claimed that the youth was obsessed on video game and there was more than 50 injuries had inflict on their son (Harris, 2006). As this case shows, game violent and death become a reality of violent and death. When video games have been played every day by individual, it is the difficult to escape the real world of gaming.
Although playing video games is considered a leisure activity, violent video games have negative influence on young people, and thus more control should be imposed on them. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to point out the problem of addiction to violent video games and the effect it has on society in general.
Violent video games not only will cause on behavior, it also will affect in mental health. As most of the video games are violent, and it has more realistic graphics and sound effect to attract young people to play. They spends few hours sit in front on the computer or laptop, parents think that they doing for their homework and did not ask what are they doing for. Parents often worry about the content of violent video games, but they do not know how horrible it and risk. Violent video games will change in brain physiology and function. Still, it will cause lack of self-control. ‘A new study has found that adolescents who play violent video games may exhibit lingering effects on brain function’ (Yam, 2006). Beside that, violent video games that can make children lose control on their self. Researcher assign teenagers to play the violent and non-violent video games for testing, the result show who played with violent video games their will decrease in self-control after the games (Harris, 2006). Harris (2006) then continues to said that, violent video games can affect on brain physiology and function also will influence on the brain for the person who playing violent video games. On the other hard, adults their brain is already gradually growth, but children they still learning everything from anywhere. If children also tough to violent games, that will learn the violent from the games. Therefore, government should take it more serious and control should be more improve.
Besides affecting the brain, playing video games, including violent games, also is an activity which waste time for young people and everyone. In year 2009, the sales on video games was decrease 8 percent but people spend their time in video games is increase 10 percent (Takahashi, 2010). As a result, when parents busy with their work, no one can accompany their children after school or after school activity. Therefore, young people flock to the cyber cafe or video parlors to entertainment. And they spend a lot of money in there is not only for fun, is to playing online video games. Even if they did not go to cyber cafe, they still would go out to discuss how to challenge the games. This will make them feel better than they back home alone. In addition, young people they need most is friends, once he and his friends do not have common topic of conversation occurs while the happening of exclusion. They went to cyber cafe to play video game while the games through the internet to discuss. Young people can spend hours at the cyber cafe just for video games, but they hard to spend one or two hours to concentrate in their studies. Consequently, violent video game is not only waste young people time also parents money. So, if the government does not control the cyber cafe in the distribution of licenses, the problem will lead to more gaming.
Games is an activity which very easy to addictive it for young people. Video games, including violent video games cause addiction. This is harm affect young people academic performance when teen who start to play with the game, they can not stop on it also wishes to play and challenge it. Therefore, student will less concentration on their studies. They will spend more time in video games and do not attend the activity after school (Association for Psychological Science, 2010). Moreover, they busy playing with the video games lead to do not do their homework. Thus, their do not submit their homework at the time lead to scold from teacher. Also, time spend in playing video games has negative with academic performance. Expect for homework do not done, they also will forget to revision. Revision is the part which is important for student, if they did not take one or two hours concentrate to revision per day, it will affect to their result. Addicted to video games, already leading to young people spends their studies much reduced the time. Every student or worker they have to concentration in their major task. As a student, they have to responsibility to study hard and pay more attention for it. When young people start touch with video games, including violent video games it will affect in their studies. According to the research report from Association for Psychological Science (2010), 4 month later teenagers who played video games will result a lower grade on reading and writing compare with other who did not play. For this reason, video games, including violent video games will affect in their studies. So the control by government should be imposing.
Nevertheless, there still have people who think that violent video games are harmless. The most common argument lifted by violent video games has no proven link to violent behavior people right to play for. Wilde (2010) stated that people should be ‘free to make their own decisions about what they play.’ Therefore, young people can make their decision and matured enough to know what they want. As long as they can handle their time between study and leisure, so they may play anything either that are violent or non-violent video games. Moreover, young people are nowadays matured enough to separate fantasy from reality. Young people also have the ability to distinguish between good and bad, we have to respect their mind.
Another common argument which is video game gives a sense of accomplishment to young people (Thomson, n.d.). Youth is not just academic pressure, and still can not get life mastership and the lack of a sense of accomplishment from other problems. Because the game’s unique interactive features, from a very simple on fired a bullet, control the direction of the games with other online. Compared with other young people often do the leisure such as reading, watching movie, video games is the more likely to meet the desire of autonomy and control, also are more likely to derive self-confidence. And there a desire is no matter what kind of young people would have for the demand.
Also, playing video games can earn money. A majority thought that playing video games is wasting time and money, but there are reality money can be earned from video gaming. A video games tournament is one of the channels to earn money, and the prize is quite good. In year 2010, video game tournament awards totaling US$27,000 (KOCCA, 2010). That is just an easy way make them to win for the money, sit in front on the computer and play the game. Furthermore, each year at the Game Show in the world, such as the Taipei Game Show, are attracting more then tens of thousands of visitors (Yeh, 2011). Another to earn money for games is to become a professional tester. Professional video game tester is certain much better than a number of other jobs. To every video game player, this is great when they are working and they can get to play the latest games before it release. Game testers can earn $8-$20 per hour, that is just depends on their experience (Saunders, n.d.). Tournament and tester those are the easy way to earn money.
Opponent who argue that there is no link between violent video games to violent behaviors are mistaken. Children who play more violent video game did become more aggressive than other children who less play (Harding, 2008). In addition, there are many proof can be found on the internet, one of them is the former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was signed bill to make it illegal to sell and rent of violent video games to youth (Totenberg, 2010). It mean they agree with violent video games will cause violent behavior. There is not every youth have maturity enough to control themselves also to distribute their time. If they are mature to mange any matter, it would not have violent happen in the social.
Beside that, violent video games is not only way to get sense of accomplishment. The sense of accomplishment is the major element of gratification and it is feeling happy after gratification. Violent video games are full of fighting picture, and there is nothing to be proud of. It could be violent behavior make them feeling happy. Therefore, young people should get their sense of accomplishment from other healthy way, such as ball games and fun run. There are also many people get their sense of accomplishment from these healthy exercises. It is important that young people could be more healthiness, but it was only ill health when young people sitting for a long time to playing video games. Another good way is to be a volunteer, most people could feel accomplishment after help the other, such as World Vision: 30-Hour Famine. They through fasting to experience hunger, global anti-pervert activities (30-Hour Famine, n.d.). They can get sense of accomplishment from helping people. So that would be a great way for young people.
Young people can earn extra money from different ways but not from video game tournament or game testers also are not the best way. Young people can create a sports team. When have any tournament they can go out to participate. They will obtain award money of the competition if they won, meanwhile they also will get the sense of accomplishment and health. In addition, young people ought to earn money from working part time, because there are a number of benefits for them. It would be good for their future career if they get the working experience when they are young. Also, young people would able to develop their independence and responsibility from working part time along with earning money (Middle Earth, 2010). Additionally, young people may know what "no pay, no gain" meaning for. After they pay out their strength or so, they will spend money more carefully on necessary. Hereby, youth can gain that much benefit from working part time, so it is a better way to earn their extra money.
All in all, addiction to video games will affect young people in studies and less concentrate in homework and revision. In addition, young people will spend more time in cyber cafe or video parlor just playing video games and discussion for the games not for search information for their homework. In terms of researches above, violent video games can cause violent behavior and it will affect young people’s mental health. It brings badness consequence once they lose self-control. In conclusion, if government does not control violent video games, it will cause more violent in our world and influence in young people mind. Therefore, due to the negative implication of violent video games, it should be banned by the government and not allowed to enter the market.
