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Why Do Some People Always Bash Computer Games?

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Computer games improve hand-eye coordination and problem solving skills, and they open people’s minds to the fact that while some problems seem impossible to solve, they are not. One might say that eye-hand coordination doesn’t matter, as it is just sports, but it can be applied to some extreme (though admittedly rare) life experiences too! And it improves your ability to do sports which improves your brain and in turn your problem solving skills! (A lot of the time, at least.) And one might say, “If all one does is computer games they don’t need their problem solving skills for anything else!” Well, that’s true, so… no, playing on computers all the time isn’t good, but when there’s nothing better to do…

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Computer games improve hand-eye coordination and problem solving skills, and they open people’s minds to the fact that while some problems seem impossible to solve, they are not. One might say that eye-hand coordination doesn’t matter, as it is just sports, but it can be applied to some extreme (though admittedly rare) life experiences too! And it improves your ability to do sports which improves your brain and in turn your problem solving skills! (A lot of the time, at least.)

As phrased, this is a silly question. People do things for a wide variety of reasons, and with a question this general there isn't much point to speculating.

A more interesting (and answerable) question might be: What are some of the values provided by computer games that lead people to play them? Another question might be: What are some of the negative aspects of computer games that lead people to criticize them?

I have been an avid player of what are called "computer role-playing" games for many years now. I find them enjoyable for the sense of immersion they provide. The best of these games create virtual worlds in which I can experience dramatically significant action with myself as the protagonist. I get to save the world, kill the bad guy, and live happily ever after. The value they provide is not primarily physical, or even cognitive: it's spiritual fuel in the same way as reading a good novel. Artistically these games are usually pretty shallow, but the sense of immersiveness and control compensates for that.

I have also played some more intellectual "puzzle" style games, such as the old-but-classic "The Incredible Machine", which provide a different kind of value. The goal there is more like chess -- experiencing the pleasure of using one's mind to solve a complex problem with no broader ramifications. There's nothing wrong with that as a delimited form of recreation.

I also can't resist tossing in this observation on the benefits of twitch-style shooter games from a serviceman currently in Iraq, taken from http://www.justanothersoldier.com/blog040512.htm:

The main entrance into the office complex, deep within the heart of the bunker, an architectural security feature probably borrowed from the Egyptian pyramids, is where the massive metal doors were, with an intermediate vestibule area with a small round portal one could look into or fire into should the person entering be deemed enemy, an idea borrowed from Medieval castle architecture. This structure was the kind of thing that David Macaulay would do a book on. Or better yet, something designed by John Romero. I felt like I was playing Doom. I am not joking when I say that all the hours I spent pissing my life away playing Quake were actually not wasted at all. The techniques used to safely and systematically go from room to room in any first-person shooter translate over to real life in situations like this. The next time your mom lectures you about the time you waste playing Half-Life and that there is no benefit whatsoever in it, tell her that if things keep going the way they have been, you'll most likely serve time in the Army sooner or later and being familiar with basic room-clearing concepts could save your life. But then she could just as easily explain how algebra skills are necessary to accurately call in indirect fire missions and that you should finish your homework.

I'll leave it to others with interest to discuss their perceptions of the negative aspects of computer games.

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this is rather simple. for those who enjoy computer games (myself being such a person) i dont think there is any point in contemplating the negative aspects of computer games, just enjoy them.

this next part bothers me. those who find something negative in computer games should simply not play them. instead many people talk about the evils of computer games and their bad influence. im not asking them to play video games, i just wish they would be quiet about something that does not concern them.

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What possible rationale could anyone have for bashing computer games? Anything truly negative being said would have to be about the character of the player not the games. Like when people say:

They are a waste of time. Well that would be only if the person has something better to do, in which case that person is a time waster not the game.

If one feels that they are a waste of his or her time they are not obligated to spend their time playing them. This again, is not the game in a position of responsibility.

I personally feel fishing is a waste of my time but I’m not about to bash fishing in general.

Besides I love computer games.

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What possible rationale could anyone have for bashing computer games?  Anything truly negative being said would have to be about the character of the player not the games. 

It's perfectly reasonably to cricitize (even harshly criticize) specific computer games for specific failures, e.g. I think the kind of world and gameplay modeled by the very popular Grand Theft Auto series is pretty dodgy from a moral and esthetic standpoint. (Stealing cars, shooting police and abusing prostitutes are just a few of the things the game encourages the player to do.) I think that finding such things entertaining says something bad about the character of the gamer too, but that doesn't mean we can't criticize the game for catering to such nihilistic values. This is similar to the way we can criticize works of literature that embody corrupt values (such as Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis) instead of restricting ourselves to criticizing the character of those who read such books.

Bashing an entire genre is uncalled for unless there are essential characteristics of the genre as such that are bad. Computer games don't qualify.

It sometimes seems like each generation of parents has to launch an ill-considered attack on whatever new form of recreation their children enjoy. At one point it was rock music. Later it became video games. In another decade it will be something else.

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Computer games improve hand-eye coordination and problem solving skills, and they open people’s minds to the fact that while some problems seem impossible to solve, they are not. One might say that eye-hand coordination doesn’t matter, as it is just sports, but it can be applied to some extreme (though admittedly rare) life experiences too! And it improves your ability to do sports which improves your brain and in turn your problem solving skills! (A lot of the time, at least.) And one might say, “If all one does is computer games they don’t need their problem solving skills for anything else!” Well, that’s true, so… no, playing on computers all the time isn’t good, but when there’s nothing better to do…

If playing computer games makes one happy, then what the heck?

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I have been an avid player of what are called "computer role-playing" games for many years now. I find them enjoyable for the sense of immersion they provide. The best of these games create virtual worlds in which I can experience dramatically significant action with myself as the protagonist.

Question for you: did you ever play "Planescape: Torment" for the PC? While it didn't have ALL the right values I do think it was probably the best RPG ever made the the closest to acheiving the of "art" as I have ever seen a game come.

On a tangent: One thing I've always wanted to do was make the "Atlas Shrugged" of RPG's. By that I mean a RPG that could be seen as a work of art, that imparts values, makes you think, and would probably be either very controversial or utterly obscure.

I do realize that with games like Dungeon Seige, Neverwinter Nights and NWN 2 on the way it's more possable to do that now; but I see this as more of a side project or something to do after I would retire from what I would like my primary career to be.

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Question for you: did you ever play "Planescape: Torment" for the PC?  While it didn't have ALL the right values I do think it was probably the best RPG ever made the the closest to acheiving the of "art" as I have ever seen a game come.

I own this game. I got terribly bored after playing for about half an hour, and that was it.

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Question for you: did you ever play "Planescape: Torment" for the PC?  While it didn't have ALL the right values I do think it was probably the best RPG ever made the the closest to acheiving the of "art" as I have ever seen a game come.

I did play "Planescape: Torment" and enjoyed it immensely. The caliber of the writing and plotting was superior to typical examples of the genre. (Which isn't that hard, honestly.)

On a tangent: One thing I've always wanted to do was make the "Atlas Shrugged" of RPG's.  By that I mean a RPG that could be seen as a work of art, that imparts values, makes you think, and would probably be either very controversial or utterly obscure. 

Sounds a bit like Ultima IV (a classic of the genre). Although the virtue system in U4 left a lot to be desired (self-sacrifice as a virtue?), it was one of the first games to try to thread a positive and semi-coherent moral system into the game as a basic plot element.

A game that makes you think in a way that goes beyond puzzle solving would be quite an achievement. I'm not sure the technology is really there yet, though. But someday...

(A good friend of mine is actually working on NWN 2. I didn't play the original, but I may have to look at the sequel just because of that.)

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Sounds a bit like Ultima IV (a classic of the genre).  Although the virtue system in U4 left a lot to be desired (self-sacrifice as a virtue?), it was one of the first games to try to thread a positive and semi-coherent moral system into the game as a basic plot element.

Oh I'm not saying I'm terribly original with the idea. ;) The Ultima series was one of my all time favorites and I do wish there were more games of that depth / caliber. I really think games could be pushed towards a level where you could describe them as "art" but as the market stands now we have more "Doom 3" (more or less) mindless FPS's then we do Ultima. Knights of the Old Republic was about as close as recent games have come to moving towards that 'art' label; but I wonder if we'll ever see anything like a AS of video games in our lifetime.

A game that makes you think in a way that goes beyond puzzle solving would be quite an achievement.  I'm not sure the technology is really there yet, though.  But someday...

I'm not sure it's so much a technology issue as it is a storytelling one. Not much technology goes into printing a book! :)

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Knights of the Old Republic was about as close as recent games have come to moving towards that 'art' label

i liked knights of the old republic as well. have you ever played any of the suikoden games? suikoden 1 and 2 i would consider art, 3 is less is some way but just as fun. if you can find these (1 and 2 are very hard to find) i would suggest playing them. after playing them i look at rpgs in a new light.

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There was an excellent sleeper hit a few years ago called "System Shock 2".

Among its strongest points was it's story. It displayed the most consistant and through adherents to the Mind/Body dichotomy than I think could ever exist and the protagonist's struggle to reject and destroy them. It didn't even muddle the story with a lot of altruist garbage either. Good flow, good mechanics too. All around well intergrated.

i liked knights of the old republic as well

That was like an altruist brainwashing. The production values were top notch, but UGH. every choice presented false alternatives... ;)

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That was like an altruist brainwashing. The production values were top notch, but UGH. every choice presented false alternatives... 

it was a video game. it doesn't have to advocate the same philosophical beliefs that i do. it was fun and well worth my $25.00.

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There was an excellent sleeper hit a few years ago called "System Shock 2".

Yeah I loved the first one as well, and Shodan was a well done bad guy.

That's why my character rode the fence the whole way, I wasn't light or dark side so much as I was "neutral side" of the force. :D

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Suikoden 1 and 2 are my favorite RPG's next to Final Fantasy 7. I highly recommend all three of these titles.

i forgot about final fantasy 7, i liked that one too. as long as we are talking about favorite RPGs let me suggest also: final fantasy 8, anything from the lunar series, and elder scrolls 3 (x box). there are a few strategy/rpg games as well: final fantasy tactics, vandal hearts, ogre battle, and tactics ogre. Diablo 2 is also good but i dont know where to put that. ive heard of other games that are very good but unfortunately havent got a chance to play them yet so i wont recomend them.

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