Realistic Graphics Renew Debate About Video Game Violence
By Movieguide® Contributor
Advancements in technology have led to ever-improving video game graphics, and as visuals have become more real, the debate about video game violence has been renewed.
The video game “Dead Island 2,” released in April, marked a new step in video game graphics with its Fully Locational Evisceration System for Humanoids (FLESH) system. The FLESH system causes a player’s model to accrue trauma in a realistic way rather than apply the damage effect to a model in the same way, regardless of the attack performed.
The new system shows more gruesome scenes as incidents such as players burning or animal attacks create highly realistic, highly detailed visuals.
While the use of the system in “Dead Island 2” is performed in a cartoonish art style, the implementation of FLESH in a fully realistic game has the potential to cause immense damage to players.
While the current industry standard graphics are impressive, they still lack some level of realism. Even at a glance, adults can distinguish between real life and the fantasy of a video game. This is why some players can stomach incredible violence in their games that they could not bear in real life.
While not fully capturing reality, the violence portrayed in video games is real enough to cause harm to players. Movieguide® has reported that gamers who play violent video games show increased levels of aggression and violence.
The harmful effects of violent video games will only grow as systems like FLESH or ultra-realistic visuals hit the market. As it becomes harder for players to distinguish between video games and the real world, companies must consider the cost of creating these games.
This is especially true for games marketed to children, whose lesser-developed brains are more likely to blur the lines between what is real and make-believe.
The implementation of AI could also affect the impact of these games. Future games could use an AI chatbot, like ChatGPT, to create realistic NPCs whose lines differ in every interaction.
“If [a character] could realistically beg for mercy in a different way every single time you try and do something to it that could be quite traumatic,” said Paul Cairns, head of the Department of Computer Science at the University of York in the UK.
“If it’s essentially killing what feels like real characters, then I think you’re crossing a line,” he added. “I think there’s got to be a point that you don’t want to go past, that we don’t consider acceptable in society.”
Movieguide® previously reported:
Researchers found that people who played violent video games for three straight days showed increased aggressive behavior. Their expectations that others would behave aggressively also increased.
However, people playing nonviolent games showed no meaningful changes in their aggression or their expectations of hostility.
“People who have a steady diet of playing these violent video games may come to see the world as a hostile and violent place,” Bushman said. “These results suggest there could be a cumulative effect.”
