I was lurking the internet when I cam across this: (Warning, has a little blood, so if you are sensitive to see blood, don't open)

http://www.pictureorama.com/2008/09/cool-anti-game-violence-propaganda.html

Now, I'm not sure what to think about this, the kids in these advertisements are obviously around the ages of 2-10ish, and there are warnings on the games about violent games and age restrictions. I just don't get it.
Your thoughts?

Seriously, are these people serious?

Age restrictions are there to let parents know what to expect. Why can't people just raise their own kids, and stop asking the state to do it for them.

The whole censorship thing is bad enough, as I've mentioned a few times before, but it's also hypocritical, considering the amount of violence in television and film, that passes these ratings people by.

Bah, what's next? Maybe these nutjobs will start an anti-Chess campaign, claiming that it encourages regicide. I wonder what would happen if they pointed the finger at the Bible. Anyone who's read a decent amount of it knows that there's some downright apeshit insane stuff in it. Probably mass chaos would ensue. It would be quite lovely.

I can't take them seriously.

So I lol'd instead.

Anyone who dislikes the games I play is free to challenge me to a boxing match.

"There's always someone else for you to blame." Is the refrain from the last song on Chumbawumba's "Tubthumping" cd. Really makes me think about that song when I see those kinds of pictures. Pisses me off to no end knowing that people actually believe drivel like these adds. I don't even know where to start so I just won't.

Edit: I just read the small print and realized that its all the same, meaningless crap in each poster. None of what the paragraph says gives good reason to believe it at all.

I'd think it should be obvious what our thoughts are going to be.

Aside from choice language and some dire oaths, the sentiment is pretty much going to be, "Prove it."

The studies on video game violence that I know of seemed to indicate that while violent video games can decrease a person's inhibition to use lethal force in combat, they do not cause aggressive feelings.

The studies I know of that pointed to video games causing violence seemed to run almost the opposite of the scientific method. Those studies began with the desired conclusions, and worked backwards from there. THAT IS NOT HOW IT WORKS, PEOPLE!

P.S. Sorry for the caps lock part, but seeing people claim to do "scientific studies" as mentioned above makes me rather murderous.

Don't make me kill! Do scientific studies the right way!

Beowulf DW:
I'd it should be obvious what our thoughts are going to be.

Aside from choice language and some dire oaths, the sentiment is pretty much going to be, "Prove it."

The studies on video game violence that I know of seemed to indicate that while violent video games can decrease a person's inhibition to use lethal force in combat, they do not cause aggressive feelings.

The studies I know of that pointed to video games causing violence seemed to run almost the opposite of the scientific method. Those studies began with the desired conclusions, and worked backwards from there. THAT IS NOT HOW IT WORKS, PEOPLE!

P.S. Sorry for the caps lock part, but seeing people claim to do "scientific studies" as mentioned above makes me rather murderous.

Don't make me kill! Do scientific studies the right way!

But that's the only dribble they'll allow into their piss filled heads.

Duck Sandwich:
Bah, what's next? Maybe these nutjobs will start an anti-Chess campaign, claiming that it encourages regicide. I wonder what would happen if they pointed the finger at the Bible. Anyone who's read a decent amount of it knows that there's some downright apeshit insane stuff in it. Probably mass chaos would ensue. It would be quite lovely.

I like to call that part of the bible: God's sense of humout towards us. In a sense we kind of are just a joke from that perspective.

Also you would be torn to shredds and your ribbons of a corpse will be defiled, then the culprits will say they did what was 'Christian' when that to me means more than being an animal to all who disagree with me.

They seem to inflict more rage inside the gamers lines then any "voilent" game can be.

Hey but a funny thing.
In Bavaria, a Party called CSU ruled supreme over any other (because they are bavarian, of course) and one of them, Mr. Herrmann, said openly "Voilent games shouldnt only be banned, they should never enter this country!" and wanted to charge payments or jail to Game Developers or Distributers selling anything with a gun in it.
Obviously some gaming magazines and the guys from "Gaming is not a crime" stopped taking the piss and acted.
They wrote a Chainletter and linked it PDF on the Cynamite website, and called gamers upon all germany to respond.

I dunno what happened, but last i heard the CSU lost their supreme leadership, went down more then 15% in the ratings and two of its heads just simply quit working...

I can only suspect that chainletter to have to do something with it, and im willing to write a letter saying "Thats what you get when you put up with 5 millions of your electors!"

I find it funny that they use the same element as the one they condemn to get their point across. Violence.

I suggest anyone here a good book called; "The Healthy Dead" by Steven Erikson.
That book reflects onto the tendency humans have to want to impose their life choices onto others.

That campain is only propaganda, and discredits itself by the very nature of its constituent.
Since when is propaganda anything other than something to laugh at?

Is your life lacking luls? Look at some anti-videogame media.

I especially love the "your son played Grand Theft Auto four years ago, he'll be murdering innocent schoolchildren within months!" kind.

Dude, I feel ripped off. I never get covered in blood when I FPS.

galletea:
Seriously, are these people serious?

Age restrictions are there to let parents know what to expect. Why can't people just raise their own kids, and stop asking the state to do it for them.

The whole censorship thing is bad enough, as I've mentioned a few times before, but it's also hypocritical, considering the amount of violence in television and film, that passes these ratings people by.

Agreed. These ads just play on people's biggest fears, as well as the generally uninformed parent.

I had to spend quite a bit of time in Sunday School explaining to other adults my age why I'm not going to hell for playing Devil May Cry. This kind of ad campaign doesn't help things at all.

Duck Sandwich:
Bah, what's next? Maybe these nutjobs will start an anti-Chess campaign, claiming that it encourages regicide. I wonder what would happen if they pointed the finger at the Bible. Anyone who's read a decent amount of it knows that there's some downright apeshit insane stuff in it. Probably mass chaos would ensue. It would be quite lovely.

Too bloody right. And let's not forget the glamorization of senseless violence to everyone who will listen in the States. More specifically, the glamorization of killing because the government tells you to. I fail to see how it's worse killing someone in a video game than being encouraged to kill some one who probably just pissed off someone in power or was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I tried going to the website and got a dead link. I think that alone says something about the pictures.

Duck Sandwich:
I wonder what would happen if they pointed the finger at the Bible. Anyone who's read a decent amount of it knows that there's some downright apeshit insane stuff in it. Probably mass chaos would ensue. It would be quite lovely.

It'd make a great game! :D

Collect 100 Philistine foreskins as David in order to marry into the royal family!

Cleanse the land of it's native inhabitants as Joshua!

And need we mention the Lot's daughters minigame?

Shooter games create a virtual reality.....

NO SHIT SHERLOCK

I laughed my ass of at those things. Especially the one with the kids heads super-imposed on the execution from the Vietnamese war. Still though, those ads were probably more graphic than half of the violent video games they seem to want to detract.

They were anti-videogames? I personally thought they were as good an advert for games as any!

I laff'd so hard at those photoshoped images.

What game out there actually sprays blood on the player? I wanna play that!

I thought it was a campaign against childhood veganism, and the kids all had wicked nosebleeds or something from iron deficiency.

And that kid had over 5000 kills in a day playing a *shooter*? "Seriously..."? On a Sun Workstation no less, going by the three-button mouse...

Oh, and thanks for the (parody) icon, GameOver! :-D

My thoughts? Burn them to the ground. It's pathetic individuals that breed in hate and ignorance who attack others in this way. I understand concern. Concern is fine. Just don't give your ridiculous opinion unless it's asked for, and look long and hard at your opinion while objectively weighing the evidence for either side before reaching a conclusion. Idiotic campaigns like this wouldn't exist if people followed even those most basic of steps.

ZenMonkey47:

Duck Sandwich:
I wonder what would happen if they pointed the finger at the Bible. Anyone who's read a decent amount of it knows that there's some downright apeshit insane stuff in it. Probably mass chaos would ensue. It would be quite lovely.

It'd make a great game! :D

Collect 100 Philistine foreskins as David in order to marry into the royal family!

Cleanse the land of it's native inhabitants as Joshua!

And need we mention the Lot's daughters minigame?

And the sequel:

As David, fight a civil war against one of your sons because you refused to punish your other son for raping your daughter.

Order a soldier to the frontlines so you can sleep with his wife.

Participate in political intrigue as Solomon.

BIBLE WARS: in stock at all major video game retailers this Christmas (or better yet, Easter)!

Those pictures are pretty ridiculous. How could someone take those seriously? Are people supposed to? Ridiculous over-photoshoped idiotness if you ask me. Little kids faces photoshoped onto soldiers and shit. I can't take it seriously. Whoever made those was a dumbass and I hate them. Same goes for whoever does take them seriously.

What's there to say? It's propaganda, it's supposed to hit where it hurts.

That being said, I take it as a personal insult towards my intellect when people do this.

Having children covered in blood isn't an argument, it's an emotional kick in the nuts, and I don't know about you, but when someone kicks me in the nuts, I tend to do what they ask me to do (unless it's completely irrational, by my standards).

If they want to something to me, then they should respect me enough to explain it to me. This shows me that not only do they have no respect for the people they're trying to talk to, but since they're trying to portray themselves as peers to these people, they have no respect for themselves, either. It saddens me.

Apologies Abound

Badly photoshopped kids on US Marines is badly photoshopped kids on US Marine's body.

I think they're taking violent gaming a little bit to far.

those ads are on a peta scale of bs

what ppl say about the violence in the bible is rather true, it's a VERY bloody and violent book

Khell_Sennet:
Dude, I feel ripped off. I never get covered in blood when I FPS.

The next step in force-feedback-esque technology?

I'm for it! Fund it.

cleverlymadeup:
those ads are on a peta scale of bs

what ppl say about the violence in the bible is rather true, it's a VERY bloody and violent book

Funny how there aren't any age restrictions on books...

There have been studies which show that kids who watch scary movies get fewer nightmares than kids who read scary stories. It seems, the imagination of a child is a lot more effective than that of the eye of a director.

And, while I can't speak for all kids, I read a WHOLE lot more when I was a child...

Duck Sandwich:
I wonder what would happen if they pointed the finger at the Bible. Anyone who's read a decent amount of it knows that there's some downright apeshit insane stuff in it. Probably mass chaos would ensue. It would be quite lovely.

Its been on my mind for quite a few years now, but games based on the bible could, in fact, beat the living shit out of most other games.

Hell, a movie based on the book of revelation would be an awesome pseuo-lsd trip full of violence and other eye burning stuff.

OuroborosChoked:

Khell_Sennet:
Dude, I feel ripped off. I never get covered in blood when I FPS.

The next step in force-feedback-esque technology?

I'm for it! Fund it.

I Second the funding notion.

Parents who try to get violent games banned are just plain silly. It won't work because the right to create, produce and distribute these games are protected under the right to free speech which most developed countries have.

They just want to ruin everyone else's fun because they're too damn lazy to be real parents for a change and make sure that their children play age appropriate games. They don't want to take ten seconds out of their precious time to look at the rating. How do you think kids get those games anyway? The stores won't sell them to anyone under 17 without a parent/guardian present.

Plus the studies on whether or not video games promote violence have been inconclusive, and they try to pass it off as fact that playing/watching violent things as a child will turn you into an inherently violent adult. It's ridiculous, it's saddening, and it's insulting.

I dunno, I thought the non-marine ones might've made good, "Hey parents, pay attention to the ratings, and watch what your 6 year old is playing," ads, with a bit of change in the text and such. As The_Logician said, the "emotional kick in the nuts", might point people towards not handing a 6 year old a shooter, without talking about it first.