Sample of people was far too small but I expect the same results if they ever get round to doing it with more people.

Any gamer could have told you this...

It's how I de-stress after having spent a whole day around idiots.

Postal 2. The most perfect example of a violent, stress-relieving video game. I can just imagine it now... :)

This is why I do atleast one daily mission in Hitman Blood Money. Its for public safety!

i love how the studies are so conflicting. i bet someday, we'll have a study that confirms playing violent video games curb global warming, or that 9/10 people who play violent video games will get married someday.

however, i totally agree with this one. nothing is better during a bad breakup than jumping in a video game and killing some hookers, or going the evil route in some RPG and mercilessly annihilating any innocent you see.

Yeah, but will this stop people from claiming that clearly this tudy is just wrong, whereas their study carried out by the Women's Christian Institute Against Violent Gaming is completely unbiased and utterly correct?

Of course not, and in about twenty years people will scoff at how easily we condemned video-games with whatever new horrorific new technology is looming on the horison, just as happened with rock and roll, television, computers and now gaming.

I saw it whenever I get the chance because it amuses me, but this argument has been repeated without the faintest hint of irony since at least the time of the Romantic poets in 1789. Since we're all still here, I would say new things don't do us much harm in the long term, and may even help our society grow.

Partly by instigating revolution against the ridiculous knee-jerk conservative traditionalists who think all young people should be kept in containment bubbles until ready for baptism, marriage and family.

I've certainly always found violent games to be good for relieving stress. Nice to see science on our side for once, even if it isn't a particularly conclusive study.

Steve5513:
Sample of people was far too small but I expect the same results if they ever get round to doing it with more people.

How about Japan? Crime statistics there are pretty low even while it is home to extremely violent media. Yeah, I know its not nearly as scientific an observation as the paper in question, but still worth thinking about.

You know what does a better job of that all around? Exercise.

States the obvious, etc... soon to be given a poorly done study as a rebuttal then that too will be shot down in flames. Thus is the cycle of such things.

Kedgeree:
Postal 2. The most perfect example of a violent, stress-relieving video game. I can just imagine it now... :)

Imagine it? I'm playing it.

What I'm waiting for is more news on Postal 3.

*sarcastic clap*
Well done, you found out what I've known scince I was 4.

And there will be a "study" next week that proves the exact opposite and we all know it.

RangerSERE:
You know what does a better job of that all around? Exercise.

Go post that on the Gold Gym forum, this is the Escapist, it's about gaming.

It's about time someone did this study, I'm sick of games being blamed for all the worlds woes.

I don't believe it and I don't deny it.

Your policy on violence is the factor here, not if you play videogames.

Why do they think it will be a surprise to gamers? Aren't we in the best position to know? I certainly enjoyed Tomb Raider 3 after stress at high school (I just kept replaying the first level and shooting all the monkeys)

I agree with it, but the problem with these studies is that the games are not the only variable. The people themselves are variables as well. How do you know some of them weren't just better at managing stress beforehand? Maybe if the pool of people was larger.

To be completely honest, none of these video game studies have actually been very good from a scientific standpoint.

New: Research Shows that X Games make people Y.

Gamers ask why the Scientists aren't doing something useful.

I mean, let's just say that it's PROVEN that playing Game X for Y hours a day gives you +10 to Life Experience, -10 to Lung Capacity and +5 to Nosepicking....

So what? The only use for this is that we can say this research says it's good. And then someone else says "Ah well, THIS research says the opposite".

Please Mr. Scientists. Do something useful. Even Thatcher helped to make Soft Scoop Icecream.

I find this to be true. After having an angering and stressful day, running over a few random civilians in GTA usually cools me down.

RangerSERE:

danpascooch:

RangerSERE:
You know what does a better job of that all around? Exercise.

Go post that on the Gold Gym forum, this is the Escapist, it's about gaming.

It's about time someone did this study, I'm sick of games being blamed for all the worlds woes.

Oh the big dick around here has spoken up. Congrats.

Ooo, does this mean I'm finally building a reputation around here? Sweet!

Everyone knows exercise is good, but going around a gaming fan site posting things like "you shouldn't be playing games, you should be exercising" or the sort is incredibly judgmental. In my opinion it's akin to posting "go back to your mom's basement" in a thread. It's just rude, it's trying to act as though you are superior, and the people around you need to change, even though you know nothing about them.

That, or, I totally misunderstood the entire intent of your post, and all you meant to say was that gaming isn't the best way to release stress, and I'm overreacting like a PMSing asshole, in which case, my bad.

RangerSERE:

danpascooch:

RangerSERE:
You know what does a better job of that all around? Exercise.

Go post that on the Gold Gym forum, this is the Escapist, it's about gaming.

It's about time someone did this study, I'm sick of games being blamed for all the worlds woes.

Oh the big dick around here has spoken up. Congrats.

Dude, chill. No need to resort to name calling now. He has a point. Your post was borderline trolling.

OT: Well, this may be true in some instances, aside from those when you are raging at bad game design. In which case, we should be able to blame the game company for our bad behavior, right? ;)

danpascooch:

RangerSERE:

danpascooch:

RangerSERE:
You know what does a better job of that all around? Exercise.

Go post that on the Gold Gym forum, this is the Escapist, it's about gaming.

It's about time someone did this study, I'm sick of games being blamed for all the worlds woes.

Oh the big dick around here has spoken up. Congrats.

Ooo, does this mean I'm finally building a reputation around here? Sweet!

Everyone knows exercise is good, but going around a gaming fan site posting things like "you shouldn't be playing games, you should be exercising" or the sort is incredibly judgmental. In my opinion it's akin to posting "go back to your mom's basement" in a thread. It's just rude, it's trying to act as though you are superior, and the people around you need to change, even though you know nothing about them.

That, or, I totally misunderstood the entire intent of your post, and all you meant to say was that gaming isn't the best way to release stress, and I'm overreacting like a PMSing asshole, in which case, my bad.

Haha, great reaction. I'm glad someone here has a sense of humour. I respect that, well lets leave it as is. Some of your boyfriends are starting to get jealous with all the attention we are paying to each other. They'll say were in love, then where will we be?

"It probably won't come as a surprise to gamers that playing games may reduce stress, although others have been skeptical of this idea,"

And that's the fucking point. The People who know shit about this, yet they are 'skeptical'. Skeptical as in they want to ban everything they don't know.

More studies like this. Where can I make my donation?

I always thought this was common knowledge. When you're angry at someone and feel like kicking them in the teeth, break something or punch a pillow, I don't know. It helps. The same can apply to gaming.

Like Japan's sex crimes are so low because they are allowed to view fake "rape porn", with suppresses certain peoples urges to rape.

RangerSERE:

danpascooch:

RangerSERE:

danpascooch:

RangerSERE:
You know what does a better job of that all around? Exercise.

Go post that on the Gold Gym forum, this is the Escapist, it's about gaming.

It's about time someone did this study, I'm sick of games being blamed for all the worlds woes.

Oh the big dick around here has spoken up. Congrats.

Ooo, does this mean I'm finally building a reputation around here? Sweet!

Everyone knows exercise is good, but going around a gaming fan site posting things like "you shouldn't be playing games, you should be exercising" or the sort is incredibly judgmental. In my opinion it's akin to posting "go back to your mom's basement" in a thread. It's just rude, it's trying to act as though you are superior, and the people around you need to change, even though you know nothing about them.

That, or, I totally misunderstood the entire intent of your post, and all you meant to say was that gaming isn't the best way to release stress, and I'm overreacting like a PMSing asshole, in which case, my bad.

Haha, great reaction. I'm glad someone here has a sense of humour. I respect that, well lets leave it as is. Some of your boyfriends are starting to get jealous with all the attention we are paying to each other. They'll say were in love, then where will we be?

Meeting in your mom's basement, trying to figure out how to solve the predicament :)

Fallen-Angel Risen-Demon:
*sarcastic clap*
Well done, you found out what I've known scince I was 4.

If we relied on things we, "Know" based on folk wisdom or, "Common sense", without putting it to the test of science, we would still be burning Witches when the crops go bad. You didn't know. You thought, and suspected, behind a incalculably thick sheet of youthful ignorance and personal bias. Now these researchers suspect what you suspected, and have a much more solid reasoning behind it. That's how science works.

FinalHeart95:
I agree with it, but the problem with these studies is that the games are not the only variable. The people themselves are variables as well. How do you know some of them weren't just better at managing stress beforehand? Maybe if the pool of people was larger.

To be completely honest, none of these video game studies have actually been very good from a scientific standpoint.

Random assignment would have taken care of the individuals stress management ability. And that they reached statistical significance shows that the sample size was large enough to get some good data. Certainly it's still only one study, but it looks like a pretty solid one. Which is good because yes, most studies on both sides of the spectrum are extremely unscientific, with deeply flawed methodology. But this one, not so much. More needs to be done, but it's pretty good.

As a student of Psychology, I am interested in this beyond even the repercussions for video games. It is a demonstration of catharsis, a phenomena that has long been mostly dismissed as not supported by evidence. Apperently it exists, it just also functions as a double sided sword.

Well, the violent parts of games anyway. I remember the puzzles in God of War 1&2. Holy hell were they annoying.
I've always found violent games to be more relaxing, mostly because you can kill whatever happens to be pissing you off at the time. In my opinion, Flower was much more stressful than Ninja Gaiden 2. though, I find fighting games like Tekken and Streetfighter to be very very stresssing at times.

Huh, weird, games always make me stressed.

Well, I don't play games to de-stress, I play them to have fun.
If I'm stressed, I sit down, think, then forget the fuck about it.