Ethics

Impacts of Games on Society

The impact of computer gaming on society has grown significantly within recent years. People are becoming obsessed with games, this can be a good thing and however it can also be a bad thing.

Positive & Negative Effects:

Computer games promote a number of positive aspects to the player. They can promote key life skills such as teamwork and communication. Most games require you to read instructions or messages, which then would help to develop reading and possibly writing skills. Games will generally require the need to think quickly, decide what to do, when to do it and how to do it. This can impact on how people act in real life situations, good or bad.

Some negative effects can be the amount of violence within modern games, this is a huge factor that impacts on today’s society. Some parents still buy their children 18 rated games which leads to them copying what they play. This can be a major problem when it comes to them socializing and going to school. This isn’t just a problem in younger children, many people above the game rate age also are affected negatively to games containing violence.

Excess Playing Time:

Playing games can be fun, however playing for a long period of time can have some negative effects. Spending too long on any technological device, TV, computer, phone, etc... can have a massive impact on eye health. This could lead to serious issues. However that isn't a concern to most gamers. Playing for long period of time can get a person hooked to the game. So much so that they think they are still playing when they are not. For example, someone playing Gears of War 2 can become completely blinded by reality. To a certain extent they may go out with a weapon and slaughter someone thinking that they are still within the game.

Cost, Social Isolation & Separation from Reality:

The cost of gaming can be explained in two concepts. 1) The cost to buy the game, and to connect online. 2) The cost, and impact, it has on your life.

Some people play games everyday, but for two maybe three hours at a time, where as others spend their lives eating, sleeping, gaming. Their life becomes a vicious cycle where the get up, get some food, turn on the Xbox and stay there until four or five in the morning, then they go back to bed.

This lifestyle isn't good for anybody, the impact it will have on your physical and mental health can be very serious.
Having friends, or people to talk to is a important part of everyday life, without socialization people can become lonely and insecure. Socializing is a huge part of society, without the world would be a cold and lonely place. Human interaction is a key part to staying sane, without socialization you could drive yourself crazy.

This sort of gaming lifestyle separates you from the rest of the world again, making you socially isolated from the rest of society. Separation from reality is easy to fall into, not so easy to get out.

Playing on  a game for a solid two weeks, only stop to eat, sleep, and use the toilet may sound like fun. But when your hardcore gaming session ends you have to fit back into everyday life. Things could be happening around the world and you would be none the wiser of what's what anymore.

Thinking & Strategy Skills:

Gaming can prove useful, certain skills are a must have to be considered good at gaming. I mentioned before hand-eye co-ordination which can be developed on the majority of games. Other skills could be quick thinking, for example; 'call of duty' demands you to think quickly and do the right action. This can help enhance skills that people can use in everyday life. Other games such as 'forza motorsport' requires you to not take your eyes off of the screen meaning you need to know where all the buttons are without having to look at where they are on the controller/keypad.

 

Future Impact:

  The future impact games may have on society can vary from good to bad. A positive way that society may be influenced could be that most people who play computer games are more than likely to be better at everyday tasks, like driving for example. Hand-eye co-ordination is built up on a number of games.

On the other hand it could also impact society in a negative way.
Gaming influences many lives, if people start copying what they see on games they play, such as Gears of War, Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto, etc... then the world will be a much worse off place.

Many games consist of violence, this isn't such a bad thing but it may influence badly on some people. Where as it won't effect others.

Impact on 'mainstream' Application Development:

The world of media is huge, from games to movies everything gets is affected by their media coverage. Magazines are possibly one of the biggest methods of getting your game recognized. Reviews within a magazine, or on the internet guarantees
people to see it and hopefully encourage them to buy it. Gaming can influence other aspects of media such as television. Certain games are good enough to get news interviews, short films/documentaries.
The music industry is also helped by games. Games need soundtracks, and maybe in game songs. For example on 'Grand Theft Auto' when you get into a car, certain radio stations have real songs on.

Psychological Factors:

Computer games can play a massive part in a person’s psychological behavior. Various games can impact in various ways for example; a game such as Grand Theft Auto may impact on how a person views the world. The gamer may become more violent, they may copy what they see on the game. For example they may steal a car on go on a killing spree, or they may copy the violent and volatile behavior that is shown throughout the game.

Not all psychological factors of gaming are bad, some can be positive. Increased hand-eye co-ordination is vastly improved by playing on computer games. This can help an individual in everyday life, having better hand-eye co-ordination can help to increase the ability to do many things, like drawing, writing, driving, etc.

Use of Sound:

The use of sound in gaming is crucial to gain the right effect. Sounds are often out in the game at certain points to enhance the game motion, they will correspond with the mood and the task in hand to create a better feel to the game. Sound can affect a person in multiple ways, to some people sound doesn’t matter when people are talking they’d rather read subtitles but sound effects, like a gunshot, are crucial to knowing what is happening in the game surroundings.

 

Sounds can influence many things within a game, if you hear dark music that keeps you in suspense then it helps you understand that something is wrong. However if you hear more cheery sounds it may indicate that you have won, or something positive is going to happen.

Sound effects can influence the game in many ways, but within society it can also. Sound effects could impact an individual so severely that they can't get the sound out of their head, this could lead them to becoming jumpy and paranoid which could lead to violence or anti-social behavior.

 

High Score Listings & Competitive Games:
 

Hitting the high score listings is the goal for many gamers, but some take it too seriously when it comes to being the best of the best. High Scores used to be a way to compare various individual skills, nowadays they are much more competitive. When trying to achieve a high score, some people will spend hours trying to beat their friends or even strangers that they have never spoken to or met. It doesn't matter to some people who they beat, as long as they're number one.

It has been said that over the years high scores within games have 'evolved' meaning that they matter a lot more these days. Some people don't care about their score, they're just playing for fun. Others however believe that to have a high score is the main goal of a game, even if it does take some of the joy out of playing.

Competitive gaming is becoming more and more popular, especially with teenage boys. All they talk about is their high score on 'Zombies' or how many cars they have on 'GTA'. Gaming is becoming a much more serious industry, now games have the ability to connect to the internet people can play others from across the globe, some even sit in the same house and connect to each other via headsets online.

 Competitive gaming has become a world wide phenomenon, in every corner of the globe there is someone competing in an online game. Whether it be against someone in the same country or on the other side of the world.
This has a huge impact on society, most people are interacting over the internet and not going out and enjoy the social environments that the world has to offer.

Peer Pressure:

Peer pressure can happen anywhere, but some people may be pressurized into buying and playing a game they don't particularly want too. This is most common during years at school.
"Everybody else has that new game, you don't want to be the only one without it do you?"
This may sound like friendly advise, but something like that can change a persons life. They may not want the game, however they may not be able to afford it. This could lead to the person stealing the game, or illegally downloading it, just to fit in with their friends.

Fun & Expectations:

Having fun is one of the best parts of gaming, however not everyone plays for fun. Going back to what I said before, Gaming is quite competitive nowadays.
Expectations within gaming could mean anything.
For example; when a new game comes out, let's take FIFA 15 that comes out soon, people have certain expectations for the game.
Expectations such as, I hope they have the new seasons kits this time, if they don't some people won't be happy.
This could lead to complaints to the company, complaints on social media, maybe even coverage on the news if enough people get in an uproar about a game.

Leveling:

 

Gaming can become quite addictive, the urge to get to the next level can become obsessive. 
The want, or need, to get to the next level can be so addictive people will give up everyday needs so they can carry on gaming.
Things like sleeping and eating may become secondary when trying to meet the next level on a game. This also goes back to competitive gaming and high scores. The urge to be better than your friends, or strangers, is becoming an obsession within today's society. The impact it will have could potentially be a much more competitive world in which we live.

To Conclude: Gaming has the chance to impact society and our everyday lives in a variety f different ways. From competitive teenagers to smarter kids, today's society can be changed for the better, or worse.