Video Game Violence and Addiction

Video games have become a prominent part of the society today, with many playing them on a regular basis. Many have become concerned with the effects of constant play, especially with relation to violence and possible addiction. Media has attributed some games to the cause of events such as the Columbine Shooting, and have only been made worse by some who have made a game to replay the incident. There is already a rating system in place set up by the ESRB. Research has been done on both violence and addiction, and some bias has been report in these areas. It has been theorized that there is a strong indication of video games making players more violent or even addicted to the games, with addiction being more easily read. There have been court cases to restrict the sales to minors, but these have failed and ESRB cannot be the only way to prevent children from receiving violent games or becoming addicted. Also, game developers have sometimes not shown the ESRB the entire content of their games, showing flaws in the system. It is difficult to see these affects, but ultimately parents need to become more involved to prevent any negative effects from happening to their children