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"Action video games" is the fascinating academic-grant-ready rebranding of violent video games, in case anyone is confused what this is talking about. Is there

"Action video games" is the fascinating academic-grant-ready rebranding of violent video games, in case anyone is confused what this is talking about. Is there a stigma associated with violent video games? Of course. No academic institutions are funding developmental psychology research into violent video games the way they fund the study of educational games. This is despite violent video games being way more appealing to children. Beyond psych? More people have inhabited the Office level in Counter-Strike for more combined time than any office building ever built in Manhattan. But you'll never read about video game architecture in an architecture journal, design blog, etc. It's a universal aversion to serious conversations about games just because they involve shooting aliens. Can development psychologists get out of the ghetto of investigating games' impact on violence or attention deficit? Maybe. Studies like the one done in this article are a good step forward. But this study still indicts video games for something, just different video games. The improvement-in-vision studies are on the right track, but they are at this point half a decade old. Surely someone has some fresh ideas. Those game developers haven't read a single page of psychology literature. Yet they have succeeded in massive, non-chemical cognitive behavioral modifications. You'd think someone could make an academic career out of this.

gilgoomesh 11y ago
While the article did mention first (Wolfenstein: The New Order) and third (Grand Theft Auto V) person shooters as "action video games", the term could easily apply to games like Rocket League which – while similarly fast-reflex online multiplayer games – are violence free. The specific description of action video games in the article is: > complex 3D settings, that feature quickly moving targets that pop in and out of view, that necessitate substantial visual processing of the periphery, that include large amounts of clutter and task-irrelevant objects, that require the player to consistently switch between highly focused and highly distributed attention, and that require the player to make rapid, but accurate decisions There is no mention of violence or shooting.
ajuc 11y ago
> Those game developers haven't read a single page of psychology literature How do you know that? I've been on gamedev conference where developers talked about monetization strategies for mobile free to play games, and it was basicaly dark psychology course (was revolting and fascinating at the same time).

gilgoomesh 11y ago

While the article did mention first (Wolfenstein: The New Order) and third (Grand Theft Auto V) person shooters as "action video games", the term could easily apply to games like Rocket League which – while similarly fast-reflex online multiplayer games – are violence free. The specific description of action video games in the article is: > complex 3D settings, that feature quickly moving targets that pop in and out of view, that necessitate substantial visual processing of the periphery, that include large amounts of clutter and task-irrelevant objects, that require the player to consistently switch between highly focused and highly distributed attention, and that require the player to make rapid, but accurate decisions There is no mention of violence or shooting.

ajuc 11y ago

> Those game developers haven't read a single page of psychology literature How do you know that? I've been on gamedev conference where developers talked about monetization strategies for mobile free to play games, and it was basicaly dark psychology course (was revolting and fascinating at the same time).