Originals

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[Continued] Page 2

And what about us, the video game media? The NRA posed the idea that we condone and “sell” violence to people. While we certainly do review and enjoy games with violence in them, it’s also known that journalists have written hundreds of articles about the nonsensical violence in games like Grand Theft Auto. In addition, several of gaming’s most violent titles have Wiki pages focused on controversies behind the game’s violence. Are we really selling violence? Is a game really worth anything with violence alone? Absolutely not. Bulletstorm, for example, would have been repetitive and raunchy if there wasn’t a thrilling story or engaging gameplay in place.

Lastly, the tone in which LaPierre spoke it was a scared tone. Not worrisome because of this gut-wrenching attack against defenseless children, but worrisome because their “rights” are being shaped. I say shaped, because the 2nd Amendment isn’t going anywhere, but it’s being transformed to fit the world be live in, and rightly so. In recent days, Obama and congress are calling for a ban against assault rifles (the type of weapon Lanza used in the attack) and large magazines, and are even pushing for stricter tests for gun licensing. This scares the NRA, and so in a desperate attempt, they’re trying to turn everything on gaming and other forms of media. Sorry NRA, America’s top scientists and schools (i.e. Harvard) have proved that there’s no “causal link between media violence and real life violence." This man was, sadly, mentally ill and his family did not adequately deal with this fact in any appropriate manner. This was the problem. The only problem.

To end this strongly worded editorial, our hearts here at GameZone continue to reach out to the friends and family in the Sandy Hook community. We don’t write this to take the spotlight away from the atrocity that happened. It was devastating and I’ll never be able to understand how young children could be innocently slaughtered. My goal is that we focus on the real issue behind the attacker and not factors that aren’t to blame. The National Rifle Association may not be able to open their eyes to this fact, but hopefully you all can. We’d love to hear your opinion on this entire fiasco, though. Let us know your thoughts by commenting below.

You can read more into Tate Steinlage’s every day life of college, Sporting KC, and gaming @SteinlageT.

Tags: NRA, gaming, Sandy Hook, GTA, Bulletstorm, Xbox 360, DDR, PS3