A brief introduction to Video Games, including their history, addiction, and features, good and bad.

By: Megan

Video Games

The history of video games, and console history.

Video Game History

Timeline Part 11958 - creation of "Ping pong" tennis on an oscilloscope screen by William Higinbotham at Brookhaven National Laboratory.

1961 - development of Spacewar on a PDP-1 at MIT for the Science Open House.

1972 - the first commercially available home videogame for TV was launched, called Odyssey - complex, with many electronic components, and very expensive.

1972 - Nolan Bushnell forms Atari to develop games, and produces Pong, a simple tennis game for arcades.

1974 - Atari produce a home version of Pong.

1974 - Nintendo, a Japanese toy manufacturer produce an electronic version of the Japanese game "Go".

Timeline Part 21980 - Pacman is released in Japan, to be played on a micro home computer.

1983 - Nintendo release their first computer, and Mario is released at the same time.

1989 - First hand held machine from Nintendo, called "Game Boy". Tetris is produced for the Game Boy in Russia.

1989 - Sega releases the Sega Genesis

1991 - Sonic is produced by Sega in response to Nintendo's Mario

1994 - Sony releases the PlayStation in Japan

1996 - Nintendo releases the Nintendo 64

2001 - Playstation 2 is released

2001 - In November, Microsoft enters the console market with the Xbox. Halo is released at launch, boosting sales

Timeline Part 3

2005 - In November, Microsoft releases the Xbox 360

2006 - In April, Nintendo releases the Wii

2006 - In November, Sony releases the Playstation 3

2011 - In March of 2011, Nintendo releases the Nintendo DSI

Sony officially revealed the PlayStation 3 to the

public on May 16, 2005. Two hardware

arrangements were also announced for the

console: a 20 GB model and a 60 GB model, priced

at $499 and $599, respectively. On September 6,

2006, Sony publicized that the PAL region

PlayStation 3 launch would be delayed until March

2007, due to a shortage of materials used in the

Blu-ray drive. Following assumption that a 'slim'

model was in the pipeline Sony officially

broadcasted the PS3 CECH-2000 model on August

18, 2009 at the Sony Gamescom press conference.

Ps3

A majority of the effects of video games, good and bad, as well as addiction.

Video Game Effects

Positive Negative

Low-self Esteem

Obesity

Lack of Social Skills

Inefficiency

Addiction

Laziness

Poor Athletic Skills

Bad Influence from Violence and Mature Content in Games

In Many Games Children are Rewarded for Violence and Illegal Actions

Predator Interactions and Foul Language

Faceless Peers

Interactive Games Help Others Learn

Develops Problem-solving Skills

Develops Quick Decision Skills

Develops Analytic Thinking Skills

Effects of Video Games

Forty-one percent of people who play online video games admitted that they played computer games as an escape from the real world.

The average hours a week for girls 10-18 is 9 hours.

The average hours a week for boys 10-18 is 13 and a half hours.

Video game addiction is associated with a strong desire to seek new sensations and experiences, a favorable view of one’s intelligence, and a negative view of the gamer’s ability and competence in relationships.

Students addicted to video games have lower academic grades than their non-addicted peers.

Males are more prone to video game addiction than females. Boys tend to enjoy violent or aggressive games and girls generally prefer puzzle games and platformers.

The most recommended and most common treatment orientation for video game addiction is cognitive behavioral therapy.

Video Game Addiction

Lowered interest in school achievement

Feelings of anger and frustration when not allowed access to the video game

Feeling depressed or anxious when not playing the game (especially for a prolonged period)

Thinking about the next gaming session when not online

Dreaming about the game

Experiencing calmness, peacefulness, or euphoria while playing (especially if these emotions are not experienced otherwise)

Loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities

Video Game Addiction Signs

Brandon CrispBrandon Emmett Crisp (January 18,

1993 – c. October 13, 2008) was a

teenage boy who disappeared on October

13, 2008, when he ran away from his

home in Barrie, Ontario, Canada after his

parents took away his Xbox 360 due to

failing grades and excessive play of Call of

Duty 4: Modern Warfare. He was last seen

alive on a nearby trail.

His body was found at the base of a tree in

an overgrown area on November 5, a few

kilometres away, by a party of hunters. An

autopsy determined that he likely died of

injuries due to a fall from a tree.

A guide to learning about the violence in Video Games.

Violent Video Games

Young children have difficulty distinguishing reality from fantasy, which makes them more defenseless to the effects of media violence. They may become more aggressive and dreadful if they are exposed to high levels of violence in video games.

Children have easy contact to violent computer and video games. A 2008 study by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission found that 20% of children under 17 surveyed had bought at least one M-rated game. A study by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that three-quarters of boys in grades seven to twelve had played Grand Theft Auto, an M-rated game.

Violence in Video Games

Some Militaries have already started recruiting video gamers for training, and the U.S. Military has also created a game to attract more teenagers.

For the full article: http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-18563_162-609489.html

Do Army pilots train using video games? Yes, as do other soldiers. The U.S. military released its own video game, "America's Army," as a (very successful) recruiting tool in 2002, but it's now used to train soldiers, too. In fact, the Army created its own video game development unit in 2008, with a $50 million, five-year budget for "games for training" alone.

Are these video games making pilots and other soldiers more violent? That's debatable. Several studies have linked violent video games to increased levels of aggression in kids, but "none has definitely proved that they cause it," says Christopher Beam in Slate. On the other hand, "military training is fundamentally an exercise in overcoming a fear of killing another human," says New York Times reporter Benedict Carey, paraphrasing Army psychologists, and video games are a prime tool to desensitize soldiers.

Video Games and the Military

In several video games where women are used they are dressed inappropriately, and are used in sexualization as well.

In many games like the GTA series, you can beat up women, which many people generalize as promoting violence to women.

In numerous games they promote sexualization by out-of-character appeal like wearing high heels into combat.

Similarly, Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball has been criticized as being more about eye candy than it is about the sport of volleyball, having been created purely for the purpose of displaying women's breasts.

The 1984 game Custer's Revenge was first noted for comprising elements of rape and some Native American groups and the National Organization for Women have criticized this as well as alleged racism.

Women In Video Games