Doing a survey for a research paper over violence in video games.

[AlexanderPeregrine]

How long have you been playing video games?

I got an NES for my sixth birthday party on or around January 16th, 1989. I had played some games at my cousins' house before then (Wheel of Fortune sticks out in particular).

How many hours do you play video games a week?

I spend more time reading and writing than playing video games these days, but I'd still say about 8-12.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?

Not really. I'm fine with it, but I mostly enjoy games with an open-world exploration element, good aesthetic design, and a sense of personal growth.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

Never. The worst I get would be swearing at a game because it's broken in its design and difficult as a result. If anything, a game being really violent and disrespectful towards the player just amuses me.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

No. If anything, I find games like Duke Nukem 3D and Soldier of Fortune to make me feel calm and content.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?

I was nine and a half when Mortal Kombat first hit arcades.

 

[Amaria]

How long have you been playing video games?
A good portion of my life; since I'm rather young, that's only about 14 years, to be honest.

How many hours do you play video games a week?
Anywhere from 5 to 20. College life means it changes a bit based off of my workload.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?
A good portion of them, yes. I tend to choose ones that give me a choice to be violent or non-violent, though; I dislike having a certain play-style forced on me.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.
Two. If I get frustrated with something, I'll stop playing it and play something more relaxing. I'm not really a violent person, anyway. Whenever I try to play evil it all just kind of fails horribly and I stop about three hours in, feeling like a terrible person.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.
Violent video games? No, not really. I know it's fake, seeing digital blood doesn't make me any less queasy when I see it in real life. I flinch when it looks or sounds like someone gets hurt in front of me, and ask if they're okay, even after watching some guy get eviscerated in front of me in a video game. It's not real.

Some of the players on multiplayer? Ooooh yes. I got a strange mixture of desensitized to and cautious about sexual harassment from other players. I dealt with idiots that treated me like shit. I had to learn to evade the answer to the question, "Are you really a girl?" because if I was honest, I would inevitably face sexual harassment. I got sick of listening to idiots spout out cursewords every five seconds because it made them sound tough. My player character was literally sexually assaulted when I was nine. For the answer there, he had some kind of hack that let him cause an animation of kissing - I couldn't refuse. My character was female. His was male.

I was a thousand times more frustrated with the people playing the game than the game itself. It's why I tend to play single player games now, or only with close friends. Video games aren't the problem, it's some of the idiots (And not everyone playing them, either; I've met some wonderful, amazing people) behind the keyboards/controllers.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
Four or five. My first game was Oregon Trail, if you're wondering.

On a separate note, I've noticed my reflexes are better than average; more so with dodging when surprised than counterattacking. I only really noticed this when driving, and I dodged a car that pulled in front of me pretty easily without even thinking until AFTER. Since I'm not really sports inclined, or really athletic in the slightest, I'm pretty sure video games are to blame, for that one. I'm rather grateful.

 

[Paflick]

Alright, I'll play along.

How long have you been playing video games?

Oh, jeez... Uhm, pretty much all my life. I remember sitting on my dad's lap watching him play Neverwinter Nights, and I pretty much just picked up from there. So, say, sixteen years, give or take.

How many hours do you play video games a week?

Well, between school and sleep... Probably about seventy hours or so. More time on the weekends, of course, than the weekdays.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language?

Yep. It ranges, but most of the games I play contain at least a bit.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

Four, maybe five. I can get aggravated rather easily, but it takes quite a bit to get me to yell out in frustration. I've never broken anything due to stress from a game, though.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

Absolutely not. I'm able to differentiate the video game from real life, and know that one is not equal to the other.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?

Like I said above, I've been doing so for about sixteen years, since I was but a wee lad, so... Two, three? Nothing terribly serious at that point, obviously, but that was about when I started.

 

[-Ezio-]

How long have you been playing video games?

18 Years


How many hours do you play video games a week?

20 average i guess.


Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?

Yes


From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

3. Sometimes get Frustrated (usually at myself rather than anything else). never violent or yelling though.


Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

No. real world violence still appalls me and i personally am a pacifist.


How old were you when you first started playing video games?
5-6

 

[Spartan448]

How long have you been playing video games?
20 years

How many hours do you play video games a week?
4 or 5

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?
Yes

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.
Depends on the game. The highest would be any Pokemon game (My friends and I get pretty hardcore)

Do you feel that you have been affected by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.
No

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
5

I actually just helped my cousin with a very similar research paper, and when I was in school, I did the same topic myself, so good luck to you!

 

[wetfart]

How long have you been playing video games?
I would say about 25 years.

How many hours do you play video games a week?
About 10 hours a week.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?
Yes.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.
I would say maybe a 2 or 3. I don't get that bothered usually but I tend not to play PvP.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.
No.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
Probably about 4. Go go Atari 2600!

 

[zerragonoss]

How long have you been playing video games?

17ish years

How many hours do you play video games a week?

15-25

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?

Yes vast majority

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

3

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

No but personally desensitization to violence is an overall positive as true desensitization removes the anger to violence trigger as well as the violence to disgust trigger. meaning no more committing violence for emotional reason as well as no longer refraining from it for the same which should greatly reduce violence in modern society as their is almost never a rational basis for it.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
3-5

 

[thejackyl]

How long have you been playing video games?

For about 22 years... Wow I feel old after typing that.

How many hours do you play video games a week?

It used to be upwards 40-50, but recently I've been doing a lot less gaming. I would say about 20-25 Hours a week, now.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?

Yes. I don't know many games that DON'T feature violence. Some are cartoony and the aimed-at-kids kind of violence, but violence is in just about every game out there. It's just the degree that varies.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

5 or 6? I tend to yell at games when they become unfair. Computer opponents endless combo-ing you on level 1, on easy. Psychic insta-headshots from across the map. Usually it starts with the bullshit reasons, I get mad, I start playing worse and I get angrier and eventually just turn the game off.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

Not really. Any anger I have that is caused by a video game starts to dissolve pretty much as soon as I put the controller down.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?

3 or 4, I'm not sure. I just know my first game platform was the Magnavox Odyssey, and that I was old enough to talk.

 

[MrFlipFlops]

How long have you been playing video games?
Somewhere around 12 years, give or take a couple for long breaks where I had no platform to play on/no games to play.

How many hours do you play video games a week?
Can go as far over 24 during marathons when I'm on vacation, but on a regular work week it's somewhere around 5-8 hours, depending on how busy I am.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?
Yes.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.
Never gone above 3. I usually growl and curse a bit when very frustrated with a game (due to difficulty or just poor quality), but never anything more.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.
No, I don't.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
I think I was around 4 or 5 if not younger. I remember playing kiddy point-and-click adventures while sitting on my mum's lap. I think I may have still been in kindergarten.

 

[TheBlueShotgun0]

How long have you been playing video games?
Since middle school, so about 7 years.

How many hours do you play video games a week?
On average, about 6 hours. I don't have much free time, especially not a around this time of year.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?
Yes, in some form. It's not always direct, but it's almost always there.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.
5, I guess. I sometimes get frustrated playing online games (like Call of Duty) but it's more because of my horrible internet connection than the game itself.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.
No. Despite what some people would have you believe, I've never read a book about the Holocaust and said "Meh, already saw it in CoD." In fact, I'd say games have increased my sensitivity to violence, but now I'm on a tangent.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
'Bout 10-11 years old

 

[Silverhawk65]

Wow, didn't expect this much. Thanks guys, this is really going to help. ^_^

 

[Zoomy]

How long have you been playing video games?

How old were you when you first started playing video games?

Pretty much since Xmas when I was five years old. I'm 24 in April.

How many hours do you play video games a week?

Varies wildly, currently not playing that much. I'd guess an average of 5-10 hours a week.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?

Yes, although it's a slim majority.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

A tepid 4, which is shouting at games that are badly designed.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

No. I'm actually quite the pacifist.

 

[Zombie Sodomy]

I'll answer you survey, but depending on the level(high school, college, etc.) of this paper you may want to get information from more than just Escapist members. I highly doubt we are very representative of the population as a whole. Even if you are focusing on a specific part of the population, unless it's so specific you're only talking about the Escapist, you need more randomness to be accurate. Of course if this is High School it doesn't really matter.

1) I have been playing games about 9 or ten years.
2) 47 hours a week. I'm in college and that actually leaves me twice as long as recommended for studying. I was kind of shocked when I did the math.
3) Not much strong language, but all except 2 have violence in them. That's about 10%
4) 3. And that's mostly getting annoyed by a design flaw.
5) I am a pacifist with a strong aversion to all forms of non-simulated conflict so I wouldn't say video games have made me violent or desensitized.

 

[Grogman]

How long have you been playing video games

As long as I can remember, so probably 15 years (I'm 18)

How many hours do you play video games a week?

It varies drastically depending on what games I'm into or if it's the school holidays, but at the moment probably ~20-25 (or ~5-10 if you don't count Rocksmith; I consider it more of an aid for learning guitar/bass than a game)

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?

Nope, almost not at all currently (unless you count Pokemon, and I occasionally play TF2 or Dawn of War if I feel like it), although a lot of games I have played previously have definitely been quite violent

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

3, if I start getting frustrated I usually just stop

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

Not even slightly, I'd say the opposite were true even (although it's incredibly unlikely it's related to video games)

How old were you when you first started playing video games?

Probably around 3

 

[neonsword13-ops]

1. How long have you been playing video games?

12, going on 13 years now.

2. How many hours do you play video games a week?

20-30 on a good week when nothing is happening. Really depends on what the game is, too. If I'm feeling in the DotA mode, I will usually put in about 30-35 hours a week.

3. Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?

*Goes through game collection*

Yes, they do.

4. From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling, damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.

Not very often do I get upset at a game. But if we're being specific and talking any Call of Duty ever, make that a 4/10. That game's multiplayer and the players that inhabit it really grind my gears.

No other game has ever made as agitated.

5. Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.

No, not that I know of.

6. How old were you when you first started playing video games?

Four. I got my Nintendo 64 at that age.

---

Hope this helps.

 

[TWEWYFan]

How long have you been playing video games?
Since I was around 8

How many hours do you play video games a week?
Depends on the game, particularly if it's new. Anyway from 15-40.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?
Yes

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.
1-3. At worst I'll get frustrated and stop playing.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.
Not particularly. When I took martial arts I couldn't spar because I didn't like fighting people.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
Around 8

 

[puff ball]

im always willing to partake in a survey to help my fellow escapee, here goes.

1 id say almost 20 years now or as long as ive been physically able to play one of my earliest memories is playing duckhunt at a friends house

2thats a toughie since im a terrible judge of time but close to three hours a day 7 days a week 21 hours around there

3 yes the majority do have violence in some way but not all of mine do

4 id say about a 3 its extremely rare for me to so much as talk aloud to a game let alone yell at it and i can think of no such examples of me doing such.

5 nope im still very much affected by violence in the few small incidences where they cross me,and am an all around timid person.

6 i know for a fact i was playing in preschool so i will say 4

hope ive been of help and good luck with your project, now time to read what the others have said i didn't want it to influence my answers.

 

[Silverhawk65]

Thanks guys, really enjoyed reading these. This is really going to help me write this paper.

I'll answer you survey, but depending on the level(high school, college, etc.) of this paper you may want to get information from more than just Escapist members. I highly doubt we are very representative of the population as a whole. Even if you are focusing on a specific part of the population, unless it's so specific you're only talking about the Escapist, you need more randomness to be accurate. Of course if this is High School it doesn't really matter.

I thought about this, but based on the results thus far it seems that everyone here has a good variety of answers. My teacher is expecting way too much from us and enjoys assigning new assignments when we are in the middle of a paper. It is a college paper, but it may not be my absolute best based on her outrageous time constraints.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

How long have you been playing video games?
around 20 years

How many hours do you play video games a week?
Not that often now, work is taking over my life. around 5 to 10 hours normally but that changes depending on how tired I am.

Do the majority of your games feature some form of violence(extreme violence, gore, or strong language)?
I'm not sure, my game library covers quite a few genres. I'll say less than half.

From a scale of 1-10, 10 being the highest, how aggressive do you get playing violent video games? This can be yelling,damaging items, or as simple as getting frustrated.
4, I'll rage-quit that particular game before I get too pissed and play/do something else.

Do you feel that you have been affect by violent video games in a negative way? I.e, desensitization, higher aggression, or any other ways.
No.

How old were you when you first started playing video games?
If you count cutesy edutainment games around 3 years old, if you count actual games (flight sims, Lemmings etc)... Since I was 3 years old.

 

[ENCC1701c]

REMOVED /10char