Help with a survey for a School project on Video Games

[thespyisdead]

In what ways does gaming affect your day-to-day life?

in no noticeable way actually(but maybe i do spend a tad bit more on them than i should)

How do you think gaming fits into society?

depend on the context, and how sociable you as a person are

In what ways do you think gaming can be used to make progress in other fields?

military simulations(plane, battlefield), military ops(such as unmanned vehicles), possible operation simulations

What is your opinion on Violence in Videogames?

LET THERE BE VIOLENCE!!!

What is your opinion on ESRB (Entertainment Service Ratings Board) ratings of games?

dunno, since not in US

Do you see gaming as a positive or negative influence on society?

can't really say

In your opinion, are games art?

if the game is multiplayer focused, then no, it's not art, if it is, however, story centered, with beautiful scenery, then yeah, i would consider it art

 

[Kukakkau]

1. Gives something to do in free time, also a good way to have fun and compete with friends

2. Accepted on the most part as an entertainment medium, but still occasionally shunned

3. It could be used to expand on coding methods, techniques for graphical expression, social studies and interactions

4. It is perfectly fine as long as the person playing knows that it in a game and it is not something that should be repeated in real life

5. ESRB ratings are a good idea, just poorly enforced with lax parents blinding buying games for their kids then complaining about the content.

6. Positive, it is a great medium for expressing a story or artform and is a great way to enjoy free time and play games with other like minded people (once you get past the kids and trolls etc)

7. Yes, they are a good way to tell a story and convey a setting. However they do suffer from some constraints that restrict this in a lot of titles.

 

[TheTJackson]

In what ways does gaming affect your day-to-day life?

It's a hobby I enjoy and it gives me something to talk to friends about.

How do you think gaming fits into society?

Gamers are rapidly forming a the main social group; i.e. most of the younger generation is a gamer one way or another, but as a culture, disappointingly isn't fully embraced yet.

In what ways do you think gaming can be used to make progress in other fields?

There's and idea of "gameification"; as a concept it involves taking ideas from gaming like leaderboards and score systems and applying them to everyday tasks. There was a Extra Credits video on it before they left Escapist :/

What is your opinion on Violence in Videogames?

The concerns involving violence in video games, in my opinion, are unfounded as I believe there is no real connection between a kid playing a violent video game and that kid developing violent tendencies later in life. However most gamers know that some games are "rage inducing" which leads to a minor, isolated points of anger.

What is your opinion on ESRB (Entertainment Service Ratings Board) ratings of games?

Coming from Australia we don't have an R18+ rating for games (yet) so I dislike that part of it, but as a whole it's incredibly helpful when buying a game for younger children and the like.

Do you see gaming as a positive or negative influence on society?

Positive most definitely! Gaming has bought together so many people, connects people all over the globe with topics and issues that matter to all kinds of people, hell it even helps kids with school surveys

In your opinion, are games art?

That raises the question of defining Art, but that takes to long to answer but yes Games are a type of art, have you seen games like Journey, Dear Esther and Skyrim and such count as a type of Interactive Art; to be interpreted as the gamer wishes.

 

[Jack and Calumon]

Okay, here we go.
[hr]
In what ways does gaming affect your day-to-day life?

Gaming is my hobby, but it is a main hobby of mine. I love the medium and spend a great deal of my time playing games, catching up on news and experiencing the culture that surrounds it

How do you think gaming fits into society?
Currently, Gaming fits into society, in my opinion as a growing medium that the general public are afraid of, because of the possible destructive consequences that gaming could have due to it's unique ability of interactivity which allows for greater immersion.

In what ways do you think gaming can be used to make progress in other fields?
Gaming so far seems to be used to further the fields of simulation. By being realistic, people utilise gaming the simulate things that could happen. While imperfect right now, we are slowly approaching total realism in games, and could one day have people experience lives with 100% realism ourselves.

I also believe that it can have some psychological benefits, by training people to face difficult obstacles, like tackling fears, or teaching people moral issues by showing them consequences for their actions.

What is your opinion on Violence in Videogames?
No worse than the violence one can find in other media, such as films. Currently, games are in the same era as movies were in the 80s, where we're trying to find an artistic voice, but people won't take that seriously with all the gung-ho violent action games that currently swamp the market. While violence is an issue in games when it's over done, it is no worse than when a film over does it's violence. Games seem to take the focus on this issue though, due to a belief that games are for children.

What is your opinion on ESRB (Entertainment Service Ratings Board) ratings of games?
Something that is underappreciated and not looked at enough. It does it's job, rating games and offering advice to people whether or not it is appropriate, but the media doesn't seem to notice ESRB at all, and instead tends to believe that gaming is unregulated.

I also believe that ESRB could be better implemented. E for 3+, T for 13+ and M for 17+ is not a very wide spectrum (I'm not putting on AO which is 21+ as people refuse to have games published under such a label). The BBFC, by contrast has U, where anyone can play, PG, where parents should take note if children buy such a game as some themes are questionable, but not too bad, 12, where no-one may buy it if they under 12, 15, same as before but with 15, and 18, again, no-one can buy it under 18. The spectrum is more wider covering and can offer a much more diverse set of ratings for people.

Do you see gaming as a positive or negative influence on society?
Positive. Gaming has the power to teach people new things and lets them understand topics that they would normally choose to ignore. Games can teach us, raise issues and bring further ideas the film could not, but only if we stop being so afraid of it and begin to take gaming seriously when it wants to be taken seriously.

In your opinion, are games art?
Gaming is an art form, but not all games are art. I would not call Call of Duty art, nor would I call Duke Nukem art or would I call sport games art. They might all still be enjoyable, but I would not call them art. I would argue that Bioshock, Deus Ex, Journey and Flower are art as they explore themes and provide experiences unique to them.

This is not an opinion I reserve just for games, I reserve it for all mediums. Not all films are art, like the Transformers and American pie films are not art, but I would argue that Se7en is. I would say that not all music is art, like Tiny Temper's and Chris Brown's music is not, but Beethoven's 9th is, but to give a less pretentious example, Daft Punk's music is art.
[hr]
There, that about covers it. Hope I helped!

Calumon: I'm sure people really care about what we say!

 

[Zhadramekel]

1.) I just game as a past time but I like looking into the background stories and trying to fully understand the mechanics of the game so I can play it to its best
2.) In society as a whole, not that much. But common interest in specific games or genres can create friendships, points of conversation and stuff like that
3.) Gaming mechanics could probably be used to create simulations for real life simulations that are too dangerous, expensive or impractical to try out in reality.
4.) I think violence and videogames do fit together but I think it's more due to the personality of the player than the influence of the game.
5.) Consumers should probably pay more attention to it. There might be less negative influence from video games (not that i really believe that happens) if kids stuck to the games made for their age group
6.) Both, but primarily positive. Sure in times gone by video games could shut people off from society but manufacturers have combined video games and consoles with social networking in more recent years and as I said before, gaming interests can be a way or forming friendships or conversations. If you're so inclined, gaming can even form the basis of your education.
7.) See that depends on whether 'games as art' refers to games being artistically designed or games as a form of art. Games like Okami certainly fit into the former definition. As for the latter, that comes down to an individuals opinion on what games they enjoy and what games they don't.


Hope this helps you out.

 

[OneBrokePony]

I hope some of this is helpful

In what ways does gaming affect your day-to-day life?

I'd say far less than it used to, although probably it affects me in ways I don't realize because they aren't obvious. Gaming culture probably affects me now more than games themselves. I enjoy things like Unskippable and Zero Punctuation more or less on their own without playing almost any of the games they feature. I kinda do that with movies too, come to think of it.

How do you think gaming fits into society?

It's got a wider demographic than before and a larger percentage of the population play games than before. I imagine it's going to be as thoroughly fractured as other media though, and likely already is, because of the wide variety of experiences. I'm sure you can find people now who would all consider themselves gamers, but you could probably organize them by which titles they play into a Venn diagram with very little overlap. You can do that with music, books, TV, movies, pretty much any entertainment option. I think games still get more or a sneering disregard from parts of society than the other media do at this point though.

In what ways do you think gaming can be used to make progress in other fields?

Other people have mentioned the Extra Credits ep on gamification, and since pretty much everything I know on the subject is from that ep, I think I have to steer you there too.

What is your opinion on Violence in Videogames?

I think it's silly that video games get singled out for it. All forms of entertainment have depictions of violence. Not that the others haven't been focused on before, but the number of people focused on the others seems to have dwindled while video games still have a league of opposition from ban-happy politicians. Otherwise, it's a matter of personal taste, and I'm not interested in playing the more graphic or realistically violent games. You can play what you want though.
Anyway, most games have at least a small element of violence if you think about it. Try this: A game where the player is expected to make a woodland creature hurl himself at a vehicle with the goal of making said vehicle explode with the driver still inside. This happens repeatedly in the game, often at the ends of levels.

Answer: Sonic the Hedgehog

What is your opinion on ESRB (Entertainment Service Ratings Board) ratings of games?

A useful enough guideline. It probably needs to update its parameters for the ratings a bit and likely will be expected to provide both more data and more clarity on why things get the ratings they do. Ultimately, people ought to know that all of it is rated by panels of other people and isn't objective. Parents of small kids know what they do and don't want their kids to see, and the ESRB helps make that a bit easier. The descriptors are probably more useful than the EC/E/T/M/A blocks on the front though.

Do you see gaming as a positive or negative influence on society?

I'm not sure that's the question anymore. I suppose it depends on what you do with it.

In your opinion, are games art?

Yes. At least the things that go into them are. Music, character and landscape design, aesthetics, narrative writing, voice acting, etc.

 

[Joseph Harrison]

In what ways does gaming affect your day-to-day life?
Basically, I play video games near everyday for a few hours a day. Its just something I do for fun I guess.

How do you think gaming fits into society?
I think that it is just another medium like Movies, books and TV. I do believe it has the capacity to be an art form like paintings and stuff but right now I think majority of gaming is just for entertainment.

In what ways do you think gaming can be used to make progress in other fields?
It can provide training for other fields like the Airforce and some Driver's Ed places use simulators. I also heard that it can be used to treat PTSD but I dunno.

What is your opinion on Violence in Videogames?
It's there as it is in anything. Deal with It.

What is your opinion on ESRB (Entertainment Service Ratings Board) ratings of games?
I heard that the method of rating is really contrived and weird so that it actually doesn't make any sense but I'm a little ignorant on that topic.

Do you see gaming as a positive or negative influence on society?
Positive because it can be used to educate people and let people take out their anger on virtual people not in real life. It also helps people learn about teamwork and stuff like that.

In your opinion, are games art?
Yes

 

[swolf]

Well, it's that time of year again: In English class, our teacher assigned us to do research papers on a subject of our choosing. This can be any subject you can get stuff for. I chose to do my paper on how Video Games affect culture. The thing is, I need to do a survey. And one of the demographics I wanted to go after were, gamers, of course! So, Escapists, I humbly request that you help a guy who left a really important part of a project to the last minute, and take some time to answer these questions for me. No information other than your answers will be shared. Thank you in advance.

In what ways does gaming affect your day-to-day life? As a a hobby/past time. Nothing more than.

How do you think gaming fits into society? Well, I'd like to point out reports that violent crimes have decreased as the popularity of gaming has increased.

In what ways do you think gaming can be used to make progress in other fields? Well, simulations are the first thing that come to mind. Why have somebody learn "on the fly" in a dangerous scenario (automobile driving including cars, aircraft, etc as well s surgery, vein puncturing, etc,

What is your opinion on Violence in Videogames? I think that it should not be viewed any differently as violence in any other medium (movies for example). Simply because it involves interaction doesn't mean that it is "worse" (in my opinion). Some people may be against it because of a misunderstanding of the field, thinking that it is simply for children who should not view such material. I think parents should do more research before simply buying things for their kids. Also, "it may not be for kids but they will want it/try to get it anyway)...well, that logic can be put against many other forms of adult media such as movies, books, etc. Parents should supervise their kids, research, and use their own judgement.

What is your opinion on ESRB (Entertainment Service Ratings Board) ratings of games? I support them. They classify the various games in to an (approximate) age appropriate rating which is a good general guideline for conusmers to understand the content of the product they are purchasing as well as list the most "offending" parts.

Do you see gaming as a positive or negative influence on society? I think that it, in general, is neutral. Just as any other form of free expression, it can be used to express ideas which may be beneficial or damaging to society.

In your opinion, are games art? I believe that some but not all are. This is the same as any other form of expression. For example, a speech may be artistic or benign. It simply depends on the content, style, and other factors involved.

Answers inserted for convenience.