Training kids to kill
The subject of game-related violence returned last week. In the UK, Channel 4 showed a Dispatches documentary, which elicited a formal complaint from the European Leisure Software Publishers Association. Elspa called it "unfair, biased, and extremely irresponsible".
In the US, the ABC News 20/20 programme ran a piece about retired lieutenant colonel David Grossman, a former West Point psychology professor, who is complaining about what he calls "military-quality murder simulators" (see abcnews.go.com/onair/2020) being sold to children. Grossman says the marines use the game Doom to desensitise recruits, though according to ABC, the marines say they don't: "They say they used a version of the software to teach eye/hand coordination and teamwork."
The 20/20 programme was followed by an interesting chat session. Grossman pointed out that the games industry rates some of its games as the equivalent of pornographic movies - not suitable for children - but still markets them through magazines read by children. He also pointed out that his book, Stop Teaching Our Kids To Kill, "covers television, movies and videogame violence. Video games are the least of the three, and the last of the three that we cover".
No doubt Channel 4 will now make a documentary to show how television is responsible for making children violent. It could use the hundreds of pounds it will save by not making any more programmes that promote video games, eg Bits.
Army games
Game developer Novalogic has announced that its Delta Force 2 Special Forces game will be used to train recruits by the US Army. Novalogic Systems will work with the army's Training and Doctrine Command Analysis Centre (TRAC) in California to adapt the game to simulate its Land Warrior system, which aims to integrate weapons and modern electronics. Land Warrior includes a global positioning system (GPS) satellite receiver, a wearable computer and a helmet-mounted LCD screen.
Skin searches
The nominations are in for glitziest event of the year: The Simmys. Electronic Arts is sponsoring a competition for family albums featuring snapshots of everyday life in Maxis's little computer people game, The Sims. There are sections for comedy, romance, action/adventure, fantasy/sci-fi, horror/tragedy and mystery. There are, almost inevitably, Jedi, Trekker and Addams Family families among the finalists www.thesims.com/us/events/contests/). There's a growing market for "skins" that provide Sims players with new-look characters. Simz Online (http://simz.gamenation.com/) has a huge selection that includes Neo, Trinity and Morpheus from The Matrix, Xena, Darth Vader, several South Park characters and at least three attempts at Britney Spears.
Seneca's Wicked Downloads is also worth a visit for the horror section, which includes the Addams Family, Freddy Krueger, and Michael Jackson. For older if not more mature players, this site also offers Vampirella, Dr Frankensim's Wonder Woman, a blur removal patch (the game is censored) and some nude-skins replacements.
