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FP shooters are good for you

By Star Adder on October 21, 2008 11:14:14 AM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

Star Adder

Join Date 04/2006
+6

I guess we all know that politicians and some parents think that FP shooters make players aggressive and dumb them down, and that this assumption is utterly stupid.

Quite the opposite is the case.

Two days ago I saw a documentary about two professors from a local university running two different tests on a bunch of students and a bunch of hobby, semi-pro and pro FP shooter players.

Test one was one of mental skills like the ones used in assessment centers or for people who want to qualify for a military CO career. It turned out that the hobby players were about equal to the students, and many of the semi-pros and pros even excelled in tests which required long term concentration, quick reflexes, memorizing and spatial abstraction abilities.

 

During test two a player and a student were both put into a FP game situation while their brain activity was monitored.

Both showed little to no emotional stress proving that the shooting and killing did not raise the adrenaline level or produced any other indication for a rise in aggressiveness.

After that they were put in a second simulation which resembled an FP shooter but this time it was one filmed with REAL persons. Both showed a higher level of caution and hesitation when pulling the trigger, which proves that in a real life situation they would not be so quick killing anyone.

 

I am not one to play FPS but, although the chance is slim, I would hope the politicians boasting that FPS are a menace to society and must be banished completely will see reason if they learn of this study, because I'm no fan of excessive regulation or censorship.

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Reply #1
Sarissi
Join Date 02/2007
+4
October 21, 2008 12:11:31 PM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

Interesting points. However, like any game, it depends on whether the player in question is mentally stable or not, at least in terms of potential Psychotic Episodes.

I remember when it was the thing to blame Looney Tunes (Bugs Bunny and Company) for violence and crime. Jeez, kids are a lot smarter than those idiot psychologists give them credit for!

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Reply #2
Annatar11
Join Date 11/2006
+527
October 21, 2008 12:19:17 PM from Sins of a Solar Empire Forums Sins of a Solar Empire Forums

Jeez, kids are a lot smarter than those idiot psychologists give them credit for!

They need to make money and gain their fame somehow

Besides, now it isn't about FPS games anymore, it's GTA/Saint's Row.

Case in point: http://www.gamespot.com/news/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=26636368&om_act=convert&om_clk=morenews&tag=morenews;title;7

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Reply #3
ubernaught
Join Date 03/2008
+8
October 21, 2008 5:20:48 PM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

politicians boasting that FPS are a menace to society

All scandal pays homage to the law.

J. Baudrillard

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Reply #4
Feud
Join Date 02/2006
+2
October 24, 2008 1:50:15 AM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

The big question here is whether playing FPS games is beneficial to those skills, or if those with those skills are naturally more attracted to a FPS.

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Reply #5
Moosetek13
Join Date 03/2006
+48
October 24, 2008 3:15:36 AM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

I guess we all know that politicians and some parents think that FP shooters make players aggressive and dumb them down, and that this assumption is utterly stupid.

Quite the opposite is the case.

So you are saying that the people that think this thing, also think that their own assumption is utterly stupid; and that their first assumption was correct and not stupid in the first place? Because that is what your quoted statement actually says.

That was your first mistake. (Perhaps you should pay more attention to punctuation and sentence structure?)

 

The second is:

Where is the control group, and what did the results for the same tests show for them?

 

Are the students the control group? Then you would have to show that the class of students (or at least the student in question) have never played FPS games. Was this the case?

 

And as Sarissi pointed out, those that are mentally impaired might be using these games to simply hone their skills - much as a student pilot uses a flight simulator.

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Reply #6
Sarissi
Join Date 02/2007
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October 24, 2008 11:42:31 PM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

Even experienced pilots have to go into the simulator periodically, in order to maintain certification.

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