[CW: violence/gore]. As the title suggests, is there a left case to be made against ultra-violence in video games? I’m thinking mostly about MK11 and MK1 fatalities, as opposed to less gratuitous and less hyper-realistic violence–in Dark Souls or something. Whenever this topic is brought up, other factors usually take up the oxygen in the room: People might immediately think of family-values conservatives, such as the Media Research Center, who act like wet-blankets towards entertainment. Or we think of nerdy Joe Lieberman, who showed the 1993 Sub-Zero spine fatality to Congress (lol). There was Hillary Clinton who decried the Grand Theft Auto franchise, and the host of rightwing politicians who blamed Doom for the Columbine shooting (clearly as a way to absolve gun legislation from any culpability). So this is what I mean when I say that the conversation on video-game violence has been ceded entirely to these dudes, as opposed to something left spaces can discuss without sounding like squares or censors. This came to mind after I was reading about the video game designer who developed PTSD after working on Mortal Kombat 11. His dreams became excruciatingly violent, and his day-to-day was interacting with coworkers studying medical anatomy and watching videos of slaughtered animals. That can’t be good for anyone. I guess what I’m asking is: should leftists see this as harmless fun, or something problematic? And, will photo-realistic Fatalities exist in the communist future?
Look there’s always
if your sensibilities can’t handle a little fictional carnage. People who work on MK knew what they were getting into. Same in Hollywood. There’s warnings and ratings to satisfy those who can’t take it or don’t want their kids exposed to it. Should there be more aupport warnings in the workforce yes.
I don’t subscribe going to feed into the DOOM is from the devil and causes violence like some Christian Karen. I don’t think art should be limited or controlled. Appropriate warnings sure, but after seening all the culture panic from Dungeons and Dragons board gsmes to video games cauae X to Hairy Potter to the current Queer books turn kids queer if they are in the vacinity I don’t buy it.
What I blame is the constant sucking of material conditions and erosion of social support systems. I blame our policies of it’s ok to genocide and as long as the check clears then who cares. I blame systematic dulling of creativity and enshittification. I blame our so called leaders gaslighting on xenophobia. Blaming minorities for theirr problems.
I watched 2 hours of cable TV whils my parents are glued to Judge Judy. The campaign ads on both-sides sides were disgusting, racist, xenopobic, and fascist.
Libs of Tik Tok driving stochastic terrorism and real shootings and bomb threats and whipping up a moral panic to end people’s jobs for supporting minorities.
That is the stuff from IRL against IRL. Subzero fractured skulls like Sherlock Homes discombobulated isn’t not IRL.