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At the Store: "Reckless Cellphoning"
Posted: Tuesday March 20th, 2007
by
A study conducted by German researchers examing the effect of racing games "featuring realistic driving environments" claims to support the notion that such games ellicit reckless driving behavior in some people that play them. Further details about the study and how the data was compiled can be found by visiting the article sourced below.
Source: Reuters [ more info ]
I'll admit it, when I play Burnout, I do imagine hopping into a car and driving really fast. But, when I actually get in my car, I have no desire to drive at breakneck speeds, ignore traffic signs, or smash in to other drivers. The reason is simple: I'm not stupid. I do not lack the capacity to differentiate between a game world and the real world. In all honesty music that I'm listening to in my car has a more direct effect. It doesn't inspire me to take risks, but if I'm not paying attention my foot can get a little heavy when "The Sickness" comes on. But, for that very reason, I make use of this thing in my car called "cruise control".
I guess my point here is to say that I don't disagree with the study, but there are far more causes than just racing games, most of them more dangerous. The way I see it, it's one more example of video games being scapegoated. I've seen more stupid stuff happen on the road because of cell phones than anything else. And, I get the same feeling from driving movies that I do from driving games. Fortunately, most driving movies suck ass. And getting headaches from the terrible acting drowns out any lingering imagery.
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Today's Pimpage: Brad is wearing a "War Against Work" shirt from Threadless.Com
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Source: Reuters [ more info ]
I'll admit it, when I play Burnout, I do imagine hopping into a car and driving really fast. But, when I actually get in my car, I have no desire to drive at breakneck speeds, ignore traffic signs, or smash in to other drivers. The reason is simple: I'm not stupid. I do not lack the capacity to differentiate between a game world and the real world. In all honesty music that I'm listening to in my car has a more direct effect. It doesn't inspire me to take risks, but if I'm not paying attention my foot can get a little heavy when "The Sickness" comes on. But, for that very reason, I make use of this thing in my car called "cruise control".
I guess my point here is to say that I don't disagree with the study, but there are far more causes than just racing games, most of them more dangerous. The way I see it, it's one more example of video games being scapegoated. I've seen more stupid stuff happen on the road because of cell phones than anything else. And, I get the same feeling from driving movies that I do from driving games. Fortunately, most driving movies suck ass. And getting headaches from the terrible acting drowns out any lingering imagery.
____________________
Today's Pimpage: Brad is wearing a "War Against Work" shirt from Threadless.Com
[ discuss ]
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