Only playing?

Only playing, The ethics of digital games

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Part 1- Case studies -SAW

Publisher: Konami
Developer: Zombie Inc.
Story creators: James Wan, Leigh Whannell
Media: Playstation3, Xbox360, Pc
Date of released: October 2009

Story: The story is similar to the film series, which is talking about the Jisaw Killer who designing many traps which harm people’s life. He pushes people into an insane situation, they got to give up something or destroy their body in order to get out from the traps. However, the original thought of Jisaw killer is to let people know they should appreciate their life. The one who involve in Jisaw’s game mostly have been saw Jisaw before, they have been targeted by Jisaw mainly because they have done something that Jisaw thought they were wasting their life.

How to play: Saw is primarily a third-person survival horror game with action elements. The player controls David Tapp, a former detective trapped in the Jigsaw Killer's asylum filled with traps. The primary goal of the game is to traverse the asylum and solve traps in order to escape. Tapp has several abilities in the game to fulfill his objectives such as searching things like toilets or corpses to find such things as weapons, health, or clues. Other items, such as case files and cassette tapes found hidden around the asylum provide additional information about the asylum's past and background on certain victims.
The game's combat system allows the character to block, counter atteck, and perform attacks to fend off enemies that are encountered. tapp is also able to curb-stomp. There are over eighteen different weapons, varying from lead pipes to mop handles, available to players throughout the game. In addition to standard weapons, Tapp may recover firearms or explosives along the way. Certain weapons may also be used for other purposes such as cutting open a body to search it, or breaking down a molding wall to reveal hidden paths. Weapons in the game deplete upon use in real time until they are rendered unusable. Also, as a way to avoid combat, Tapp has the ability to rearm or place certain traps after activating them. This includes electrifying water puddles or placing explosive mines created on one of "Jigsaw's Worktables". Tapp's health bar, once depleted, can only be restored by bandages or hypodermic needles which can be stored in an inventory, along with other items. When losing health, the environment slowly fades to black-and-white until Tapp heals himself or dies.


Ethics?
-> There is one scene that need the player to cut somebody to take off the key from the ones body. The scene is bloody, horror and uncomfortable.
->psychological influence to players?
->wrong ideas and message brought to players?

There are really many people wasting their life, these are somethings that is not appreciate. Comparing to those people in the hosiptal, those who get cancer, are really try hard to survive; the starting point which want to teach people treasure life is really quite good. However, is it right to teach people treasure their life by harming their life using cruel methods?

-> The whole stroy should be critised
-> No one can be the one who judge the value of life
Part 2-Video




Part 3- Discussion

(1) The Pros and Cons of SAW (video game) for individual and society

Pros
->For individual, through playing this game, the player can get the message of the game, that is appreciation and treasure the life.
->The game comparing with the film, there are more new traps and ways to escape, this can stimulate the players' thinking and interesting.
->New traps and improved quality of scene, thus the artistic value is increased.

Cons
->The scene is too bloody, which lead to anxious, uncomfortable
->The story and the scene is too violence
->This may affect the thinking of the player [use violence ways to reach some targets]
->encourage the imitate the plot inside.
->The setting is so real, that may lead players to a confusion

(2) Is this game can encourage aggressive values and anti- society actions in real world? Do you agree?

Yes, this game is totally encourage aggressive values and anti society action. It is because Jisaw killer start to kill people by tools due to he can see a trend and unhealthy atmosphere forming in the society, that is people is not respecting their life and others' life, however there are still many people who want to survive. So Jisaw choose to use violence to recall the respect of life from people. I think that the concept from the originality is quite good, that is try to do something to change the bad atmosphere in the society, however the ways he used must be wrong, is it never right to harm others bodies, so this video game is try to encourage to change the world by different methods, even violence. Besides, it also encourage anti society actions. In the game, the people who being caught were done something wrong but common things, they can quite represent the society, so killing them is one of the anti society action.

I am not agree that the game encourage the aggressive values. It is because the players are coming from different age groups and teenagers are a very large group. Even the game is under the 18 yr old limit, teenagers can also download the game from the internet. People with older age may still can determine what is right and what is wrong, the younger age group may not able to determine right and wrong, their mind are easily affect by these games.

(3) Should governments have the right to ban SAW? Why or why not?

I think the government can do only little to help, This is because
->These games do have market
->Government have no right to ban people's right to love the games
->only set the 18 yr old limit, forbidden those under 18 yr old teenager buy the games.
->Too much things are related, eg. film.

suggestion:
->parents should pay more attention and provide instruction to childre
->school also add this topics into ethics education
->Put warning letters on the packing of the game
->cencorship system.

References:
(1) http://www.officialsaw.com/
(2) http://xbox360.ign.com/objects/142/14231742.html
(3) http://www.konami.com/games/saw/
(4) Ellison, Blake (July 31, 2009). "Preview: Saw: The Video Game hits the right buttons". Geek.com. http://www.geek.com/articles/games/preview-saw-the-video-game-hits-the-right-buttons-20090731/. Retrieved January 7, 2010.
(5) "Saw SDCC 09: Kindest Cut Gameplay [HD"]. Machine Production. July 26, 2009. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRDn86CJYNc. Retrieved August 21, 2009.