Do video games influence

Do video games influence some of the mass murderers ?

No

I can't help but think they do. "fulfill your call of duty fantasy".

They teach tactics that no young child would ever be able to learn. I think they play a part

It's not video games, otherwise you'd see similar mass shootings in other countries. It's not a lack of God, otherwise you'd see similar mass shootings in other countries that are much less religious. It's ideology, encouragement, and easy access to guns.

Ask yourself this. If video games were rounded up and destroyed, do you think this stuff would stop? I don’t. Do you think they would be cut in half? I don’t.

I don’t think they’re much of anything other than entertainment for some.

It’s not video games. Also, video games have a rating system similar to movies. If young kids are playing violent video games, they shouldn’t be, just like young kids shouldn’t be watching shoot ‘em up movies.

But no, violent video games aren’t causing or influencing mass shootings.

Where did this kid get the experience to go shoot up a Walmart and escape the scene with so many dead? He had no military experience.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/learningenglish.voanews.com/amp/5031446.html

Are video games the cause of mass shootings? No. Do they influence mass shootings? Probably to a small extent in some cases. There are way, way bigger issues than the kid played Call of Duty.

It starts with the family. A lot of kids don't have dads around anymore. The divorce rate is high and even in the church it is at 49%....

I agree wholeheartedly with this statement! We live in a throw away and replace society. From TV’s to marriages.

Yes damnit they do influence childrens’ brains. Cause them to shoot? Nobody can say for sure.

Left to his or her own devices, a kid will spend from 12 to 18 hours a day in front of a console. This places his still maturing brain in an alternate universe. A universe where mistakes are never realized. A universe where responsibilities are never assigned. A universe where lines are blurred between reality and fantasy. A universe where a brain that is still learning its way through life is overloaded with fantastical realities that simply overwhelms it.

The kid never stops thinking about the game. The game becomes quite real, occupying his physical reality, allowing him no room for any competing reality. Occupying his sleep, invading his dreams. It totally consumes his life.

IT IS A TERRIBLE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL ADDICTION!

If you have not seen this, you will not believe it. Your brain simply will not accept it because it is not real. Your brain was raised on reality and responsibility. Your brain knows the difference between a video game and the game of life.

That is why we as adults just can not endure playing the games. They simply bore us to death.

My son went through this. I was the only one that saw it and fought it. Everybody else rewarded his addiction by gifting him more equipment and software. ‘It makes him happy.’ I took it away, destroyed it, and made him watch me. That was real. I made sure he knew that. I alienated myself from my family on both sides to save my son from the addiction. My son hated and despised me for banning him from his preferred reality. He ended up leaving home to feed his addiction but reality finally won. A job, a car, a paycheck, a meal. Those things began to show up on his radar. He made it by the skin of his teeth.

He is in his mid thirties now and we are good. Many times when we are alone, he will want to talk about it. I think it still occupies a small corner of his brain. He tells me how bad the addiction was. He thanks me for destroying his equipment. He tells me of his thirty something friends that are still lost in the game. He just does not understand it now. His brain finally grew up and rejected the alternate reality. The game still calls him. He still tries to play occasionally but he has lost the connection and just does not ‘get it’ anymore.

I guess the endorphin rush is no longer triggered by the game and the physical addiction is gone. That part I do not understand. But something is different now.

We have been here before TFF. You all will flame me. I am old. I am slow and stupid. I am out of the main stream. I cling to my tinfoil hat. Go ahead. I know where reality is. I know what I saw. I know what my son went through as we went through it together and alone.

I hope you never have to go there. But if you must, go there armed for bear. Go there knowing that you are doing the right thing.

I would really like to say no. They tried to blame metal on a bunch of **** back when I was in high school. It's an easy scapegoat. But the almost an old in me is thinking. So many of that particular generation are complete morons. Easily manipulated. Not all. But a lot of them. I'm kind of with whoever said it earlier. A cause, nope. An influence, quite possible.

In my opinion. If we want to blame anything other than the individual. I blame politicians(both sides) and the media. They have done nothing but fan the flames for over three years now. At some point things were going to boil over. Here we are.

Society as a whole

Cause, no. Symptom, yes.

The lack of parenting and discipline is to blame.

Peanut allergies are rare but deadly when they do occur so we accommodate those with peanut allergies. Mental illness that causes one to execute a mass murder is rare and deadly. People prone to violence through mental illness could certainly be affected by violent video games and movies.

From the El Paso murderer's manifesto:

"Remember: it is not cowardly to pick low hanging fruit. AKA Don’t attack heavily guarded areas to fulfll your super soldier COD (Call of Duty) fantasy. Attack low security targets. Even though you might out gun a security guard or police man, they likely beat you in armor, training and numbers. Do not throw away your life on an unnecessarily dangerous target. If a target seems too hot, live to fight another day. "

https://drudgereport.com/flashtx.htm

We're discussing making Semi-auto, high capacity rifles illegal for all because of the mass murders which affects the entire population of the USA so I think the video game platform violence would be a comparable item for banning. Red Flag laws covering violent games and video in the household of the "Red Flagged" individual seems reasonable.

Neither banning would stop the mass murders but ineffective laws make us feel better because like...we did something so gosh darn it, we're good people.

There is a fascination with violence in our society that some can’t handle
NFL and MMA, people watch NASCAR for the wrecks.
Long history of citizen vs citizen gun violence here that wasn’t seen in other countries—more than half of the land mass of the US was lawless when revolvers became widely available. Many disputes settled by firing bullets

They're definitely not helping.

Don't know if they have or not.

But do believe they negatively impact children's ability to distinguish reality and fantasy. Additionally those who may be suffering mental illness may be more suspect to imitate their violence.

The "both sides" is very laughable.

100% agree with this. Video games are ubiquitous and have been for three decades. Many mass shooters play violent video games because many people play video games in general.

The ones who play video games non-stop, never leave the house, etc already have anti-social tendencies. The games are a symptom, not a cause.

Plenty of guns in the middle east and you don't see mass murders.

Oh really? There’s no mass murders in the Middle East?

Not like this.

I think you are on to something, this is my belief. If you fill a young mind with noting but killing, chaos, and total lack of concern for others, you think that is what life is about.

There is a correlation between video games, lack of family unit, social media bullying of an outcast youth and a few others.

Video games are not the problem like guns are not the problem, but the changes in society listed above have now led to these traumatic events.

4 dead, 2 wounded in Southern California stabbings

"A man who was “full of anger” went on a two-hour stabbing and robbery rampage in Southern California, killing four people and wounding two others, authorities said Wednesday.

The 33-year-old Garden Grove man was taken into custody after he came out of a 7-Eleven in Santa Ana, southeast of Los Angeles, and dropped a knife along with a handgun that he had taken from a guard, police said.

The violence appeared to be random and the only known motives seem to be “robbery, hate, homicide,” Garden Grove police Lt. Carl Whitney said at a news conference.

“We know this guy was full of anger and he harmed a lot of people tonight,” he said."

https://apnews.com/5e44f7bd106f4fce8da21c2c11f334fc

If gang shootings in Chicago aren’t the same as mass shootings here, then what’s happening in the Middle East isn’t the same, either.

The mass shootings here are clearly different - and happening for different reasons - than gang shootings and violence in the Middle East.

if you really believe this your even dumber than I give you credit for.

Video games and TV/movies are certainly a contributing factor, but what the mass media often fails to mention is that almost all of these shooters are on or have been prescribed either an anti-depressant or stimulant.

I wonder why that connection is rarely made? Big pharma?

Good clean discussion. Thanks to all participants.

The issue is complex. Hard to tie all the mass shooters to one common cause.

We are finding in the vast majority of these cases that the murderer was showing warning signs prior to the mass murder but nobody did anything.

There are plenty of crazy people in other countries.

The vast majority of the mass shooters are male.
Many males in this country have a BB gun by ten years old, a .22 by twelve, and a shotgun by 16
There’s a skilled familiarity and accessibility with guns that you don’t see anywhere else.
America is the world top economic power. To maintain that #1 spot requires fierce competition in the work force. The social pressure to be financially successful, physically attractive, and popular is higher here than anywhere.
It’s when you combine these factors with a mentally ill person that bad things can happen

actually asian countries are much worse. South korea has one of the highest rates of suicide in the world.

I think a lot has to do with what was mentioned about the minds perception of fantasy and reality. Video games, TV, movies and many other things can influence your mind and thought process at any age, especially the younger one is. What's the old saying, garbage in, garbage out. The loss of respect for human life and others. They see on TV. movies, and the video games gun battles where guys kill many with no qualms about it, get shot themselves and keep going. To them, its no big deal and seems normal and doesn't mean anything.
Like Cast, I went through pretty much the same thing with my son. I could have wrote that line for line. In those days, he listened to some kind of music, don't know what it was called, but I called it pissed off at the world music. Lots of it was in German.
And, it's not just kids and young adults. I have known several people in their 40s and 50s who are addicted to the same games. One of my relatives, is 54, so addicted to Call of Duty, that he stays up all night, misses work, ignores the wife and kids, and basically lives for the game.

And, to add to it, the media in general and our ability to know what is going on in the world minutes after it happens probably plays a part. Now days, we hear everything. When I was a kid, we basically only knew what was going on in our general area by word of mouth. We got our news from the paper or watching the evening news. They didn't sensationalize and spends days talking about a lot of the bad things going on in the world. Even things like hearing about someone in Florida going to the beach for the first time, getting caught up in the current and drowning. Those things have always happened, we just didn't hear about them as soon as they happened and for days afterwards.

I am torn a bit...What Cast wrote was eye opening and I do believe they have an influence. On that same note though, when I grew up, it was Ozzy or other heavy metal that was being blamed for the negative impact on kids....Secret messages by playing them backwards, subliminal devil worship messages in the songs. Didn't believe it then but I do believe the video game phenomenon and the impact on a growing brain.

^^^Very good.

I didn't think you were capable of laughing. I'll take that as a win.

Perfect example of bias.

I don't blame playing years of Leisure Suit Larry in my early teens for the little touch of AIDS that I may or may not have.

I think online forums have a lot to do with it. Obviously a forum created for fisherman to gather and discuss fishing is not the culprit, but when the forum is created for social outcasts to discuss their hatred for others it becomes an enabler for these kinds of things. Sites like 4chan and possibly Reddit are used as a medium for lonely, angry, mentally ill men to discuss how much their lives suck and it eventually snowballs into some crazy going off the deep end. I know people who spend more time on these sites than they do with actual human beings and you can tell it has an effect on how they interact with others in real life.

I say a lack of positive roll models is the biggest factor. Just compare the amount of time kids today are spending with tv, movies, social media, and video games compared to the amount of time spent just 20-30 years ago. The TV and movies I grew up on were not filled with graphic violence and sex like they are today (for the most part). Our society as a whole has lost their moral compass which our kids are paying the price for.

My 7yr. old tried educating me on the killing power of a mini-gun. No more Fortnite for him. X-box is in pieces in my work shop. I told him if he can figure out how to put it back together then he can play it. I will either be raising a brain dead kid, or Michael Dell....give me a few years and ill let ya know.

I believe it and could care less what you think.

nobody asked you or addressed you.

No idea exactly how much less you COULD care, but for whatever amount of care you currently have... thank you for caring.

Look, we don’t have the answers. Some think they do, but they don’t.

I would like to say that none of us want to see this stuff happen. (There May be some that do for whatever reason, but I would say that’s a very small percentage.)

There are no absolutes here. Do all people that play video games do this stuff? The answer is no. Does everyone that smokes pot so this stuff? No. Does everyone that is not a Christian do this? No. Does everyone that has mental problems do this? No. Does everyone that takes drugs for mental problems do this? No. Does every racists do this? No. Does everyone that has a whacked out ideology? No.

People want to understand, and want to stop it. But, they usually just point ringers at stuff they don’t like as “evidence” that their beliefs are superior. That’s what people do.

Again, we don’t have the answers. If we did, it wouldn’t happen, period.

Machete caused this.

Great example of what I mentioned. Fortnite is rated T for Teen. The ESRB is very similar to the way movies are rated. I know parents have a lot to keep up with these days in terms of what their kids are exposed to, but the ESRB standardizes the process.

E for everybody
E10+ for everybody over 10
T for teen
M for mature

Each game has descriptors to let you further know what is in the game. Go to ESRB.org or check the box the game comes in or the screen where it is being downloaded and see what it says. The ESRB is very strict about the ratings and errs on the side of caution. Keep in mind, when playing a game online, there is no way to rate or restrict what other players say over the internet. Nothing can be done about that except parents sitting in the room while the kid plays and listening to what is being said.

Here is Fortnite’s ESRB page.

https://www.esrb.org/ratings/34948/Fortnite/

God bless you. Hope that little puss thing you have heals quickly.

Allow me to throw this out there...

Kids should not learn of guns while playing a mind numbing, ultra violent video game.

Like most everything else, kids should learn of guns while afield with their Dads, shooting real bullets at real targets. Let them shoot a two liter bottle full of red dyed water. Pop a few watermelons. Eventually, kill a game animal and prepare it for the table. And, of course, Mom should be there too.

That teaches reality and there can be no mistaking that. Teach them the truth. Make sure they know.

And what will happen? What will be the reward? They will tell their friends. Reality might actually take root.

You love your kids. Why would you allow them to play those games? There is proof of the damage they cause.

Now that's funny and as far as I'm concerned, sums this entire thing up very well.

Allow me to throw this out: “mind-numbing” video games are actually used in therapy to help stroke patients rehab and promote brain healing.

https://www.flintrehab.com/2018/video-games-for-stroke-patients/

Also, kids shouldn’t learn about guns from “ultra violent” video games, because parents should parent. No one is advocating kids playing violent video games. In fact, they can’t even buy them (it is a very serious situation for stores that sell M rated games to those under 17). Parents have to buy them. Parents should educate themselves on what their kids are playing (or doing in general). That’s literally the responsibility of parents. It’s really not hard to understand the rating system or learn what games are appropriate for kids.

And parents shouldn’t let kids hole up in their room playing games for 15 hours. That’s also on the parents. Would you let a nine year old go watch an R rated movie, like John Wick? I hope not, but you also shouldn’t let a kid play a violent video game like Call of Duty.

Some of y’all hate things you seemingly don’t know the first thing about and won’t learn about. It reminds me of people who are anti-gun and say things like “AR-15s have 1,000 round clips and can shoot 15,000 bullets per minute.

We don’t like it when people are ignorant about guns, so why be ignorant about video games, which, like it or not, are a part of life for 99% of kids and have been for 40 years.

And many people don’t have guns, don’t want to own any, and don’t want their kids around guns. Do I wish every kid learned about guns the way you described? Sure (well, 99% of them. There are some kids/people who shouldn’t have access to guns at all, obviously). But that’s not reality. New York City isn’t like Montana or rural Texas. It’s just not going to happen. But maybe parents can get back to parenting and not using electronics as babysitters because they don’t have time or the effort to understand them themselves.

Possibly. At the very least, being immersed in games, music, online content, movies, tv shows, etc of this kind desensitizes some folks to violence.

As Cast pointed out, kids need to learn about shooting by doing the real thing and seeing the outcome of that bullet. Not from video games.

Sure. Just like drinking leads some to be violent. Not everything is for everyone. Some people can’t handle certain things. It’s not the things that are the problem; it’s something in the person.

That's the point I've tried to make. I play them and I don't get the idea killing is a solution. I think it may have to do with the fact I hunted and have taken lives of animals. The last snorting breath of a deer or the dove you snap the neck to put it out of it's mysery tends to make one appreciate life at a different level than Barry the marginalized who plays video games all day in mom's basement when he isn't writing a kill list or manifesto.

No it's Marilyn Manson everyone knows that.

Absolutely they do. They desensitize the users.
Also I have worked around firearms my entire life and it is amazing when a preteen walks into a store and knows exactly how to use an AR or glock. They even know the models. And when asked the parents tell you they don’t own one and the kid has never actually held a real one.
These same kids never heard of a Weatherby or Savage. Just the stuff they learn about on video games.
And no every kid is. It effected but a kid that is a little off might be.
And it’s a joke if the people on here don’t think that parents don’t openly buy rated M games for their kids. And teens or just past teens are the ones doing most of these shootings so rated T for teen is ridiculous.
I know several parents that actually have done interventions and put their kids in rehab over gaming.
When you have to get mental help for you kids over video games it has gone too far.

What?!,

Video games? Name a country that doesn't have video games. Name a country that has a mass killing a week other than the USA.

Syria.

Afghanistan

Great Britain

France

China

Somalia.

“Name a blah, blah, googlie, goo, goo....etc.” Whatever. Neil Young has an unsafe body fat index now...how about that?

Roughly 80% of Americans live in urban areas so how is a kid from the inner city or even the suburbs find a place to do this?

If there is a wilderness in Plano where I can kill a game animal, I’m not aware of it

Syria. No killing there. Afghanistan ...... No killing there either right? "No video games and no killings".... reading comprehension.

Lay off the sauce. No killing? Damn your a fat idiot.

You didn't answer the question. Personal attack. Nice.

Every week? Not even close.
Mass shootings are terrible and the media make the sensational but they are actually rare.
And unlike the US a huge part of the population in most other countries can’t affford video games or cable.
I laugh at comments like these.
I know several Japanese people and they severely limit the amount of time their kids play video games. They still make their kids spend most of their time learning. As in school and homework.
This country coddles it’s kids and let them do what they please. Not so much in most countries.

Can you clarify this part?

“And it’s a joke if the people on here don’t think that parents don’t openly buy rated M games for their kids. And teens or just past teens are the ones doing most of these shootings so rated T for teen is ridiculous.
I know several parents that actually have done interventions and put their kids in rehab over gaming.
When you have to get mental help for you kids over video games it has gone too far.”

Teens shouldn’t be playing M rated games and parents shouldn’t buy their kids M rated games. They are for 17 and older, like R rated movies are. T rated games can have mild violence and crude humor, just like a PG-13 movie. Mature video games are not for teens.

Parents need to parent. Stop buying mature titles for teens or younger. If your kid can’t handle a T rated game or PG-13 movie, don’t let them consume it.

If your kid is playing video games too much for your liking, then restrict their access. When you have to do rehab and interventions for video games and your kids, you let it get to far, the games didn’t go too far.

Fatty.

Name a country that doesn’t have video games: Syria
Name a country that has a mass killing a week other than the USA: Syria

What didn't I comprehend?

Oh, and you started calling people fat again a couple of weeks ago. You started that personal attack.

You can't reason with a sloppy drunk.

OK..." BIG BOB". Lol.

You boys play nice. Do not make me stop this car!

Those drum bombs and gas dropping on children? But no video games. You are correct. You are one out of two.

I rest my case.

Strong gun laws in Mexico. Only criminals and cops have guns and the cops show up in time to put on the toe tags...lots of toe tags.

19 bodies hung from bridge or hacked up in Mexico gang feud

"Mexican police found nine bodies hanging from an overpass Thursday alongside a drug cartel banner threatening rivals, and seven more corpses hacked up and dumped by the road nearby. Just down the road were three more bodies, for a total of 19.

The killing spree reported by prosecutors in the western state of Michoacan marked a return to the grisly massacres carried out by drug cartels at the height of Mexico’s 2006-2012 drug war, when piles of bodies were dumped on roadways as a message to authorities and rival gangs."

https://www.apnews.com/de294939aa834fa29e18ed2d4a599c3c

You actually think all parents follow ratings and don’t buy whatever their kid wants? Of course they shouldn’t do it but they do. I assure you there are parents on this forum right now that have bought their kids games that were rated for older people.
You are right but not realistic. And I agree parents let it get to far but that is exactly what this subject is about. Zero oversight and letting kids get to far gone. Parents not being good parents and as long as their kids aren’t bothering them all is good.
I was considered an overly strict parent by many but now that my kids are grown they admit we raised them right.
Parents want their kids to like them as a friend and do anything they want.

No offence.... You posted a picture of your lard arse. I am sorry you got offended.

Was Mort gay? Asking for a friend.

No, I don’t think that. Hence, me saying parents should parent. You blame video games, not parents who should know their kids, know what is good for their kids, take five seconds to read the rating on the front of the damn box they’re buying for their kid. Or know what their kid is doing in their room.

You’re blaming video games for kids being messed up when parents are buying them for the kids. Parents aren’t following the ratings. Parents aren’t aware of what their kids are consuming.

Parents are also handing iPads to their kids with YouTube dialed up then not paying attention to what kids click on. It’s easy to get from a kid YouTube channel to mature content, even with parental controls on. I see it with my nieces and nephews all the time.

How is that not realistic? You’re making excuses. Here is an example from my childhood. I’m the oldest of three. My sister is three years younger than me, my brother six years younger than me. When I was 13, The Simpsons was popular. I wasn’t allowed to watch it with my siblings in the room because it wasn’t appropriate (or my parents deemed it so) for my siblings to watch.

That’s called parenting. I’m not saying it easy. I’m not saying it’s not a full time job. But violent video games aren’t for young kids. Parents shouldn’t let them play them. And they shouldn’t let kids become consumed by video games of any type, either. That’s parenting.

You agree with me, but that isn’t what you’ve been saying. Parents shouldn’t let their kids play violent video games. That doesn’t mean that violent video games shouldn’t be made. Video games, in addition to other types of media and behavior, should be parented. Video games, by the way, fall under the first amendment.

Edited to add: I expect that you would have an issue with a parent giving a teenager a gun, especially if that kid went to school and shot classmates. We agree that would be bad parenting, right? So you also believe it is wrong for a parent to buy violent video games, or let them become consumed by video games and violent ones at that, right? It’s not the gun’s fault and it’s not the video game’s fault in either example.

By the way, I’ve enjoyed the discussion with you so far.

Everyone of your posts is you showing your arse.

I dunno, I played a crapload of Doom in my younger years and haven't BFG'd anyone in real life.

Let's see your pic

Same

And many other games. Love GTA and never done that in RL

Mort? Gay? That is what you come up with? Put down the bottle and go downtown and see an orchestra or a
museum Ross and him built.

Please

I'll take that as a yes.

Why are you firing SCUDS at Bigbob? 1Shot is the one who exposed the litany of lies you’ve told. If you won’t take accountability for what you’ve done at least choose a more situation-appropriate target for your misplaced anger.

Know A Fence.

"Is Mort Gay". Sorry .... that is SFB on display. But hey.... Keep sucking that bottle.

Can't even come up with your own material? Pathetic.

Would you consider ending your daily posting time with “This is S4B signing off”? That would be awesome!

I would be much happier if she just ended her posting routine period. Menopause must be a real bitch.

That was strictly a question about my confusion on the different posts. I probably read more into it and confused myself.

*S4B

Balled up hand, three plus one, donkey.

Did you post something interesting? I guess I missed it.

Let's see your pic

The original post was “do video games influence”
My answer was absolutely. Bad parenting is the number 1 problem with all of these young killers. The video games just compound the problem. And I think 10 fold. Yes you are right parents should do all of the things you said. But saying it is not the video game playing a part is wrong. Every single one of these young shooters was a gamer, loner, and Heavy social media user.
I also believe that these game designers have gone way to far in reality and death and should be reined in. I don’t care if you are a grown up or a teen. Spending hours and hours playing a game filled with blood and gore is messed up. But if you are and adult that is not batchit crazy have at it.
We both totally agree it is bad parenting first but the fact remains that young people are playing these games and parents are not controlling them. And there are no penalties for parents allowing it. The only penalties are for the retailer that sells to underage users. If it was alcohol the parents would be charged for allowing a child to consume so why not holding them legally accountable for allowing their kids to play adult rated games?

You can’t legislate proper parenting. You can’t restrict law-abiding people because a few abuse something (in general, obviously).

The video game developers/publishers are abiding by industry standards and are protected by the first amendment, just like with movies. You can’t stop evil; it finds a way. If video games are too realistic, why aren’t movies too realistic? It’s not a video game problem. It’s not a movie problem. It’s not a playing Black Sabbath backwards problem.

But video games are ubiquitous. The majority of kids, and a large percentage of adults ages 18-45 play video games. Video games are not the cause. They are a symptom of a larger problem for the people who commit mass murder. There is a very small percentage of people committing mass shooting compared to the 320 million citizens in this country (thankfully).

Saying video games cause (or influence) mass shootings is like saying masturbation causes rape. Most kids play video games but not everyone is a mass shooter. Most kids masturbate but don’t rape.

There is a problem with parents not regulating their kids. Yes, stores get fined heavily if they violate the ESRB rules. Should parents be penalized if their kids commit mass murder? In my opinion, no. The shooter is ultimately responsible, and the majority of mass shootings are committed with legally-obtained guns. But I think there is an issue with parents allowing their kids to consume adult material, and become obsessive or addicted to it. Sometimes it is parents being busy or preoccupied or lazy. Sometimes kids become consumed with things as a coping mechanism for other issues. Parents should recognize these issues and...parent. Get kids help. Stave it off before it becomes an issue. Some kids turn to drugs or alcohol and some turn to video games, social media and become isolated and anti-social.

It’s complicated, but blaming video games themselves is not the answer. It’s a scapegoat for a set of larger mental health and familial issues.

There is some wisdom in this post

Dang Cast, I hate to hear that your family went through that, but to say that every kid who plays video games will go through this extreme level of mental and physical addiction is nothing short of ludicrous. I'm 10 years younger than your son and I can personally attest to the fact that not every kid who is left to their own devices will play video games constantly. I had a video game console growing up. I had the sports and racing games, but my cousin had also given me a couple Call of Duty, 007 and other first-person shooter games. I played maybe 30-45 minutes a day in the summer. During the school year I usually would only play a couple days a week for 30 minutes or so. I spent most of my time outside, walking to the city pond to fish, riding 4wheelers and dirt bikes, hitting golf balls in the yard, shooting bows and guns, building dumb stuff out of leftover lumber. I never got addicted to video games and never played them again after high school. My friends who played video games more than I did still didn't get addicted to video games. We were all outside doing something the majority of the time because we wanted to, not because we were forced to. Maybe the difference is that we grew up in a smaller town, I don't know. I can only say that your observations aren't the same as mine.