Since the introduction of video games into popular culture, the use of violent language has changed dramatically. Fifty years ago, it would have been very incriminating for a high school student to say that they dismantled a bomb, shot down a plane, and got thirty kills in a single night. Yet, today, this is typical language for the average teenager that plays video games, especially violent ones. As video gaming has grown to be acknowledged as a real hobby, there has risen a need to differentiate between the virtual world of a game and the real world that we live in every day. This is especially true of chaotic games such as Grand Theft Auto Five, which has reigned as one of the most popular video games since its release nearly a decade ago. With the rise of violence in video games, there has also appeared the question, “Do video games encourage violent behavior?” One of the first famous first-person shooter games, “DOOM” was released in 1993. At the time of its release, the internet was still a relatively recent addition to world culture. Thus, DOOM was reserved primarily for video game nerds and coders. However, as video games have advanced in graphics and content, such video games have skyrocketed in popularity, producing video game franchises such as “Call of Duty” and prompting DOOM to become a full-fledged franchise. Although these video games have a rating that recommends that only certain ages play them, these guidelines are very often ignored by children and teenagers that can convince their parents to allow them to play such games. As a child without such persuasive skills, I had to find other ways. To access video games above the rating level of “T for Teen,” I would exploit the advertisement tactics of game studios to play first-person shooter games despite my parents’ strict rules regarding what I was allowed to play. The first instance of this strategy introduced me to the Call of Duty series. At the time that I was entering my teenage years with a perception that I was far more mature than I actually was, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 became free on PlayStation’s online play subscription service. I had played Black Ops 3 at friends’ houses before and there was something freeing about the style of play. This was only amplified by the widespread perception among boys that first-person shooters were cooler than calmer games like Minecraft or Sonic the Hedgehog. I downloaded the game in secret from my parents, and I quickly fell in love with a multiplayer feature that the game still remains famous for–Call of Duty: Zombies. The story of Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 Zombies was called “Shadows of Evil” and it carried a jazzy atmosphere that resembled the 1920s, although the weapons present in the game were far too advanced for it to have been in that time. The main objective of Call of Duty: Zombies has remained pretty consistent across the franchise. A group of up to four players is placed into a zombie-ridden world where they must put up barricades, defend themselves from aggressive zombies, and progress through various checkpoints across the map. These checkpoints require points, which can be gained from accomplishing the first two objectives. The zombies come in waves, and each wave of zombies is significantly more difficult than the previous one. I had been playing multiplayer video games consistently with a small group of friends that almost perfectly made up a party of four when all of us were available, but this was different. I found that it was much more likely for my friends to be available when I was asking them to play Call of Duty: Zombies. Some of the most genuine teamwork I’ve ever felt happened while I was playing shooter games. Typically, in shooter games, teammates that lose all of their health do not die, but are considered “downed.” In Call of Duty, the avatar of the player expresses this state by crawling on the ground, waiting to be revived by a teammate. Zombies do not attack downed players, making it more difficult for the other teammates to survive. Despite Call of Duty’s apparent violence and prohibition in my household, it provided me with some of the most intimate memories I have with my friends. Whether I was killing zombies with a submachine gun (and friends) or reviving my friend so we could both live to fight another day, the killing may have been fake, but the gestures, the brotherhood was real. I can still talk with my friends and ask, “Remember when we fought those banshees?” and we’ll laugh as we remember the time that Ethan accidentally started a challenge in the game that resulted in all of our deaths at the hands of an onslaught of demons. These first-person shooters allowed us to feel the bonds created by a mutual struggle without feeling any kind of suffering in the real world. Even though it gave me nightmares as a kid, Call of Duty: Zombies is partially responsible for the strength of my greatest friendships. I give Call of Duty: Zombies four stars. Word Count: 861
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James WilkinsI enjoy writing creative stories, but I find it refreshing to express my thoughts through blogs or journals. Archives
April 2024
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