IGN just did an Editorial on killing children in video games, something that was in fact worth the read and it got me thinking... why is it in this day and age we have yet to actually witness child slaying in modern gaming? Killing children in MW2's airport level, to me, would have made me feel like a monster. Shooting all of those helpless people and not having one of them under the age of fifteen had me feeling no remorse. Children are a representation of pure innocence, what way for a video game to take you to a whole new range of emotions other than to allow the player to partake in or witness the death of an innocent (and of course, fictitious) child. I say, bring on the child killing. How do you feel about killing virtual children? Article can be found here.
i dont personally have a problem with it, but it makes a lot of sense to me. this is not something that is needed in a game. i suppose it could potentially push the emotional value of a game into new levels, there are some interesting story and character development possibilities... but i dont see video games standing to gain more than they would lose by doing this. already people look for reasons to blame games for bullshit happening in the world... imagine how theyd act once you can kill a kid in a game.
I just find society to be too ****ing uptight about things that really don't deserve so much attention. Things that happen in a fake, virtual world being one of them. While I don't see any big developer pushing for child slaying in their new IP anytime soon, it would most definitely hold some emotional value as you put it.
Honestly wouldn't care. Be a strange thing to put in a game for people to shoot but at the end of the day its just polygons. Only people with an already sick mind would think of sick things while doing it.
it'd be interesting to me to see a game where it is possible to kill children, not required, but if you did kill the children, there would be in-game consequences and moral consequences on the characters psyche as well. you both say at the end of the day its just polygons, or things that happen in a fake world shouldnt mean so much, but most people do not think that way. its not just games, they cannot show children being murdered in movies either. i remember this movie Murder Set Pieces that got banned and had a bunch of controversy because it showed the guy stabbing a kid or something.
Seeing how there are children in Skyrim, I don't believe they are going to make it so that you cannot kill them. I mean if they are to witness you murder someone, there should be a way to kill them as to stop them from a confession. There was always this problem in Fallout so I'm hoping they will change it.
Child murders happen. Just like innocents getting murdered happen. If you HAVE to kill an innocent person to add to your story, by all means go ahead. Its not like you're actually killing real people. But, having said that, if you just throw it in there for no reason, no. Don't add child killing. Think of Games/Movies as books. I'm almost positive I've read books where innocents such as children have died. The same rules should apply to a visual medium.
If you have a problem with killing children, never ever play Dante's Inferno. You murder an army of unbaptized babies.
They're already in hell, so i'd imagine that would be difficult to pull off. That said, emotional consequence is quite a hard thing to pull off for an already desensitized gaming crowd. The airport scene in MW2 works to serve as a chilling act you must endure, but i would imagine many people did not feel the remorse in it, particularly because that character is killed at the end of the level, making it seem that your whole involvement as a US "freedom defender" soldier pointless.
This. Off topic but, "Hey guys, even though I'm a well known Russian Nationalist and my face is known all throughout Russia, lets speak English so people think the Americans are attacking!"
I don't think I would care if they put it in a game. Unfortunately, there are people who don't understand the concepts of what is virtual and what is reality. And the consequences that follow in reality. Just because you can do it in a game, doesn't always mean it's okay to do it in real life. MANY people would complain if you killed a child in a game. (But it that child were some demon possessed threat, hell yea I'd shoot her head off). Same goes with domesticated animals. (dogs, cats, etc.) I am sure PETA and similar orginizations would have a fit. I am sure it would an exception it the animal was trying to kill you (example: Dogs in the Modern Warfare series). But you know, animal just strolling along: lalalalalala. Oh, what's that boy? You wanna play fetch. Huh? Do ya? See the ball (grenade)? Go fetch! ....BOOM! *raining dog* Yea...
You talking about the ones that come out the chicks nipples or something else entirely? I need my fix of child murdering and no games seem to deliver. I can't live on modded Fallout: NV forever, here.
Can't you kill them in Fable 2? Never played it much. Hated it. I thought you could kill them, but they disappeared immediately. I doubt it has anything to do with morals or things like that, but more along the lines of ratings. Also, I think if you set your game settings the right way, you can kill children in Dragon Age. That's just a hypothetical, possible situation I thought of.
Are we all forgetting the emotional impact that the end of the first Dead Island trailer had on people? That's what happens when children die in videogames. It may make sense to do it in certain scenarios, but I don't think (human) children killing would ever be included in a game, because of the obvious implications it would put on the developer who decided to finally break the mould. Besides, if you have a desire to, and go into a game determined to kill a child, personally, I think you have some real issues there. :\ EDIT: I posted this before I read the article, by the way.
What if MW3/Gears 3 in the new mode both have would have Regular people going down to babies? Like A regular person starts off with a pistol and the baby ends with rocket launcher/sniper/shotgun And you had to kill EVERYONE
It does add an emotional layer to the game... Like in Bioshock. I downright refused to harvest little sisters. Did it once, felt guilty as ****. As Bloo said, it does happen. And if it does help reinforce the story and add to it, then go for it. Adding it for the **** of it, like in Skyrim or whatever, probably wouldn't be a good idea.