whoa, “creep”y
April 29th, 2008 scarterb
Ok. I find it a little creepy that I keep hearing the same songs used in SCMRPG on the radio nowadays. I guess I was oblivious to the songs before I played the game. Now, it seems like I hear the songs every single day. I think the game attached deeper meaning to the songs. Therefore, I’m become more consciously aware of them. It just goes to show you how video games can seep into our everyday lives - We just don’t realize it. Now everytime I hear Radiohead’s “Creep,” I’m going to be reminded of Columbine and the game. I’m not sure whether this is a good thing or not. If Danny Ledonne’s intent was to keep the conversation about Columbine going, he was definitely successful. The realia incorporated into the game are everyday things that we come into contact with regularly. But songs are meant for pleasure and entertainment. Has Ledonne taken the pleasurable aspect out of those particular songs? Would you rather listen to a song that has social value, a song that forces you to think about serious issues such as school shootings? Or, would you rather just sit back and enjoy the song for what it is? In any case, we’re just sitting here. Whether we’re playing the game or listening to a song in the game, we’re not really doing anything. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m sometimes hesitant to say that video games like SCMRPG force us to act. Video games help us change the world! Not really. It seems like such a long shot, you know? Can video games really inspire us to act? I hate to say it, but most people will just play the game and that’s it. Should we really praise SCMRPG for evoking thought, even though it doesn’t necessarily evoke action? Well, producing mere thought is the first step, right?
Entry Filed under: Game Log
3 Comments
1. scify_rd | April 30th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
I don’t really think that Ledone’s use of those songs has taken the pleasure out of those songs, unless you make it that way. I really do think that his intent was primarily to make you think about the events, rather than force you to some particular action. Also, I think his musical selections were part of an attempt to have the songs reflect what was going on in a particular section of the game—Radiohead’s “Creep,” as you mentioned, plays when Kledbold and Harris are atop the grassy knoll, discussing their reasoning for the massacre, discussing, essentially, why they feel that they are outcasts, or “creeps.” As for listening to a song that has “social value,” what songs would you suggest? I honestly can’t think of anything that falls into the category of being a commentary on school shootings. I think the songs were specifically chosen because they were relatively well known, as well as most of them having something to do with the story of the Columbine Massacre. I do agree with you that videogames don’t really have the power to change the world, though I would extend that to just about any form of media. I’ve always personally believed that what media in general has the ability to do is to make people think about something that they might otherwise not pay much attention to. We have too many things to try and keep track of nowadays, so we often give little thought to things that don’t have a direct impact on our lives or are not shoved into our faces by someone or something. The internet and books allow us to research a topic. Television programs and movies help us actually see events that we are otherwise removed from, as well as the aftermath. The primary purpose of almost any video game is to allow players to take on a different role; social commentary games have the unique perspective of allowing us to take on the role of people like Klebold and Harris, where otherwise we wouldn’t likely get that opportunity.
2. mstarkey | May 1st, 2008 at 1:09 pm
I agree that the realia of SCMRPG is what leaves such a strong impression upon the people playing it. The songs played in the video game didn’t really have the same effect on me as they did for scarterb, but only because I knew all those songs fairly well before playing SCMRPG. What was a reality check for me playing this game was the movie clip about being a professional killer. The SCMRPG game made me think of how people all over the world are watching movies, or even the same movie, that influenced the minds of the Columbine killers, and how that is maybe affecting their thoughts. Whether it is killing for the common good, like evil masterminds, or just killing for the sake of violence, movies and their graphic nature bring these images into the home of millions all over the world. How people come to interpret and act from these movies generally are within the ranges of what is considered socially acceptable, yet somehow, the rare few take the movie out of its context and apply its ideology and action to their own lives. What other factors are involved that allow for that kind of thinking to reside within some people in our society? Violent movies and videogames especially, are blamed for violence seen in schools and today society, but obviously not every person who has been exposed to glorified violence does not lose sight of reality. For me playing as a soldier or a gangster does not change my thoughts about the value of human life, and for most other gamers it’s the same way. What makes violent movies and videogames more appealing to disturbed individuals? Are there specific characteristics of violence that appear in the supposed influences of these videogames and movies that infiltrate the minds of killers beyond that of the experience of the regular movie watcher or gamer?
3. scify_rd | May 2nd, 2008 at 10:45 am
Due to the obvious ethical considerations behind doing research on inciting violent behavior in people, we probably will never be able to say with any degree of certainty why this sort of thing happens. However, there is a lot of thought that the reason that people who end up doing such violent things are drawn to violent media is because it appeals to them more due to pre-existing dispositions. These dispositions depend on the person, obviously, but a lot of times it seems that the specific media that such people are drawn to is a reflection of their own personal feelings that lead them to commit their acts of violence. The Columbine killers, for example, listened to a lot of KMFDM most likely because it spoke to their feelings of isolation and alienation, not to mention their desire to act out in revenge for the persecution they felt they underwent. The song “Stray Bullet,” for example, contains the lyrics “I have come to rock your world/I have come to shake your faith/…./I am your apocalypse/I am your belief unwrought,” which would most likely play to the Harris and Klebold’s belief that they were ridding the world of useless people.
Other killers have been similarly drawn to other bits of violent media, and some have even based their crimes off of the narrative of those pieces of media, be they movies, books, songs, or games. But it’s nearly impossible to tell whether these pieces of media are what drove them to kill their victims, or if they were simply used to create the means that allowed them to reach the end they had previously decided on.