will COD turn my child into a raging maniac?

thebigbiffo

hello gamers,

loving black ops at the moment, getting used to the maps etc. but all in all very happy with it compared to MW2. now, here's the deal.

i've a son who's just going 4 - smart little fecker tbh. you all know how hard it is to put down COD games - especially MP - so i never did think too much about playing it while he was around. so he wanted to play it - and i let him. he's got fairly good and can get around the training area in MW2 in about 1.40. i never let him play the story or other areas of the game. also, it's not like he's sitting around all day on it either. just a few rounds a night to keep him quiet if i've decided to have a game myself?

should i stop him playing it? should i tell him the Xbox is broken thus limiting myself to playing when he's in bed (hate that)? or should i leave it be safe in the knowledge that these shoot em up, violent games are no worse than watching an episode of ben ten? am i a terrible father:(? you're the experts, what ya think?

Leeg17

I doubt it will, but tbf there's enough underage spotty 12 year olds ruining this game as it is. Get him Mario Kart or LBP2

Raze_them_all

bahahahahahaha I think this is bolox. Unless the video game is going to raise yer child and teach him how to behave you've nothing to worry about. I've been playing voilent video games for about 17 years now and outside of the ring I'm the least voilent person ever. Then again my parents raised me well and didn't believe the ****e that video games make you voilent. Psychopaths blame voilence on videogames

KerranJast

It's rated Mature/18s for a reason. It's parents like yourself who bring so much heat on the game industry. :mad:

thebigbiffo

Raze_them_all wrote: »

bahahahahahaha I think this is bolox. Unless the video game is going to raise yer child and teach him how to behave you've nothing to worry about. I've been playing voilent video games for about 17 years now and outside of the ring I'm the least voilent person ever. Then again my parents raised me well and didn't believe the ****e that video games make you voilent. Psychopaths blame voilence on videogames

i tend to agree with ya alright. but you'll know if (when) you have kids that it's easy to get worried about s'hite like that. we had a german au pair for a while who was shocked to see him playing a shoot em up, her exact words were 'oh yes, it's just that a boy from a town beside my home shot up a school and everyone said he was obsessed by violent video games' - you hear it, you dont believe it, but it's at the back of your mind.

Raze_them_all

KerranJast wrote: »

It's rated Mature/18s for a reason. It's parents like yourself who bring so much heat on the game industry. :mad:

No it's parents who blame video games for their little psychopaths behavior that do.

thebigbiffo

KerranJast wrote: »

It's rated Mature/18s for a reason. It's parents like yourself who bring so much heat on the game industry. :mad:

i'd say it could be a little more complicated than that...

Raze_them_all

thebigbiffo wrote: »

i tend to agree with ya alright. but you'll know if (when) you have kids that it's easy to get worried about s'hite like that. we had a german au pair for a while who was shocked to see him playing a shoot em up, her exact words were 'oh yes, it's just that a boy from a town beside my home shot up a school and everyone said he was obsessed by violent video games' - you hear it, you dont believe it, but it's at the back of your mind.

I know what your saying mate, but it's the same people saying the same crap, sher didn't Marylin Manson cause many a school shooting and what not.

If any of these rediculous games had any weight the companies would be shut down.

I remember reading about a kid in russia taking a claw hammer to his mothers skull cos she took away his video game, It's not the fact it was his videogame, it's the fact he was a psychopath. If it wasn't for taking his videogame it would of been for making beans with dinner and not peas.

KerranJast

- Kid tells friends his Dad lets him play COD
- Kids friends pester their parents to let them play COD
- Friends parents have ****fit when they learn about 4 year old playing Mature rated video games and start blaming the game companies rather than the idiot parent who let a 4 year old play a military simulator.

Creasy_bear

This thread is worrying me to say the least.

Mr. Presentable

Get a German copy. No blood.

liah

Watch the Penn & Teller Bullsh!t episode on Videogames, clears up a lot of misconceptions about the whole thing.

Also involves a small child shooting a real life assault weapon. Great craic altogether.

mawk

Damn liah, I came into the thread to say that.

liah

Actually, despite what I said earlier, if it was my kid personally I wouldn't let them play.

Mainly because I'd rather my child be raised on reading and imagination and being outside and playing with their friends and exploring, I don't want my kid to turn out living in my basement at 26 years old playing CoD 134. I want them to be raised with an interest in things that are more challenging and will have greater long-term benefits, and in general just make the child more well-rounded.

Plus, at 4, they're a bit young. At least around the age of maybe 8+ (depends on the kid tbh though) they can not only actively understand the difference between real and fake, but understand why this has to be fake, and not done in reality.

At four, do they really have the mental capacity for fully understanding?

I'm not saying it would be damaging mentally, necessarily. Like I said, if it were me personally I'd put more effort into reading with my child or doing activities with it rather than sitting it in front of a computer. I'd say the same for any game, not necessarily just violent ones, but any that isn't clearly meant for kids. I wouldn't let them spend much time with videogames til they were at least 7 or 8, and even then only for a short predefined amount of time.

Same argument for TV/movies too for that matter.

thebigbiffo

liah wrote: »

Actually, despite what I said earlier, if it was my kid personally I wouldn't let them play.

Mainly because I'd rather my child be raised on reading and imagination and being outside and playing with their friends and exploring, I don't want my kid to turn out living in my basement at 26 years old playing CoD 134. I want them to be raised with an interest in things that are more challenging and will have greater long-term benefits, and in general just make the child more well-rounded.

Plus, at 4, they're a bit young. At least around the age of maybe 8+ (depends on the kid tbh though) they can not only actively understand the difference between real and fake, but understand why this has to be fake, and not done in reality.

At four, do they really have the mental capacity for fully understanding?

I'm not saying it would be damaging mentally, necessarily. Like I said, if it were me personally I'd put more effort into reading with my child or doing activities with it rather than sitting it in front of a computer. I'd say the same for any game, not necessarily just violent ones, but any that isn't clearly meant for kids. I wouldn't let them spend much time with videogames til they were at least 7 or 8, and even then only for a short predefined amount of time.

Same argument for TV/movies too for that matter.

you've just described my horror story tbh. as stated in OP - he's not allowed to play it for long and he's being raised well rounded with diverse interests. i understand exactly what you mean and would be very careful not let him get too into it. i'm really just worried that any exposure to violence would be bad for him - although i've noticed since he was born how many childrens programmes revole around (in some cases extreme) violence in some form.

meh - the more i think about it the more i think it's fairly harmless, at least compared to anything else he might be exposed to.

on the 'do they understand' the difference between reality and the game point - i'd be very confident that the answer is yes. otherwise, he'd be jumping out of windows and generally be dead a long time ago due to spiderman, batman or ben ten - all aimed at that age group btw.

papajimsmooth

You would be better of getting him an instrument to play with if he is as smart as you say. I let my brother play these kind of games very young and the main thing i would warn against is that addiction can set in very soon. I had to ban him from all computers for a long time just to get him clean. Do you really want your childs main hobby to be computer games when he grows up, because thats what your setting him up for. Also treyarch games are alot more visceral that infinity ward just look at the kill cams for grenade kills, although i think you can turn it of.

Nuri Sahin

Might thoughts were pretty much covered in the last post(liah's post)

I'll just say that a 4 year old playing COD shouldn't require any thought or consideration. He should not be near the game at all IMO.

Wolfe Tone

Whats wrong with having computer games as a hobby?

papajimsmooth

Another thing to mention is that most of the people here forget that when we started playing games the focus on the game was to complete a story mode and maybe a limited form of multiplayer when friends were over. Now the focus is on online play which never really ends except when boredom sets in, which is unlikely for a child. I really think he would be better served with an emulator on your pc/laptop so that he can play older games like mario/sonic whilst you play cod.

papajimsmooth

MUSSOLINI wrote: »

Whats wrong with having computer games as a hobby?

Its fine for 16+ but up until then there is so many better ways to spend your childhood

liah

MUSSOLINI wrote: »

Whats wrong with having computer games as a hobby?

I may have wanted videogames all the time when I was young but looking back now I'm actually delighted my mother chose to raise me on books and animals and the outdoors and limit my time on the TV til I hit my mid teens.

I didn't get my first console til I was 14-- and even then I was only allowed on it for maybe 3 hours a day, tops, during summers (an hour during school). I made up for it in a short space of time, I love and adore videogames, but I really would've hated it if my entire childhood got sucked into them and I turned into an addict like so many actually have done.

Games as a hobby when you're older and can actually process and understand them and be responsible about them is grand. Children can't really do that til they hit a certain age, and self-monitoring/responsibility is out the window for most until well into their late teens.

I would let them play stuff like Portal very early on though.

Reading or music or playing outside are far more important up to the ages of probably about 11 or 12, though I'd phase it in around maybe 7 or 8, very limited though. When they're 16 (or when they show me they're sensible) they can do what they like in terms of games.

the_syco

Have been killing Nazi's in Wolf3D since I was 11 or 12 (on the PC). See naught wrong with it. Heck, I was watching Van Damme and Arnie kill Commi's with AK's before then It's all good. The only side effect is that there is an increased chance that they may want to join the army :pac:

I've been reading since as far as i can remember. First the comics, and then the books.

liah

the_syco wrote: »

Have been killing Nazi's in Wolf3D since I was 11 or 12. See naught wrong with it. Heck, I was watching Van Damme and Arnie kill Commi's with AK's before then It's all good. The only side effect is that there is an increased chance that they may want to join the army :pac:

Big diff between 11 or 12 and 4, though.. kids have quite a lot more sense at 11 or 12 than 4.

Raze_them_all

liah wrote: »

Big diff between 11 or 12 and 4, though.. kids have quite a lot more sense at 11 or 12 than 4.

I think I ripped off my first head off a body with it's spine dangeling dripping blood when I was 5. I knew it was make believe. I think people kids give kids too little credit with what they know is real or not

liah

Raze_them_all wrote: »

I think I ripped off my first head off a body with it's spine dangeling dripping blood when I was 5. I knew it was make believe. I think people kids give kids too little credit with what they know is real or not

That's not my argument, though. I've never said it would be damaging or make them evil or anything. I just think at that age they should be given things with more substance that they can learn from, that age is so, so vital to development and it's the best time in your entire life to learn. And they don't understand how that kind of game works, they wouldn't really "get" the game, it would just suck them in because it's flashy and fast-moving.

papajimsmooth

Kids aren't stupid, no child thinks he is a predator jumping of roofs and ripping out spines, they are however influenceable. If you have never seen a child practicing wrestling moves on another kid growing up (assuming your in your twenties) I will be forced to call you a liar

Raze_them_all

I agree but the op never said that it would be his childs only interest. I've always been an avid gamer, I actually can't remember a time where I didn't put 20+ hours a week into a game, sometimes substantially more, but I've always been involved in sports along the way, hurling, gaelic, soccer, karate, swimming, mma,rugby etc. I think it's all about finding a balance.

Maybe reward him with video game time op for other stuff he does like an hour of something else could equal a half hour/hour of computer time??

Though despite all our advice it's up to you to decide if you should let yer son play as you know him best.

liah

Raze_them_all wrote: »

I agree but the op never said that it would be his childs only interest. I've always been an avid gamer, I actually can't remember a time where I didn't put 20+ hours a week into a game, sometimes substantially more, but I've always been involved in sports along the way, hurling, gaelic, soccer, karate, swimming, mma,rugby etc. I think it's all about finding a balance.

Maybe reward him with video game time op for other stuff he does like an hour of something else could equal a half hour/hour of computer time??

Though despite all our advice it's up to you to decide if you should let yer son play as you know him best.

Out of curiosity-- do you like reading?

Raze_them_all

liah wrote: »

Out of curiosity-- do you like reading?

I do, David GemMell, Trudi Canavan, Raymond E Fiest and Terry Goodkind would be my favourites

papajimsmooth

Raze_them_all wrote: »

I do, David GemMell, Trudi Canavan, Raymond E Fiest and Terry Goodkind would be my favourites

A man of good taste!

Wolfe Tone

What I can't understand is that some parents(like mine!!) got pissed at me playing the good aul sega megadrive for hours on end, yet were perfectly happy to let me watch telly!