"Super Columbine Massacre "

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MrsSpringsteen

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The creator seems to feel it has redeeming educational and social value. Teenagers, probably kids too, will be downloading this game- will they really learn anything from it or will they become numb to the real violence that took place-will they be thinking about the background of the situation at that school while they make Klebold and Harris kill? Is a video game truly comparable to a movie?

http://insidedenver.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4702205,00.html

"The game's creator, who refused to identify himself to the Rocky Mountain News, did agree to an online interview. He said he wanted to create something profoundly unique and confrontational that would "promote a real dialogue on the subject of school shootings."

The creator, who goes by the name Columbin on his Web site, said he was inspired to make the game because he was in another Colorado high school when the shooting occurred.

"Columbine marked me deeply," he wrote in the e-mail interview with the News. "I was in a Colorado high school then. I was a bullied kid. I didn't fit in, and I was surrounded by a culture of elitism as espoused by our school's athletes."

Columbin said the game took 200 to 300 hours to create. Since its creation, more than 10,000 people have downloaded the free computer game, he added.

The game has flashbacks that highlight times when Klebold and Harris may have felt marginalized. One takes place behind a Blackjack Pizza store, where the two worked. Another takes place at the school.

The reaction to his game, Columbin said, has been almost entirely negative.

"I'm routinely accused of being soulless, of being destined for an eternity in hell, and similarly colorful assertions," he wrote. "However, I cannot emphasize enough that there is a small fraction of the population who really gets it, who really understands why I made the game and how possible it is to escape from the polarized, dualistic thinking the Columbine shooting seems to (elicit) in most people."

One of those people may be Ian Bogost, an assistant professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Bogost researches video-game criticism and video-game rhetoric and runs a Web site dedicated to video games with an agenda.

Bogost recently stumbled upon the game and wrote about it on his site, WaterCoolerGames.com.

"While it is a challenging subject, I think the effort is brave, sophisticated and worthy of praise from those of us interested in video games with an agenda," he wrote.

"Super Columbine Massacre RPG is disturbing because it is meant to be.

"I've talked and written for some time about how games need not be fun to be worthwhile. This game is not fun, it is challenging and difficult to play - not technically difficult, but conceptually difficult. We need more of that."

Add Columbine families to those angry about the game.

"My initial thoughts, I guess, are that when people glorify murderers, they make murder acceptable," Rohr-bough said.

Columbin said he doesn't believe any video game should be taboo.

"Honestly, I'm not sure why video games are held to a larger degree of scrutiny than films, books, or other (media)," he wrote.

"The Palm d'Orre at Cannes in 2002 was Bowling for Columbine and in 2003 was Elephant. Why, then, ought not a video game be made of the same award-winning subject matter? The silence is deafening."

Richard Castaldo, who was paralyzed from the chest down in the Columbine shooting, downloaded and played the game after reading about it on a gaming Web site.

He said he wasn't sure what to think about it.

"It didn't make me mad, just kind of confused me," he said. "It kind of reminded me of that Elephant movie, but in video-game form. I think I get what he was trying to do, at least in part.

"Parts of it were difficult to play through, but overall, I get the feeling it might even be helpful in some ways.

"I don't think it's bad to discuss."
 
Columbine was always disturbing to me. Sure, because of the killings. But I've followed mass murders, including one in my own town, that had little or no emotional effect on me. I always saw two sets of victims at Columbine--those murdered and the killers.
I remember some guy put up wooden crosses for all the murder victims and for Klebold and Harris. Some irate relatives destroyed Klebold's and Harris's at which point the man removed all the crosses. They were subsequently replaced except the ones for the gunmen.

I remember, that while understanding the anger of the townspeople, thinking that it was fitting that the crosses were erected for all of them.

Klebold and Harris were coldblooded murderers that day. Too many innocent people died. And even the tormenters did not deserve to die. Loss of touch with reality and rage is a dangerous combination.

But a culture that does not protect the marginalized is in fact complicit in its continuance of the torment by always turning away, by protecting the bullies instead of the bullied. That society risks overboiling rage when the victims feel there is nowhere to turn.

I think it sounds like an interesting game. I don't know if it would escalate or allow rethinking of the situation. It's better than ignoring the situation. I posted a link. I was sadly amused by one of the innuendos that it was ok to ignore them because "they didn't show school spirit.":huh:


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/daily/june99/columbine12.htm
 
The difference between violent video games and violent films is that whilst you're merely watching the action during a film, in a video games you are in control of "killing" the characters in the screen.

At least they stopped all that "lets blame Maralyn Manson". He's just a very clever performer, who's very well known worldwide for his "antichrist" performance. The fact he's an athiest and doesn't believe in God or the Devil suggests he's just a harmless metal rock star. I mean, I've seen he's music videos on TMF and on CD:UK when that used to on. If he was really that bad he would not be on a Saturday morning kids programme.

If you think he's that sinister you should pop into your local record store and look under the heavy metal section. A lot of the Norweigan metal bands (HIM excluded) do have a history of inciting thier fans to do things like burn churchs. I think there is one band whose frontman has siad plastic surgery in order for him to look like a knome of the Devil. Incubus or something :scratch:
 
BonosSaint said:

But a culture that does not protect the marginalized is in fact complicit in its continuance of the torment by always turning away, by protecting the bullies instead of the bullied. That society risks overboiling rage when the victims feel there is nowhere to turn.


That is so eloquent and I agree with it 100 percent, but we also have to completely separate that from resorting to murder. How do we do that for teenagers? I don't see how this game can do that, how does it teach them not to bully and to be more accepting of their peers? The article says that part of the game attempts to do that, but there must be more effective methods. I think schools should have classes about it, and sensitivity training of some sort for kids- starting in grade school.
 
nbcrusader said:
I thought video games were harmless.... :shrug:

they are....i, as well as many people i know, played all types of video games my whole life and i never went out and destroyed property or went on a shooting spree becasue of a game.....hitler and stalin didnt have video games and look what they did....

granted, theres a line that hsouldnt be crossed when it comes to access for kids and that what the game rating system is in place for....its up to parents and stores to enforce those ratings....but i guess this is different as its available for anyone to download without any safefguarding of kids...

but most people will blame the game companies....its just easier for parents and other irresponsible people to just shove the blame somewhere else than on themselves....

im commenting on video games in general and not necessarily on just this game.....:)
 
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nbcrusader said:
I thought video games were harmless.... :shrug:



and i thought people should take responsibility for their actions instead of viewing themselves as victims of various electronic media.
 
AchtungBono said:
I think the creators should be prosecuted and thrown in Jail for promoting violence.

We have that thing called the "First Amendment." It's kind of nice to have around.

Melon
 
melon said:


We have that thing called the "First Amendment." It's kind of nice to have around.

Melon

Ahhhh yes.....those wonderful two words: "First amendment"....

Thank goodness for the constitution.....without which we wouldn't have Nazi marches, porn on the net, hate-mongers in universities, protests during military funerals.....all the things that make the United States great.

Melon....I'm not directing any hatred or sarcasm to you PERSONALLY - I hope you understand that.
 
AchtungBono said:


Ahhhh yes.....those wonderful two words: "First amendment"....

Thank goodness for the constitution.....without which we wouldn't have Nazi marches, porn on the net, hate-mongers in universities, protests during military funerals.....all the things that make the United States great.


Yeah we could all be bowing at Bush's feet and only allowed to sing his praise.:|
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:


Yeah we could all be bowing at Bush's feet and only allowed to sing his praise.:|

I didn't say that at all BVS.
The gist of my post was that its wrong to give people license to do bad and hurtful things just because they CAN, that's all.
 
AchtungBono said:


I didn't say that at all BVS.
The gist of my post was that its wrong to give people license to do bad and hurtful things just because they CAN, that's all.

I understand but when you start limiting speech, because it may be hurtful or any other reason, it becomes a slippery slope. Who's to determine what can be said and what can't? What if someone decides any mention of the Jewish religion is offensive? Are we going to ban it?

Here and lies the problem...
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:


I understand but when you start limiting speech, because it may be hurtful or any other reason, it becomes a slippery slope. Who's to determine what can be said and what can't? What if someone decides any mention of the Jewish religion is offensive? Are we going to ban it?

Here and lies the problem...

Yes but we're not talking about ANY mention.
If you want to say (for example) that Jews keep kosher and have certain dietary laws, or that they believe in the old testament....and things like that, then there's no problem.

However, if you say things like all Jews are thieves, kikes. Christ-killers, murderers and responsible for the 911 attacks - then that is a bad thing and shouldn't be allowed.

I don't think people should slander or hurt other people just because they CAN.

I hope I've made myself more clear.
 
AchtungBono said:


However, if you say things like all Jews are thieves, kikes. Christ-killers, murderers and responsible for the 911 attacks - then that is a bad thing and shouldn't be allowed.


Ok yes these things are deragatory to you and I and most intelligent people.

BUT, to some, saying the Jewish religion is a true religion is deragatory to them. To some saying black people are equal to white people is deragatory. To some saying homosexuality isn't a sin is deragatory...

So who sets the standard? What if one of these people or groups start to set the standard?
 
And Judy Brown, who has been immersed in the Columbine controversy along with her husband, Randy, called it a "sad and sick thing to make a video game out of a tragedy where 13 innocent people were murdered."

Yet there are countless games based off of past wars where hundreds of thousands have been murdered and the Judy Browns of the world could probably care less. :der:
 
There are countless games based on the first Gulf War.......

...games are just the new excuse for people, used to be books, music and films, now they have just added video games to the list.
 
AchtungBono said:
Ahhhh yes.....those wonderful two words: "First amendment"....

Thank goodness for the constitution.....without which we wouldn't have Nazi marches, porn on the net, hate-mongers in universities, protests during military funerals.....all the things that make the United States great.

Melon....I'm not directing any hatred or sarcasm to you PERSONALLY - I hope you understand that.

I understand your POV, and I do understand that you haven't directed this to me personally.

However, I chalk this perennial disagreement over the rather sharp cultural differences between Europe and the U.S. Even the most liberal of people in the U.S. generally do not support limiting hate speech, because it is our belief that it is better to have your fanatics out in the open to be observed, rather than underground where they cannot.

And, overall, I would say it has been a rather successful tactic over the years, because, although we do have periodic bursts of intolerance, they are generally moderated over time, due to the fact that we can openly and publically discuss these rather sensitive issues.

Our neo-Nazi marches are generally very small scale and are overwhelmingly outnumbered by protestors. Porn on the internet is just a hot-button issue that religious conservatives use to advocate censorship; I've never known anyone to accidentally stumble on porn. Hate-mongers in universities are usually marginalized here, and the military funeral protests are all done by the same Christian church--out of which nearly all of them are the extended family of the minister.

Melon
 
Has anyone seen/played this game?

Is there some legitimacy in the creator's position that this may be a (albeit, slight) way of getting into Klebold's and Harris's heads as to what could have provoked the violence--and not just a revenge/violence aspect? Can the shock value of this type of game push people to think differently? Can it have social value?
 
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