I think Spec Ops is an odd example, because part of the point of that game is to highlight superviolence in modern video games; without the in game violence the impact would be minimal.
However, beyond that, I would agree that a lot of games are becoming unnecessarily violent. I enjoy games like Dishonored where there's an incentive for being a pacifist as opposed to a run and gun strategy. As for others, I don't think most people have the "fuck yeah murderfest 2013 let's kill some people" attitude, but the good thing about video games is that it allows us to play out fantasies that would otherwise be unacceptable in society. If that's not a form of escapism that interests someone, then that's fine, just as it's fine to have those games for people who DO enjoy that kind of escapism.
As for games being a factor of real life violence, I heartily disagree. Any correlation is negligible and there are far bigger factors that come into play. The media just likes bashing Video Games because not a lot of people are familiar with the medium and it's easy to bash.
TL;DR Games are a form of escapism and it makes sense that there would be violent games