Teens charged with "Mortal Kombat" killing

[Fritz the Cat]

kick punch it's all in the mind, if you wanna test me I'm sure you'll find that all the things i'll teach ya, are sure to beat ya. nevertheless you'll get a lesson from teacher now.

sorry Parappa moment.

Actually, it'd be funnier than hell if you could somehow have a Parappa-based murder.

Well, it would...

[Effef]

I like how it's "Teens charged in 'Mortal Kombat' killing" and not "Teens charged in brutal drunken murder", gotta blame dem vidyagaems.

[eppy]

FLAWLESS VICTORY.

</sarcasm>

[anosou]

I just think it's incredibly sad they killed her half-sister with their own hands while intoxicated and, let's admit it, probably influenced by a video game and modern television.

People seem to think it's one or the other but I believe it's a combination of things that make young people do these kinds of things. Alcohol, family issues, violent games, movies or friends and possibly other psychic problems.

Too bad neither you nor media shows that you realize this. Instead it turns someone's death into a reason to bitch about your sub-culture taking a public hit.

I just lost my faith in humanity again.

[Dyne]

You know, things like this sicken me. Especially when people who advocate the end to violent video games and movies move in for the kill with news bytes like these. Twisting things to make waves so they can force change. Anyway, here's a link to the Digg on it.

http://digg.com/gaming_news/Teens_Accused_In_Child_s_Mortal_Kombat_Death

You decide what's right and wrong. Don't let assholes like Thompson stop you either.

[Wolfstan]

F A T A L I T Y!!

[BlueMage]

I'd like to counter your question with a question. How do you think Midway reacts? I'm very interest to hear how the lay-people think companies react to such news.

"Fuck 'em."

Rly.

[The wingless]

Firstly, you know what pisses me off the most about this situation? You people.

I had this whole long-winded diatribe written but I deleted it. My disgust and rage can be basically summed up in bullet points

-Your love of gaming is not a culture. You have nothing to champion or protect

-No amount of bad press is going to stop gaming because it is a multi-million dollar Industry

-As sick as you are of journalists blaming games, I doubly sick of you all reacting to it with this cacophanous chorus of "woe is me"

And yes, much of this loathing is due in part to being on the inside looking out. I adore the video game industry. I can't stand the average consumer :/

[1337 1]

NOTE: I am not attempting to chastise, insult etc america or americans, however this is the way I see it. I have nothing against america or its people.

I will grant that yes, there are people out there who will kill people. We already know that. Since knives were created, people have been using knives to kill people. But they didn't ban knives, did they? After all, most people use them as they were designed: for cutting food etc.

When things like comics, movies, and any new form of media, are released, there are morons like Thompson who will go out of their way to portray them as the epitome of satanic devices, and responsible for the worlds evils.

That's human nature. Not much we can do there. People complain.

However, this idiotic concept of blaming something for your own actions is insulting, degrading, childish and outright folly.

*remember my little message before ^^;;*

Okay, I willingly admit to how terrible it is that people die for whatever reason, especially when someone intended to kill them, but you cannot blame games solely. These "game-inspired" killings are no different than the ones from the past where killings were inspired by movies etc.

HOWEVER, in spite of all this, one cannot deny one major factor in all these killings. I admit that there is no doubt evidence in favor of both sides (as is always the case). However, all these so called "professionals" don't seem to grasp what I consider the main factor.

In Australia, we have less of these events happening. Yet they are a horrifyingly common occurance over in America. Why?

The right to bear arms. We don't have it in Australia, and we hear less of these cases of younger people performing brutal killings.

Now, if your in America, you are used to being able to walk around with a gun in your pocket. That's fine.

However, that nobody, NOT ONE BLOODY PERSON (in my experience), has at least tried to take this into account, annoys me the most. If your going to factor in something as idiotic as video games (or even just a genre. Ban FPS? Uh, why ban Portal, nobody dies in that one.), then how about things like laws and the mindframe of the people who do these things? After all, you'd need a motive for killing someone, you don't just suddenly get out of bed and say "i think I might just grab a chainsaw and kill everyone today!" From what I've been able to gather, the people who do these things have some reason for it (no matter how foolish it may seem).

Like I said before, nothing against Americans. I'm not saying there aren't people like that in Australia, or indeed any other country. It just annoys me that nobody ever talks about it.

Meh, there's always going to be retards in this world. Ah well.

EDIT: Also, I wrote this after the wingless. I am not disgusted with the average consumer, but rather the people who make gamers out as homicidal maniacs. I'm pretty sure we're not.

[Strike911]

Firstly, you know what pisses me off the most about this situation? You people.

I had this whole long-winded diatribe written but I deleted it. My disgust and rage can be basically summed up in bullet points

-Your love of gaming is not a culture. You have nothing to champion or protect

-No amount of bad press is going to stop gaming because it is a multi-million dollar Industry

-As sick as you are of journalists blaming games, I doubly sick of you all reacting to it with this cacophanous chorus of "woe is me"

And yes, much of this loathing is due in part to being on the inside looking out. I adore the video game industry. I can't stand the average consumer :/

I agree with you, but I do feel as if I can understand, at least marginally, why people would be upset when politicians are using news stories like these to try and censor media in general, specifically video games.

I do, however, disagree with your gaming culture comment. I think over the years 'the gamer' has come into popular culture, and people that . There is a gamer niche and a community that does adhere to a "gamer culture" type of community. I don't think it's entirely unreasonable for gamers in that community to be a little angry about how the press swings a terrible event to misrepresent video games. I'm not entirely sure if it's good for the industry.

[friendlyHunter]

A slightly better written article

So yeah, things were going fine until the drunken idiot took things too far.

That article is MUCH better, thank you. It should be added to the first post, so people looking at this thread can read what actually happened.

The article above uses "'Mortal Kombat' Death" as no more than a headline; so if you see or hear "Mortal Kombat killing" in the news, you'll immediately know what they're talking about.

But really, here's what I think the issue is:

They were doing an activity, which to them seemed completely normal and innocent. Was this idea brought on by violent media? Was the idea that it's completely innocent influenced by violent media? I won't deny that years of regular exposure to violent media might have influenced them in some way. But to say that a single video game is what influenced them to do this is really quite far-fetched - again, "Mortal Kombat" here is merely the catchy headline.

So you've got an "innocent" but somewhat dangerous activity - combine it with unsupervised drinking - suddenly people assume the initial activity is to blame (and by "people" I mean the dumb-ass who wrote the article in the first post). Driving is an innocent and somewhat dangerous activity. Combine it with alcohol, and it can be extremely deadly. Do people then assume that it's bad to drive? Do people start blaming media that depicts people driving? Blaming Mortal Kombat for this death is like blaming Grand Theft Auto for a drunk driving death (which I wouldn't doubt has been done before). People can be dumb or ignorant like that, but really, any intelligent person who takes a moment to think rationally about the situation will realize that Mortal Kombat is not to blame.

(obligatory comment about Jack Thompson not being an intelligent person)

[Dyne]

Firstly, you know what pisses me off the most about this situation? You people.

I had this whole long-winded diatribe written but I deleted it. My disgust and rage can be basically summed up in bullet points

-Your love of gaming is not a culture. You have nothing to champion or protect

-No amount of bad press is going to stop gaming because it is a multi-million dollar Industry

-As sick as you are of journalists blaming games, I doubly sick of you all reacting to it with this cacophanous chorus of "woe is me"

And yes, much of this loathing is due in part to being on the inside looking out. I adore the video game industry. I can't stand the average consumer :/

I understand what you're saying. Love of gaming isn't a culture, I agree there, but there is a gamer culture out there.

It bothers me that they threw "Mortal Kombat" in there as the supposed "link, or cause" of this case. No, what bothers me more is that they don't focus on the real issue, the fact that those teens were drinking underage, the mother of the two girls was at work, and these teens were unsupervised. That is the problem right there. And that alone is what they should be focused on.

For the next few weeks, maybe a month or two, all you're going to hear about from this situation is how "violent video games are killing our youth", or "video games shouldn't be allowed to be violent". The problem with that, is if you start to ban violent video games, then you need to start banning violent news reports (reports of violence, or images depicting it en masse). You also need to go into other media and ban those avenues of violence. Like some raps that have violent messages, or movies that are too violent for today's youth.

I want to know what ever happened to the days when people were able to not only judge for themselves right and wrong, but act accordingly. It just seems today that there's less parenting going on, and more unsupervised activity than there was years ago.

Only time will tell, I suppose, if things will change for the better, or get worse than they are now. I fear for our world.

[Kenobio]

However, that nobody, NOT ONE BLOODY PERSON (in my experience), has at least tried to take this into account, annoys me the most. If your going to factor in something as idiotic as video games (or even just a genre. Ban FPS? Uh, why ban Portal, nobody dies in that one.), then how about things like laws and the mindframe of the people who do these things? After all, you'd need a motive for killing someone, you don't just suddenly get out of bed and say "i think I might just grab a chainsaw and kill everyone today!" From what I've been able to gather, the people who do these things have some reason for it (no matter how foolish it may seem).

Lot's of people have taken that theory into account. The issue with the right to bear arms and the abundance of violence in America, you see, is an actual problem. News articles about kids using Mortal Kombat moves to kill other kids are just sensationalized forms of entertainment for the dumb masses. If you really want to know about why America is so violent and why crimes like this happen the resources are out there, but just don't expect to get an actual view from the American media. Most intelligent folk know that videogames are simply just a rather easy scapegoat for what is actually a much larger problem (such as the "real" problems of negligence and so forth many of you have mentioned already in relation to this particular tragic killing), but at the same time for the majority it makes for more entertaining news to hear that videogames were the cause of this incident and not the pitfalls of dumb American society.

[Arek the Absolute]

Firstly, you know what pisses me off the most about this situation? You people.

I had this whole long-winded diatribe written but I deleted it. My disgust and rage can be basically summed up in bullet points

-Your love of gaming is not a culture. You have nothing to champion or protect

-No amount of bad press is going to stop gaming because it is a multi-million dollar Industry

-As sick as you are of journalists blaming games, I doubly sick of you all reacting to it with this cacophanous chorus of "woe is me"

And yes, much of this loathing is due in part to being on the inside looking out. I adore the video game industry. I can't stand the average consumer :/

you gotta quote who you mean cause "you people" is a generalization and all im sayin is that journalists *especially those that write for a fucking powerhouse like cnn* should write more accurate articles and not just write things incorporating there personal beliefs in it cause it was a news article not an editorial

[Atomicfog]

Isn't it obvious guys?

[Ralphis]

The above post is probably the only thing worth reading in this thread so far

[vindkast]

same old story; they blamed jeffrey dahmer on pac-man

[Sinewav]

Look. I'm not worried about the video games. I'm not worried about people stopping me from playing them. I could care less what the media says about them.

But to think that the media repeatedly uses tragedies like this to fuel their crusade... To think that they would riddle a heartbreaking article with their editorial propaganda... it makes me sick.

Whether they're doing it to needlessly spark controversy or they legitimately believe that video games are the cause of these crimes, Jack Thompson, CNN, FOX, AP, Reuters, and whoever else is involved in the anti-videogame crusade are a bunch of asshats with no sense of tact whatsoever. I really don't care if you want to spread the word that video games are evil... but a 7-year-old girl just got beaten to death. Show some fucking respect.

[The wingless]

Isn't it obvious guys?

Your HEADLINE is MINE!!!!!!!!!!!!

[I-n-j-i-n]

All you can blame are alcohol and the idiot kids themselves. Not the victim of course.

I'm not going to say that games can't ever be a part of a violent ourburst, but it's not the only one. Not everyone goes berserk after a drink, not everyone goes and emulates things they watch and hear. But some will.

[Monobrow]

Firstly, you know what pisses me off the most about this situation? You people.

I had this whole long-winded diatribe written but I deleted it. My disgust and rage can be basically summed up in bullet points

-Your love of gaming is not a culture. You have nothing to champion or protect

-No amount of bad press is going to stop gaming because it is a multi-million dollar Industry

-As sick as you are of journalists blaming games, I doubly sick of you all reacting to it with this cacophanous chorus of "woe is me"

And yes, much of this loathing is due in part to being on the inside looking out. I adore the video game industry. I can't stand the average consumer :/

I don't understand what you are saying, but...

[DragonFireKai]

Firstly, you know what pisses me off the most about this situation? You people.

I had this whole long-winded diatribe written but I deleted it. My disgust and rage can be basically summed up in bullet points

-Your love of gaming is not a culture. You have nothing to champion or protect

-No amount of bad press is going to stop gaming because it is a multi-million dollar Industry

-As sick as you are of journalists blaming games, I doubly sick of you all reacting to it with this cacophanous chorus of "woe is me"

And yes, much of this loathing is due in part to being on the inside looking out. I adore the video game industry. I can't stand the average consumer :/

People trying to learn from tragedy is very important, people trying to capitalize on it is disgusting. Finding out who's who is the tough part. I don't think anyone here thinks the industry is going to be destroyed by this, however, the publicity influences how people view the industry and it's consumers. I really don't see what you're upset about, how do you expect them to react? "Well... They DO punch people in MK..." I doubt it.

NOTE: I am not attempting to chastise, insult etc america or americans, however this is the way I see it. I have nothing against america or its people.

I will grant that yes, there are people out there who will kill people. We already know that. Since knives were created, people have been using knives to kill people. But they didn't ban knives, did they? After all, most people use them as they were designed: for cutting food etc.

When things like comics, movies, and any new form of media, are released, there are morons like Thompson who will go out of their way to portray them as the epitome of satanic devices, and responsible for the worlds evils.

That's human nature. Not much we can do there. People complain.

However, this idiotic concept of blaming something for your own actions is insulting, degrading, childish and outright folly.

*remember my little message before ^^;;*

Okay, I willingly admit to how terrible it is that people die for whatever reason, especially when someone intended to kill them, but you cannot blame games solely. These "game-inspired" killings are no different than the ones from the past where killings were inspired by movies etc.

HOWEVER, in spite of all this, one cannot deny one major factor in all these killings. I admit that there is no doubt evidence in favor of both sides (as is always the case). However, all these so called "professionals" don't seem to grasp what I consider the main factor.

In Australia, we have less of these events happening. Yet they are a horrifyingly common occurance over in America. Why?

The right to bear arms. We don't have it in Australia, and we hear less of these cases of younger people performing brutal killings.

Now, if your in America, you are used to being able to walk around with a gun in your pocket. That's fine.

However, that nobody, NOT ONE BLOODY PERSON (in my experience), has at least tried to take this into account, annoys me the most. If your going to factor in something as idiotic as video games (or even just a genre. Ban FPS? Uh, why ban Portal, nobody dies in that one.), then how about things like laws and the mindframe of the people who do these things? After all, you'd need a motive for killing someone, you don't just suddenly get out of bed and say "i think I might just grab a chainsaw and kill everyone today!" From what I've been able to gather, the people who do these things have some reason for it (no matter how foolish it may seem).

Like I said before, nothing against Americans. I'm not saying there aren't people like that in Australia, or indeed any other country. It just annoys me that nobody ever talks about it.

Meh, there's always going to be retards in this world. Ah well.

EDIT: Also, I wrote this after the wingless. I am not disgusted with the average consumer, but rather the people who make gamers out as homicidal maniacs. I'm pretty sure we're not.

Bounce this to PPr and you'll get your discussion. This isn't the place for it. Suffice it to say, your comment is rather out of place when commenting on someone being beaten to death.

[StarZander]

I read through the affidavit, and they mention "Mortal Combat" once, and they just state it was a playful game inspired by the video game. All siblings wrestle and fight at some point (atleast as far as I know), and they had just put that title on their playfighting. As a kid I loved Power Rangers, and jumped around playfighting with my friends and made wooden swords and stuff (later Power Rangers was banned from Sweden), but I could never had killed anyone. We were just playing, and everyone knew that.

What killed the little girl was the loss of control that the alcohol created in the Roberts-boy. His inspiration to use martial arts can come from anywhere, but it doesn't really matter where. Hell, we all probably have some of that violence inside us, but control and judgement keeps it at bay. He just lacked those whilst being drunk.

Sorry if I'm just repeating everyone else.

[Strike911]

...later Power Rangers was banned from Sweden...

Whoa... I think the true crime here is obvious. How terrible.

[StarZander]

Whoa... I think the true crime here is obvious. How terrible.

I actually cried.