Joe Duffy discusses modern warfare 2

Posted by Kevin in Articles, Microsoft, Sony, Windows | 9 comments

Joe Duffy opened his show today with a warning that the new game, Modern Warfare 2 is out today and causing shock.

First called, Alan, went to his local Gamestop where he was informed by an employee of said retailer that this game is “very bloody”. The store are “double checking” people for ID because it is so grotesque.

Alan went on to describe the scene where you’re an undercover CIA agent with some Russian mafia guys, dealing with “one of the head fella’s” where you enter an airport and fire on women and men. He made sure to say that you control him, “shooting up the whole airport, and as many people as possible”. He said he didn’t understand why this happens.

This happens because it’s part of the storyline. If you follow the story, this is a linchpin for the rest of the game.

Joe said, “what do you think of under 18s playing?”. Alan responded with “I’m a young 30. I enjoyed the first one from 2007. I didn’t think the blood spatters that appear on screen when you get shot was more graphic and unnecessary. It is a fantastic game and does exactly what it says on the tin but I see why a lot of parents are worried with children without jobs under 16 playing”.

Joe then asked what the appeal is. “The graphics are all 1080p high definition, great detail. Usual stuff from shooters is the appeal”. Joe picked up on the term “shoot em up”, too.

The next caller, a middle aged Irish woman named Joyce, declared she wouldn’t have this title “in her house”, saying you can say no to it. She then said she has a 17 and 19 year old. And under her roof, her oppressive reign stays true as the 19 year old, legally able to drink, vote and coppulate, cannot play MW2. Though she does go on to say that “sure I know they all play it up in cyberspace”. She stops them by “taking the broadband with me in my car”.

She said she was very concerned, at which point Joe went back to Alan to talk about the “big attraction”, multiplayer. Alan says they give you a basic game but the online and add-ons are where it really gets big. This, says Alan, is where they make their money. “It’s never ending, you just sit there for hours and hours and hours”. He did say he was quite shocked at the content, and wouldn’t like his kids walking in and seeing it while he plays.

In-game violence has sparked concern from parents

Joe asked if there was any evidence of violence having an effect, to which Alan replied that his entire life he’s had games around, and indeed his brothers work in animation, often in video-games and have yet to kill anyone.

Our repressive mother pipes in again to say she doesn’t think it’s healthy to stare at a computer screen for 8 or 9 hours. She has yet to see a modern college or business, clearly. She also says it makes millions. Millions, folks. Disgusting, how dare they make money.

Another woman pops on the line to say, looking at it is one thing, but being in control is disgusting. She read (no source given) that the same neurons are stimulated when committing violent acts as murderers. Her young brother killed someone in GTA and went to tell on him to his mother, saying it was disgusting and shocked her. Her brother now cannot play. The first woman piped in to comment that that was the “big game” that couldn’t be played.

The argument is made that it’s different to movies and TV because you participate in the acts themselves. No mention of the trade off between movies/TV being real people murdering people, while games are still not good enough graphically to confuse anyone.

A new caller says the American military use these games to train troops. Her kid was playing games and afterwards was angry. For weeks. Obviously the games fault, no way could it be hormones.

A man calls in to say in his day he dressed up as cowboys and indians, with toy guns, pretending to kill each other. The counter-argument from a parent is that she doesn’t want someone elses twisted mind forcing her kids to suppress their imagination by warping them with video-game design. They should be banned, too.

Another caller, James, says he was queuing at GAME for the midnight launch. He stayed up until 6AM playing it, then went to college the next morning in IT Tallaght at 10AM for lectures in media, where he has had lectures from experts saying there is no conclusive link between games and violent behaviour.

The counter-argument is that that’s bull, and that the Americans wouldn’t use these to de-sensitise troops before war.

Remember these faces. They'll be shooting up airports any day now...

The man jumps in to reference Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers, but the mother again says the kids aren’t controlling it.

James comes in again to say there is a narrative behind the game which mimics what is going on in the real world today. Joe asks if he got out of the lift in the airport and shoot people. James, the murdering scumbag, did.

Ross, a 17 year old, picked up the game in Tesco (Oh dear, underage). He says there has not been 1 study that found anything bad with games, linking them to violence. He also says there’s a link from watching TV to dimensia.

Ross asks the mother if she expects gamers to go to EIDW (Dublin airport) to shoot it up, which she strangely responds with “no, don’t be ridiculous”. He then asks her to quote her sources on studies linking violence to games.

Manhunt comes up as an example of a game that got banned. However, Ross makes the excellent argument that there is a narrative. The mother counter-argues that there’s no lessons learned about it because no one makes a stand. Joe says “you can’t play God”. “How do your kids know what’s right or wrong? Who teaches you? You have to teach your children standards”, says the mother, somehow bringing violent 18-rated games into an argument about how her kids need to learn morality. If at 18 your kids don’t know right from wrong, then something might be wrong.

The bint, Joyce, goes on to mention how society is more violent now, despite her living through Vietnam, cold war, possibly even WW2, the Berlin wall, oppression, Northern Ireland, apartheid in South Africa… all in her generation. Not my generation. “Generation X” has seen violence on this level lower, so we take out our lack of purpose (to quote Tyler Durdan) through entertainment media.

A new woman joins in to talk about things getting out of hand. She put a time limit on her kids’ gaming fun. She put a timer on the plugs and what not, and in her case her child got violent, breaking the timer and physically pushing her out of the room to continue playing the game. Again, this is because of gaming. Gaming was not just a catalyst, this woman sternly believes her son “isn’t a violent person but has an unhealthy interest in violent films”. Still, she insists gaming is at fault.

Rob works in a game shop and mentions MW2 being an 18s year old game and links this to kids buying cigarettes or alcohol. He also says that shops must enforce ID checks and it is illegal to sell to minors. Joe asks what Rob thinks of the game, to which he says “it is violent and the graphics are so real it is worrying. I agree with kids not playing it, it’s an 18s rated game, that’s why they have this rating”.

Joe argues the 18s rating becomes an added premium to buy the game in the first place. Rob agrees.

Joe asks what Joyces husband thinks about it. He didn’t understand the point at first but once seeing the game, he, a former SPA member, was shocked and took Joyces side, banning her 17 and 19 year olds from them.

An avid Call of Duty fan joins in to mention that, despite playing these murder simulators, he won’t be going down to EICK (Cork airport) and shooting it up. Well, let us pray anyway. He was playing last night and heard a 10 year old playing via headset. Undoubtedly this 10 year old has procured weaponry and will be donning his finest Russian accent before shooting the public up in an airport.

This character will teach your kids to murder people. Prick.

Gabriel, a teacher, rings up from the Wesht of Ireland. He says his transition year (15-16 year olds) students have been talking about this game since Monday, and playing since. They say there’s a passive lack of ability to create independent creative thinking when working on projects as a result of gaming. He also blames the lack of kids reading on games.

Joyce comes back in and Joe brings up the revelation that she doesn’t ban TV or films, but games are just “over the top”. “You have to put your foot down somewhere”, she says.

Emma comes on, following Marie, who discussed her sons addition, to say that these games are rated appropriately and cannot be banned. Millions enjoy these games, she says, as a non-gamer, without being violent, different or “anything like that”. “It may affect a small number of people, but if that happens just take the console away. Once they turn 18, that’s their choice”, she says, with a surprising amount of reason for a Joe Duffy contributor.

Emma also says that if Marie’s child has had a bad experience in life, maybe he uses games to vent frustration and get that adrenaline rush he needs. Marie’s kid is 17, and frustrating her because he’s violent, angry and what not. Which, in her opinion is down to games. Emma argues he’s frustrated otherwise and using games to escape those frustrations, but should have the games removed if he’s a bad person.

Overall Joe didn’t really help the conversation, bringing out a slew of crazies to talk madness about games. The point was made by callers that this is an 18s rated game and as such, is available by law, only to people who can handle it. However, it seems there are crazy women who’ll ban anything from their over 18 adult sons because they don’t like it. If that was my mum, I’d be going nuts, too.

You can catch up with the show on rte.ie, but if you’re not from Ireland and currently have a good opinion of our nation, please don’t listen. It’s embarrassing.