A Safe Place for Violence?
When I was growing up, the topic of violence in video games was a pretty big deal. Games like Doom and Mortal Kombat were starting to push the boundaries of what was considered acceptable. The topic was discussed and debated on news programs and magazine articles; even scientists and psychologists even weighed in on the issue. It was such a hot-button topic that it made its way to the United States Senate for hearings in 1993 and 1994.
Since then, I've met several Christian developers who cited that period as the catalyst for getting into games. It stirred up a calling to create positive content in lieu of what the industry produces. That's not my story, but if that's you, praise God you're here!
As game creators, each of us must wrestle through this question of violence. No matter who you are or what belief system you hold, I believe every game developer has a moral obligation to carefully consider the content of the work they are putting into the world.
Now my intention for this article is not to persuade you to think a certain way—I simply want to share a story. It's a story about an angry young man who found some solace during a rough patch in his life by playing some violent games.
I was a pretty angry kid for much of my adolescence. I carried around some deep wounds that I didn't know how to process, so my anger was often expressed as cruelty. When I aimed it at others, it took the form of cutting remarks or jokes made at their expense, and when aimed at myself, it was physical. Woods surrounded my childhood home, so I fell into a habit of punching trees until my knuckles bled.
Pretty stupid, huh? Even in my anger, I knew it was foolish and destructive, but I had a lot of self-hatred and wanted to hurt. However, I had witnessed my friend break his hand punching some metal bleachers at our school, so I knew I didn't want to hurt myself that badly.
You may be wondering why I didn't channel my aggression into athletics? I did, but it only helped so much. If I performed poorly or our team lost, which happened a lot, it would simply add more kindling to my fire. I didn't know what else to do, so I latched on to the most violent games I could find.
In Greg Costikyan's book, Uncertainty In Games, he talks about games being a safe place to work through the uncertainties of life in non-threatening ways. During that time in my life, video games offered a safe place to work through my feelings of anger and pain without hurting myself and the people around me. They created a sphere of protection for my catharsis.
God has been so good to me in my life. He has healed me of this pain and helped me forgive, but the journey took time, ten years to be precise. As a gamer, I no longer seek out violent games to play, and as a creator, I don't have the urge to create them. Even though I am no longer the target audience for these games, I am glad that some of them exist in the market.
As we walk with God through our life and He performs His restorative work in us, sometimes it's easy to forget where you've been. I was reminded of this when talking with my friend Matt. When Mortal Kombat 11 came out in 2019, I remarked that I couldn't believe they had been able to keep the series going for so long. Matt replied, "yeah, there are still angry young men in the world."
Until Our Father returns, we will continue to live in a broken world filled with anger and pain. I believe video games can play a part in the therapeutic process, at least for some. As game creators, we have the opportunity to create safe places for people to work through intense emotions; I know these spaces helped me.
