Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=961https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3663I am glad that I can now put this game behind me. After playing it a little bit more, I still stand beside my original conclusion: this “game” is distasteful and repulsive. No matter what message the creator is trying to deliver, there is no dodging the fact that this game is extremely disrespectful to the victims of the Columbine tragedy. I was embarrassed to actually have to download this game and install it on my computer. I have already completely deleted the game from my system. The creator obviously wanted attention, and people surely gave it to him. There is just no way that a game should be made about students and staff members being murdered in cold blood. If the point of the game was, as the author intended, was to create discussion, he should have written a paper. Instead, this game comes across as extremely offensive to any of the friends or family members of those people who were murdered. This game glorifies what the two disturbed teenagers did to all of those people. They wanted fame, they wanted to be remembered, and this is another chapter in their long, dark tale. The thing that upsets me the most is the titles of the “opponents” such as preppy girl and jock. While this may or may not be an accurate representation of high school, it seems to make the crime less personal. The victims had names and families—they were not identified by what social clique they were involved with. This is just one example of how the game disrespects the victims. Also, the fact that everyone is virtually unable to defend themselves is disturbing. There was a little bit of variation here. Girls tended to be very easy to kill-usually just one attack from either character, while jocks and teachers usually took one or two strikes with a dodge or two. This is a sick interpretation of how these killings happened. There are just no redeeming qualities for this “game.” Next time, the creator should draw a cartoon instead.Mon, 23 Feb 2009 09:39:59 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3663&iddiary=6880https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3663I played the game for a little bit more, but I switched from playing the game to doing some research about the creator and the controversy surrounding it. The point of the game clearly wasn’t to entertain the player—that much is clear now. Still, I believe the game to be offensive and inconsiderate of those who lost family members and loved ones in the massacre. Nonetheless, the creator seems to have achieved his goal of creating press and discussion surrounding the events on that fateful day. I would agree with the creator that the idea of games making kids violent is unsound. I believe it to be the opposite way—violent kids are attracted to violent games. In psychology we learned the phrase, “correlation does not equal causation.” I feel that the same applies in the situation of violent video games and violence. One can not necessarily say that violent games and violent music lead to such tragedies. However, this game is just sick. The systematic structure of running into characters then murdering them with ease is just plain tasteless. It is completely unnecessary and goes out of its way to disrespect the victims. I honestly can’t wait to be done playing the game.Sun, 22 Feb 2009 23:38:14 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3663&iddiary=6864https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3663I had my doubts before I started playing this game. Besides the normal procrastination of a college student, I was not looking forward to this game. I’m using the word “game” very loosely here. I can’t really understand the desire to make a game based off of such a tragedy. Even as a satire, this game isn’t entertaining and it certainly doesn’t accomplish anything in my eyes. After playing the game for a while, it is clear how much hate that these two individuals have for society. The dialogue in the game is disturbing even though the graphics are not that realistic. It almost seems not to make sense—that the dialogue is so intense, yet the graphics are so plain and old-looking. The RPG-spin on the massacre made an impression. The names for the people the player encountered helped see into the eyes of the killers, but the fact that the violence was turn based almost made it seem less intense. However, the fact that there were combat points rewarded was pretty disturbing. The one thing that surprised me was the kid in the parking lot who was allowed to live and run away. I wasn’t quite expecting to see that considering the game’s premises.Sun, 22 Feb 2009 19:41:09 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3663&iddiary=6851https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3554I finished up playing Grand Theft Auto this morning. Although I was enjoying the game last night, I didn't have the same feelings this morning. Perhaps it was because I had read the reading for class today after I turned off the game. Either way, I definitely took a much different perspective towards the game. I didn't realize there was the "hot coffee" minigame in there either. I think that the coders were just lazy not to completely take that out of the game. They deserved to lose the sales they did when the game was re-rated as A for Adults only. I don't mind so much the violence in the game, just because there are worse games out there, but the turbulent combination of murder, sex, should be restricted to only mature gamers. While entertaining, I definitely think that this game is not one for kids. However, I do not believe kids can say that video games make them less violent. I think the damage of these kind of video games is restricted to de-sensitization.Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:14:53 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3554&iddiary=6692https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3554I started to play the game again after I got home from work. From my experiences today, I remember "the only rule is that there are no rules." I continued to try some of the missions because, in my opinion, good games distinguish themselves from others by the quality of their story. From what I have seen so far, the story is pretty interesting. At the same time, it feels like it has been reused from other movies/games. However, for the first time in the Grand Theft Auto series, I actually enjoy playing missions. I know that I originally said that I hated them, but I have found myself trying to complete mission after mission to get more of the story line. So many of the characters have such different and interesting personalities which really add to the color of the game. Another thing that is really impressive is the size of the map-- I've been playing the game for about 2 hours now and there is still so much to be seen. Each area is not only large, but also has much different scenery.Tue, 20 Jan 2009 22:08:01 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3554&iddiary=6661https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3554I have played a few games in the Grand Theft Auto franchise, but I had never played San Andreas. The formula for this game was exactly what I expected: a story that revolves around a corrupt city with drugs, sex, and racism. With my previous experience in mind, I was not surprised when I was expected to steal a car/bike and having to beat up or kill other gang members. I jumped into the first few missions to meet some more of the mission givers. As with the other games in the series, I get tired of the missions--mostly because I feel like they are all the same. This game is not an exception. Although the missions are different, I just can't seem to get much enjoyment out of them. The missions are just about the only way to get the story, so I stuck around just long enough to figure out why I'm in San Andreas. It is cool to see so many different vehicles rolling around the city. I took a few of them for a joy ride and caused some mayhem. I tried to run away from the cops for as long as possible. For me, this is the most fun. The sandbox nature of the game makes it so no two chases are ever the same.Tue, 20 Jan 2009 12:43:33 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3554&iddiary=6640