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jzygmun1's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PC)
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| [October 5, 2010 12:19:57 AM]
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I continued playing mission in GTA: San Andreas today and became somewhat bored. The same themes seem to be appearing over and over and I have only played the game a handful of times so far. I walk the down the street and only see skimpily dress women and men is gangster clothes in the neighborhoods I have explored. I do not believe it represents a fair assessment of how people dress and is a case of extreme stereotyping. I am sure that even in gang neighborhoods there are people that dress more conservative and are not strictly one dimensional in appearance. Again, I went on a mission and had to go pick up fast food for myself so that I would gain wait since Carl is currently too skinny to be a real gang member. Self-image is such a prominent part of GTA: San Andreas that no mention of education, careers, or community service is even mentioned. If anything the gang is doing a disservice to society by exploiting women, vandalizing building, and killing other gang members.
Racism is also apparent in the game as the policemen I see are always white while the other gang members in both Carl’s gang and other gangs are African-American. By watching documentaries on the History Channel about gangs all around the United States has taught me that gangs can be any race and any ethnicity and the same goes for the police forces that were targeting the gangs. This game has extreme racial profiling and does not represent a fair assessment of gangs in America or the police forces in the United States.
Sex, drugs, and violence are three themes that constantly are coming up in various missions in GTA: San Andreas. In one particular mission Carl and another gang member go to a “Balla’s” house to kill the guys inside. When you walk in smoke from drugs fills the room and you can see a male and female engaging in a sexual act in the background. Shortly after, more “Ballas” enter the room with baseball bats and you have to kill them to finish the mission. All three themes are present in this one scene, thus supporting my claim that gangs are portrayed as being violent and after sex and drugs. None of these images are good for people who play the game, especially young children who are still grasping what goes on in society. This particular mission like all other mission is mandatory to move on in the game, so the images are impossible to ignore and the violent acts must be carried out. While many people enjoy the game, as represented by the millions of copies that have been sold; I believe it is fair to say that GTA: San Andreas does not incorporate proper themes that game players should be exposed to nor is it racially just.
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| [October 4, 2010 09:53:40 PM]
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I played GTA: San Andreas again today and enjoyed the game much more this time around. I began the mission and completed the first few with ease as most people should if you are familiar with the Grand Theft Auto series. I noticed that when playing the game on PC and you press the TAB key, five statistics appear in the bottom, right corner of the screen. These statistics include: respect, stamina, muscle, fat, and sex appeal. Of course one would want fat low and the other four categories high, but it was interesting that these were the five statistics or characteristics chosen to personify Carl. The game says nothing about friendliness, kindness, or other characteristics that are more positive. Respect in the terms of a gang is used in the sense of how much can other people trust you not to squeal. Stamina and muscle go together in saying how tough you are and fat is the opposite by showing how weak and slow you are. Sex appeal on the other hand is more of how popular and well-known you become. None of these are very positive uplifting characteristics like how well you get along with your friends or how well one shares with others. While the five statistics represented in the game are good things to have, except fat, respect is the only one that parents may preach about to their children who may play the game. Is it ethical for the makers of GTA: San Andreas to preach that these are the five most important characteristics to have or not have and they are the only ones you should care about?
While the game is of course centered on gang members, children or even young adults do not always grasp this concept that just because gangs may think highly of these characteristics, does not mean that all people think the same way. The gangs seem to value physical fitness and appearance more than anything else as shown by these statistics and even in the first few missions when “Sweet,” Carl’s brother, keeps telling Carl he needs to find new clothes and wear the colors of the gang to become a member again. While the game seems to do a good job of describing how gangs are in real life, there is a clear discrepancy in values when comparing gangs to people not in gangs. While personal image has become a much more valued characteristic as the media has infiltrated people’s lives, nobody except gangs goes around dressing in the same color with matching tattoos and similar hair styles as do gang members. If one member did not wear blue like his gang members for a day he would be kicked out while if coworkers that work for Harris Bank wore different color ties nobody would think anything of it. Is it acceptable for GTA: San Andreas to focus gang values on image even though this perception is mostly true; or should the developers have drifted from reality to incorporate more ethical values such as friendship and honesty along with muscle, fat, and sex appeal? The question becomes hard to answer since no game I have played has done the ladder and might never do it since I believe most people would find the game less exciting and would no longer serve as an escape from reality like most gamers hope to experience.
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| [October 2, 2010 07:35:40 PM]
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I began playing Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas two days ago, but the game froze before I saved it so I decided to just not write anything about it. I played the game for another hour today and decided to start off exploring the map since that is what I have done before when playing other Grand Theft Auto games. The main character is named Carl and has moved from the East Coast back to his hometown to bury his mother who was recently killed. It seemed like the only way to have the police come after you was by killing somebody. I stole cars and bikes as well as driving around ramming into things and the cops did nothing. I even hit a cop car on multiple occasions and they did nothing until I ran a person over. It made me wonder how the life we know would be if nobody was in trouble unless they killed somebody. If the only immoral act was to kill then society would have many more problems than it currently does.
After roaming for a while, I decided to try the first mission and it did not go too well. When riding on my bike with Carl’s gang, The Grove Street Families, I was shot and killed by members of the Ballas. The Ballas are an enemy gang in San Andreas and although Carl was living in Liberty City for the past five years, he instantly lost his identity once he was with his gang again. It is interesting how the gang world works in that anyone part of an enemy gang is an enemy even though the members of different gangs very well could be friends if placed into a different setting. Race, family background, ethnicity, and various stereotypes all play into how different gangs are made up and why they do not get along, but at the same time there are many other people of mixed race, ethnicity, and family backgrounds that converse on a daily basis without any problems.
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