A video game developer is so fucking far from this situation it is laughable; these suits are destined to fail. It’s sad the lawyers are sucking money from the victims’ families.
Odds are a lawyer volunteered for the case in the hopes that Activision will settle just to keep their name away from Uvalde in the news. Families get pennies, lawyer gets a pay day, Activision barely notices.
This is just grasping at straws.
Before video games we were blaming rock music and Marilyn Manson for violence. This is just stupid. The only ones guilty here are the perpetrators and the society that failed to catch them falling in between the cracks and gave them easy access to firearms. There have always been people with murderous aspirations and always will be. The weapon of choise is just a tool and a force multiplyer. They likely would have used a tactical nuke if they had access to one. They didn’t so an assault rifle was the next best choise. Focusing on AR-15 is ridiculous. They’ll use what ever the best thing is they have access to.
On the other hand, CoD is just U.S. Army recruitment propaganda, so fuck it.
Before video games we were blaming rock music and Marilyn Manson for violence.
Marilyn Manson’s first song was released in 1992.
Video games were being blamed for violence by that time, and there was even a congressional hearing on the topic of video games and violence in 93-94.
Call of Duty? REALLY? The other two are maybe something (still seems like grasping at straws) but a video game?
My heart goes out to the families for what they went through but this doesn’t seem like it solves anything…
I agree.
I was taken aback by this level of CoD: MW2 as many others were:
It was such a morality issue that came up. I simply didn’t expect it to be in the series. It made me not fire like I normally would. I felt so uncomfortable and guilty being there. It just shows that it’s the person not the game.
Defense: millions of other people who played the same game who didn’t choose to shoot anyone in real life.
Culturally, gun manufacturer should bear more responsibility for gun violence, although legally, it’s a difficult argument. But moving the needle is a good thing.
Facebook actually has the least defensible position here, given their record of institutionally repeating and spreading untrue and radicalizing statements.
By adding Activision into the suit, however, the families have pretty much scuttled their own ship before it set sail.
It seems like your game defense also works for guns and Facebook?
Things are rarely 100% causative. In all these cases, I think we have to ask if the trigger allows/pushes some percentage to an action. Then, is that percentage and action significant enough to act on. It’s the same way we deal with medicines and carcinogens.
Not really.
Gun manufacturers specifically market guns and lobby for laws that make it easier for children to access guns.
Activision does not.
Meta does not.
Meta publishes harmful, influential information without differentiating between fact and fiction.
Activision does not.
Both gun manufacturers and Facebook are historically, actively institutionally and directly culpable in ways that Activision is not.
Medicines and carcinogens are a great example, since they are both heavily lobbied and the theoretical regulatory ideal you’re positing doesn’t exist. Pharmaceutical companies and food factories are responsible for many illnesses because they, like gun manufacturers, are directly marketing products that hurt people.
I don’t understand how your post refutes my argument. OP said millions play games, so if only one person screws up among those millions, it can’t be the games fault. The argument can just as well be applied to Facebook and guns. Only a small fraction of those users become mass shooters.
I’m not saying there isn’t a problem with guns. I think America is mentally ill in it’s relationship with guns.
In response to your comment, if Activision was found to be taking money from the gun or military industry to market weapons through their games, do you think they should be partially liable? If I understand the lawsuit correctly, that is what this case is about.
Yes, If Activision is taking money from the gun or military industry to market weapons through their games, they are partially liable. Maybe I missed that in the article?
I just reread it, but I don’t see that argument. I see it saying that because the guns are in the game, it’s Activision’s fault that this kid shot people.
It’s a matter of responsibility. Gun manufacturers market the guns and lobby for less restrictive gun regulations, the amount of guns in a country and their regulatory status is obviously correlated with gun violence.
The manufacturers, marketers and lobbyists are the most responsible.
Meta radicalizes extremists
Less responsible, but a fairly easy line to draw with precedent(isis, Jan. 6th, Facebook manifestos from other shooters).
Activision makes a game with guns that look real in them.
Least responsible, easy to refute in multiple ways. What about a keychain company that makes realistic assault rifle keychains? Airsoft companies? New Line Cinema? Why aren’t they included in this suit if the depiction of a realistic gun is enough to drive certain people to violence ?
The Activision claim as stated in the article is clearly the weakest link in the case and since it can be so easily disproved, tanks the case before the case is taken up.
Look, I actually agree with going after weapons manufacturers, and I can understand suing social media companies for the way their algorithms steer people to radicalism but keep your god damned hands off my video games.
lol beyond stupid.
Too much time shooting in videogames so at some point some of them start wanting to shot real people… Seems plausible.
