Banning Video Games-Pros & Cons for Excellent Essay/Speech
Introduction
Video games are a multi-billion-dollar industry that has skyrocketed in popularity over the years. Video games are produced for all age groups, ranging from children to old adults. Because of this extensive fan base and variety, video games have become a huge part of our culture today.
However, with every great thing, there is always criticism and controversy. There has been a growing debate over whether video games should be banned or not. This is an un-debatable issue because there are both pros and cons to banning any entertainment material, no matter how destructive it may be to society.
Let us look at some of the best pros and cons that you can include in your speech or essay to make it great.
Banning Video Games-Pros
Prevent gaming disorder/ video game addiction
One of the significant pros of banning video games is that it will help prevent video game addiction, also known as gaming disorder. Some gamers lose track of time when playing video games which can lead to health complications. Additionally, children may be encouraged to play violent video games if they are not monitored.
It is not uncommon to see those in their late teens or early twenties go on epic gaming binges where they game for hours without eating or even going to the bathroom. Those suffering from gaming addiction are usually unsuccessful with their careers and relationships.
Promote good time management skills
Another excellent pro of banning video games is that it will promote good time management skills. Many people waste a lot of time playing video games. In addition, being hooked on video games can affect a person’s productivity at work.
Among the adverse effects of video games is time wastage among students. When you are in college or high school, it is very easy to get distracted by your video game and postpone homework assignments or personal study plans. If there were no more video games, students could spend their time doing something productive like studying for exams or catching up with school work.
Improve good morals
Among the cons of video games is that they introduce innocent kids to playing violent video games filled with nudity against society’s ethics. For example, a kid might pick up profanity language from online gamers, which is not good. Banning video games would ensure that the kids have a better outlook on life and positive morals.
You may be interested in our collection of controversial debate topics
Encourage Family Bonding
Another excellent pro to banning video games is allowing parents to bond with their children and be involved in raising them. Kids today spend so much time with video games that they have minimal contact with their parents. Banning video games will result in kids having more quality time with their families.
Prevent the Danger of Health Problems Caused by Video Games
Playing video games has been linked to some health complications. Therefore, banning video games will prevent gamers from developing health issues. Video gamers spend a lot of time sitting in front of the computer, leading to poor health and bad posture.
This can result in back problems, neck problems, headaches, and eye damage, among other issues. If parents knew this, most would be happy to have their kids banned from playing video games.
Video games cause aggressiveness and violent behaviour influenced by what is presented to the kids.
Most video games are very violent, which can cause teens to develop negative behavioural traits such as anger, hostility, depression, nervousness, and anxiety.
These issues have been found to elevate among those who frequently play video games. Banning video games will reduce the risks of teens developing behavioural problems.
We also have a list of debate topics that are appropriate for kids
Reduce academic failure in students by removing distractions
Video gaming is a major distraction to students since it takes time away from studying. Kids play video games to pass time and eventually get distracted from doing homework or concentrating on their studies. This results in poor academic performance among students who spend more time gaming than studying.
If this habit is not curbed, there is a high risk of these kids who play video games dropping out of school or failing their exams since they cannot make good use of the allocated time.
The above pro illustrates why banning video gaming in schools and colleges would help improve the academic performance of students.
Develop other skills
Playing video games is not only a waste of time, but it also causes preoccupation, which results in kids neglecting other essential life skills such as cooking and housekeeping.
Banning video games would force people who play them to develop these skills, which will enable them to become independent adults in the future.
Develop a healthy adolescent lifestyle
Playing video games can be very addictive, especially for adolescents who like new challenges that keep emerging with every level you pass. It is not uncommon to see players who stay up all night playing games. Banning video gaming will reduce the risk of addiction amongst kids and teenagers as they learn to balance playtime with other priorities in life.
Develop self-discipline
A significant advantage of banning video games is that it reduces preoccupation, which will then help develop self-discipline amongst players. Self-discipline is critical for any person wanting to succeed in life as it ensures that you don’t neglect other important things in life, such as education and personal development.
Our collection of entertaining debate topics is sure to keep your audience entertained
Banning Video Games-Cons
Loss of Employment
With the video game industry at a loss for profit, they have begun to turn towards comic books, novels, and movies. This has caused a significant increase in revenue in these industries as well. In fact, many of today’s most popular comic book heroes started on television or in movie theatres. For example, Superman and Ironman are now household names, both having been around for decades. Many of today’s popular computer games were based on or inspired by these characters. It is clear that if the video game industry is banned outright, it will take over a billion dollars away from these other struggling entertainment industries.
Loss of Revenue
The video game industry has billions of dollars in annual revenue; if this ban is passed, there will be far-reaching consequences on the economy. The loss of thousands of jobs and income will hurt the rest of the economy because many companies rely on video games to stay afloat.
In today’s economy, many countries are facing an economic crisis. The United States is quickly approaching a point in which the government will be unable to continue paying its people working jobs. Right now, the free market gives us two choices: cut salaries or find new income sources. Many voters would prefer to stay employed instead of searching for another job in this tough economy. When a new job comes along, it will either require less skill or pay significantly less money. We are already suffering enough from the recent economic crisis and don’t need to put ourselves at risk of losing even more jobs if video games are taken away.
You may also want to check cause and effect essay topics
Loss of Other Jobs that Depend on Video Games
Video game development is not the only way to make money. In fact, there are millions of jobs within the video game industry that can be saved. Video game testers and programmers are just two of many valuable employees who could lose their jobs if this ban occurs. At-risk would also be all other related industries such as movie theatres, comic book stores, and webcomic sites. Even on-demand entertainment services are at risk because many have come to rely on video games for additional revenue.
Video game developers create many types of jobs for people from all walks of life. Video game testers are responsible for checking if a game is ready to be sold in stores. Testers make sure that the gameplay works and that there aren’t any glitches or bugs in the program. These workers have an invaluable role in making certain video games work properly before they hit store shelves.
There are many more industries than just the video game industry that will be affected if this ban is passed. We must protect the jobs of millions of hardworking and skilled individuals who have nothing to do with violent video games. Additionally, there are so many other ways we can begin to make a positive change in our world without banning an entire entertainment option from society.
Loss of Social Connectivity
In the future, we may not be able to sit down with our friends to play a game of Halo; we might have nothing more than board games or card games to look forward to. Some people may question, “Why don’t we just leave the video game industry alone and let other industries take care of themselves.” But some things are more important than money; children’s health is one of them. The US judicial system would do well to remember what is most dear to the American people before deciding on an important issue.
Perhaps someone may argue that banning violent games does not mean we are taking away their hope for a brighter future; they can still use the internet, read books and newspapers, play chess, or do whatever else they would like to do. The problem is that video games offer something more exciting than any other option. Video games provide a social network that is difficult to describe. Millions of people play these games because they enjoy the competition, and it would be wrong to take that from them.
Throughout history, many great thinkers have had a slow start before becoming great. These people are highly regarded as some of the greatest thinkers ever to live because they could make progress in difficult situations. Video games give the youth of today extraordinary opportunities to connect with others and learn how to succeed in life. Banning these games from society is like banning dreams simply because they sometimes come with a negative influence. We cannot take away one person’s hope for an exciting future merely because they choose the wrong entertainment options.
Rampage and Underground Video Games
The video game industry is here to stay, so we must learn how to deal with it in the best way possible. Banning games from society will have negative impacts; there are millions of copies owned around the world. This ban will not stop people from playing violent video games; instead, it will drive the industry underground where there is no oversight or guarantee that children are being protected. If we allow this to happen, then all of our worst fears about violent video, especially to game players, may soon come true in the real world.
What if one day a child becomes so frustrated with the society that he or she decides to go on a violent rampage because the community has taken away their favourite entertainment option? What other options will they have then? We cannot take away one person’s leisure time just because someone else was harmed by it.
Seeing that video games may be the only viable outlet for some people, society risks pushing them into despair as we take away one of their passions.
HALO
The HALO game series is well known for having an extensive collection of games that are all very similar in design yet still provide hours of entertainment and problem-solving skills. This series has been around for more than ten years and has even been adapted into a movie. The way that the game is played is similar to chess because both games reward strategy and thinking ahead; however, they are very different in many aspects. HALO rewards players for strategic thinking, whereas chess does not include any special abilities. One can only assume that you will be halfway decent at either game if you are good at the other.
Two teams of four people each play HALO; one team plays the aliens (Covenant), and the other plays humans (UNSC). Each unit has a specific set of goals that they must complete to win, but we will discuss that more later.
HALO is a game where teamwork reigns supreme. The player who chooses to go at it alone and run around the map killing all enemy players will find themselves quickly overwhelmed by superior numbers. That being said, this concept applies just as strongly in real life; both games teach good values.
More Important Concepts in HALO
Covenant and UNSC: these are the two teams that play against each other; one team will be defending while the other is attacking. The Covenant has something important called the shield world (Halo), which serves as their base of operations, and it is this item that they need to defend at all costs. The UNSC has a giant ship that serves as their base of operations, and this is what they need to capture to win.
UNSC Marine: these are the foot soldiers for the humans; like all military forces, they have a wide range of capabilities from basic riflemen to heavy weapons specialists, pilots, medics, etc. They are also all equipped with jet packs, allowing them to gain an elevation advantage or escape quickly.
Covenant Soldier: they can be thought of as the alien equivalent of a UNSC Marine; they have a wide range of soldiers like riflemen, engineers (who can repair vehicles), and so on. They, too, are equipped with jet packs.
Vehicles: the UNSC has various cars to use, from jeeps, tanks, and bombers to aerial assault vehicles. These are extremely useful when used appropriately in battle.
The Covenant, on the other hand, has only two air-based vehicles: banshees (fast flying units) and ghosts (armoured, fast driving units). This makes them less flexible in terms of attack and allows them to focus on ground-level combat; this also makes the alien units a lot easier to kill.
Battle Rifle: this is the standard rifle for UNSC Marine and one of their best weapon in general as it has near-perfect accuracy at both short and long ranges. The battle rifle machine can zoom in and out to identify the target.
As can be seen, the HALO is an actual video game that teaches children problem-solving skills and collaboration. To execute all these actions, children will need to develop comprehension skills that can be well learned through interaction with those around them. As a result, banning such games will mean that children will lack social skills. Therefore, the game players will have to find an alternative means to interact and collaborate with others. We can see that in this way, the creativity of children will be negatively affected.
You may want to check our collection of essay topics, such as those expository essays
Infringement on the Freedom of Choice
When parents burn these games, they are in effect denying their children fundamental freedom of choice. The law is very clear regarding this matter; it states that you should never make any individual do anything against their will as it constitutes an infringement on the said person’s freedoms. Therefore, if your child is not interested in playing video games, it is your responsibility to identify what they are interested in and then try to introduce them into the world of video games.
If you insist on burning the video game industry despite this fact, remember that many other consequences may be felt not only by your child but also by the general society at large.
Theft and High Crime Rates
Indeed, children who aren’t allowed to play video games will have a lot of time on their hands, which may inadvertently lead them to commit crimes such as stealing. Studies show that those who use the internet for evil purposes are more likely to steal than those who do not (Chao).
Theft is another con of banning video, primarily due to job loss. As many people lose their jobs, they will have to seek other means of sustaining their livelihoods. Some of these jobless people who might not be lucky enough to secure another job will resort to stealing. Therefore, banning video games is a disadvantage for society.
Summary
In conclusion, we can say that video games are both good and evil in society. Many people depend on video games for survival. The industry has employed many people, and as such, it generates high revenues for different countries. On the other hand, if children are left to play too many video games, they will become lazy. Therefore, it is advisable to moderate video games in society.
Lastly, in case you still do not know where to start, our ivy league writers are ready to step in and ace the speech/essay for you. All you need to do is click the green button below!
