VIDEO GAMES PLAY ROLE IN POP CULTURE
Copyright 2004 www.tombraiderchronicles.com

[ October 8th 2004 ]

In the halls of Congress, on newspaper opinion pages, in the fevered nightmares of worried parents, the debate continues: Are video games good or bad? On college campuses, though, the talk has moved on. There, the games are increasingly seen as an important social and cultural force worthy of serious study. Researchers have investigated whether playing video games improves the speed and accuracy of surgeons. They are doing MRIs to see what happens in the brain when violent games are played. They are developing video games designed to help students retain more of what they learn in the classroom.

In all of this there are echoes from earlier times. When movies and television were young, each was dismissed by critics as a wasteland, the breeding ground for laziness and stupidity among viewers. In time, films and TV were recognized as enormously influential. Now, on college campuses across the land, courses are offered in the history and appreciation of film and TV. Both media are reviewed as art forms in newspapers, magazines, books.

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