But in all, I suppose this is due to the invention of the First Person Shooter. A genre that appeals to the very essence of our humanity, yet that we cannot achieve due to moral standards and societal restrictions. It is to kill. Who wouldn’t wanna know what it was like to kill another being with absolutely no consequences (not that video games can or ever will simulate a life and death struggle)? This has turned us all into shallow moron cattle that are just waiting for the next bag of cow feed. Oooh, everyone’s just waiting for the next big shooter to come out that has “revolutionary” multiplayer that is “funner than ever!” We are, in fact, the sheep of the fat cat herders at EA and Activision. There are games like Red Dead Redemption, which exposes the player to the hardships of one John Marston and his physical and emotional struggles as he fights to redeem himself, but is that what is fun about the game? Sure, maybe if it was a movie. But the fun part about the game, as masterfully and intellectually the plot and characters may have been crafted, is that you can shoot people dead and get away with it. Now, I do appreciate a good story and RDR was one of the most emotional and gripping stories I’ve ever experienced in a video game, but I admit, it sure was satisfying to shoot a criminal, or civilian, whatever the case may be, right in the face. Not that I am some sort of demented psycho killer, but it’s just fun, an escape if you will.

Games like L.A. Noire have proven you don’t need a violent war game to have fun, however, the mainstream gamer community is brainwashed to believe differently, thus meaning big bucks for the producers of big hits like Call of Duty.