In collecting proposals for the Office of Vice President Biden I was thrilled to receive in a matter of days over 100 ideas on reducing gun violence. I was impressed at the heart felt passion from multiple sides of many issues including gun regulation, mental health care, the question of whether the violence in video games is just used as a political tool, and the content and regulation of game themes. None could point to a definitive study linking real world gun violence to video games, however, many thought games could provide a wider variety of experiences for players.

While gun control is a wicked problem  the good news is that there are a number of simple things we can do to start reducing violence. Here’s a list of new year’s resolutions for Vice President Biden and those wanting to reduce gun violence in 2013.

1. Vice President Biden must work to lift restrictions banning the CDC and NIH from researching gun violence and the effects of gun control. (found by Mary Holzer) Is this real? Seriously?
2.  Vice President Biden should establish dialogs with the gun owning community about their thoughts about how to reduce gun violence. (suggested by Kevin Jones)
3. Vice President Biden should work to strengthen regulations of gun purchases as well as limit the types of guns and ammunition that are sold to the general public.
4. Vice President Biden can sponsor one or more of the following kinds of games:

• A social game or an ARG to encourage community dialogs on improving mental health and reducing gun violence (suggested by Ian Schreiber)
• A game to create empathy in kids. (That’s on the top of our agenda here at XEOPlay)
• A community based game to encourage the voluntary turn in of guns and ammo. (suggested by Asi Burak)
• A game to raise a player’s emotional awareness and intelligence. (also important to us here at XEOPlay)
• A game to increase social bonding between players
• A game that reinvents the game of High School using MMO guild dynamics (suggested by Dr. Edward Castronova)
• A contest like the “X Prize” to playsource ideas for reducing gun violence.
• A contest or grant program to fund non-violent games. (suggested by Robin Hunicke)

5. Vice President Biden should ask the President to encourage game developers to strive for higher forms of entertainment and explore non-violent themes. (suggested by Dean Takahashi)
6. Vice President Biden should open a dialog with the game community on how to reduce gun violence.
7. Citizens (that’s most of us) can hold community dialogs in person and on line on reducing violence in their communities as well as improving mental health and stress reduction. Real change comes from the grass roots.
8. Game developers should make more non-violent games like Journey, Braid, and World of Goo.
9. Game developers should make more playsourcing games that change the player and their world for the better such as planting real trees with XEOPlay’s Tilt World.
10. Journalists should provide more coverage of non-violent games.

Here are a few quotes from game industry and social media experts I informally polled. I deeply appreciate everyone’s contribution and the help of Ron Meiners and Chris Bennett in reviewing the responses. From my perspective, I feel that for many of you, the best move is to imagine the world you want to live in then make and play those kinds of games. Biologically, play is where we invent our future selves and as a society we need a wide variety of games to develop players into a wide variety of roles as adults. More on this soon as my team at XEOPlay concepts our next game to unlock human potential through play. (Ping me if you want email updates) I am curious to hear what you have to say on gun violence real and virtual. Add your voice in the comments.

“My proposal is simple: $500 tax per bullet.” Daniel Terdiman, Technology Journalist

“If the White House is really interested in games, they could start using them as sophisticated communication tools about complex systems instead of using them as rhetorical levers when the need arises (cf. ‪http://bogo.st/w5 )” Ian Bogost, Distinguished Chair in Media Studies and Professor of Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech

“Play with violent themes, from Chess to Dungeons & Dragons to first-person shooter videogames, is psychologically important and culturally positive. Such games are part of a noble tradition in art and culture, from Shakespeare to Goya to Hip-Hop. Even games with bona fide violence, such as Football, can be beautiful.” Eric Zimmerman, Independent game designer & founding faculty, NYU Game Center

“Make a game that gives boys power without using violence.” Isabel Draves

“I think that the game industry should be encouraged to achieve the lofty levels of great art forms. The President could inspire the game creators to create great art that is also fun, rather than games that appeal to the lowest common denominator. He could encourage people to create non-violent games or those that educate.” Dean Takahashi, Game Journalist

“I’m not well educated on the topic, but I don’t understand why automatic weapons are legal, and I don’t understand why the mentally ill are allowed to own guns at all. People who have epilepsy are not allowed to drive, why should people with emotional problems and impulse control problems be allowed to own automatic weapons?” Jesse Schell, Game Designer

“I believe that the way to reduce gun violence is to enact strict gun laws, take out of circulation most of the existing guns, focus on ready access to mental health care and focus on education that promotes the concept of common good. The last point can probably be done through games too.” Giordano Bruno Contestabile, Executive Producer – Bejeweled Franchise at Electronic Arts

Many recommended reducing gun violence focused on holding gun owners responsible for their weapons. Several cautioned that the disproportionate media coverage of mass shootings draws attention from the larger problem of the day to day gun violence that claims 30,000 American lives every year. Therefore, any proposed solution should also reduce these daily shootings. Some suggested increasing the cost and ability to access guns especially guns of high capacity. That said, it is important to work with the gun owning community for ideas on how to reduce gun violence.

“The Right to Own Guns is a deeply held American value. While many countries around the world have successfully implemented strict gun control laws – and have seen dramatic reductions in homicide rates – we do not propose the wholesale restriction of gun ownership. Gun Ownership is a right that carries strong obligations and responsibilities to wield this right in a manner that protects the rights and liberties of fellow Americans – namely the pursuit of life itself. In short, we promote Gun Responsibility not Gun Control. Ownership, Training, Checks and Tiers – OTCT” Erik Bethkie, Game Entrepreneur

“Guns kill over 30,000 Americans each and every year. If you stop the mass school shootings you haven’t even made a noticable dent. I presume most of them are killings of just one person. Sudden acts of passion facilitated by quick and easy access to a loaded gun. 17,000 suicides, over 10,000 homicides. A number of gun accidents too.  Anecdotally, I read about one non-fatal shooting where a fellow shot his neighbor in the face during an argument after yelling “Don’t tell my dogs to shut up!”  He fired four more shots at his neighbor as the man was running away. Studies have shown, as have actual experiments by the New York police, that most crime is highly opportunistic, and that a small reduction in how easy it is to commit a crime produces a large reduction in how often it happens. But  you won’t stop America from having 270 million guns until you get American culture to stop wanting so many guns.” Dr. Cat

“Let’s acknowledge that the POSSIBILITY of armed insurrection pales before the REALITY of people dying in America today. We can absolutely, unquestionably make it harder for people to kill by getting rid of oversized clips -­‐ get rid of them. No private citizen needs ammunition popularly called “cop killer ammo.” Ban Teflon-­‐coated bullets. Now.” Warren Spector, Veteran Game Designer

“ I guess I should start out by saying that while I believe certain games offer experiences that are beyond my own capacity to enjoy, I don’t believe that games are the problem, any more than books or television. The correlation between video gaming and gun violence is low. However, the correlation between access to uncontrolled weapons and mass gun-related murder is 100%. I am a mother and a video game maker and have been personally affected by gun violence. I also strongly support the 2nd amendment. I believe every right carries responsibility. Our current laws and policies create safe space around the right to bear arms, but completely abdicate the accompanying responsibilities for safe, educated use of weaponry and protection of innocent human lives. Newtown was of course horrific, but sadly it is only the most obvious example of the imbalance of rights versus responsibility.” Shannon Loftis GM for Interactive Television for Microsoft Studios, mom, video game maker, and gamer.

“Forget about reactionary gun control laws that target weapons that account for less than 3% of all gun deaths anyway (FBI’s uniform crime report). – Continue and/or expand gun buyback programs (the kind that recently made headlines for collecting rocket launchers in CA); the owners who are least likely to take precautions against having their guns stolen are the most likely sell them — and those easily stolen guns are the ones that end up being used in most gun violence.” Giles Schildt, Game Designer

Providing better mental health care seemed appropriate to prevent individuals from expressing their rage in a shooting rampage. Many felt that reduction in mental health services to the general public and in schools and CDC and NIH research bans on gun violence were bad trends that needed to be reversed.

“Ready access to universal healthcare seems to be the best way to provide care to mentally ill people.” Giordano Bruno Contestabile, Executive Producer – Bejeweled Franchise at Electronic Arts

“The sudden enthusiasm on the part of gun rights proponents for better mental health care is nothing but a smokescreen. Tragedies such as Sandy Hook, horrific as they are, are really beside the point because they are comparatively rare. Gun violence in America is far higher than that of other First World nations with similar numbers of guns per capita. The problem is the ease with which guns may be obtained by people who cannot be trusted with them. I have a number of concrete proposals that do not violate the Second Amendment.” Ernest Adams, High Technology Consultant

“I’m also not sure you can lump all shooters in the same category. For one, the motivation of a frustrated student taking a gun to school and blowing away his classmates is going to be very different from the motivation of an adult shooter with no direct connection to a school that chooses a school as a target anyway. The former might be solvable by better in-school systems designed to identify and prevent bullying, provide reasonable support (without stigma) to students who need some extra emotional help for whatever reason, etc.; the latter, not so much (or at least it’d be an indirect effect, if so).” Ian Schreiber

“Stress fuels anxiety, depression, substance abuse, violent, impulsive behavior, and suicidal tendencies. Forbes magazine recently termed stress as the “black plague of the 21st century” because conventional medical treatments for prevention and cure fail to address what is now a widespread epidemic.’ Bob Roth, Director of the David Lynch Foundation

“I believe that those of us who use media to communicate with the public should put a stop to the demonization of the mentally ill. Sandy Hook can happen to anyone and it can happen anywhere. My mother once worked with a man who had mental health issues. They were both janitors at my middle school. She said that in general he was a kind man who just needed help but was finding it hard to get it. He spent some time in a Psych ward but did not get the quality counseling he needed. The year after I graduated High School, this man went on a shooting rampage in my hometown. He killed a girl who had volunteered as a receptionist in the Psych ward as part of a program at my High School and then shot up a Lyons restaurant that I used to frequent with my friends. This happened in the quaint little mining town of Grass Valley, no one is immune, and this man, although he committed some horrible acts, was not in his right mind. He needed help.” Glenn Hernandez, Game Artist XEOPlay

“How can we help these young isolated males better connect to those around them?  Can we create a system that fosters their connection to other gamer peers, in mentor relationships that provide emotional support first around games but then hopefully extends out into other spheres?  This is the sort of thing we can do independently as well.” Ron Meiners, Online Community Consultant, Game Designer

“Several words come to mind, especially with reference to the undoubtedly horrific high school experiences most of these guys must have had. One is TEAM. Another is GUILD. Can we redesign the game of high school society so that everyone – everyone – becomes part of a supportive group? Can we make everyone feel like they have something to contribute? Can we give every teenager a moment or two of patting on the back and high-fiving? Can we create a situation where every teenager has many close friends? Can we do this with groups that do not descend into gangs, but do things that are fun, rewarding, tough, and at least neutral with respect to the surrounding world?

“OK, that’s it: Redesign the social world of High School. Big problem, but it would make a big difference.

“And once you get that done, redesign human relationships so that every child grows up with at least one loving and emotionally stable attachment figure. Problem solved!!!!”
Edward Castronova, Games, Technology, and Society, Professor of Telecommunications, Professor of Cognitive Science Indiana University

As expected, people were divided on whether there was a relationship between game violence and real world violence. Some felt this was a tactic to draw attention away from the actual causes of real world violence. Many felt that the game industry could do a better job at promoting high quality non-violent games such as Journey, Braid, and World of Goo. There was a call to action to inspire more of this kind of content to be made in order to achieve higher artistic goals for the medium of games.

“Blaming video games for gun violence today is as silly as it was for politicians and pundits of the ’60s to blame television for all of our woes… or critics of the ’50s to blame juvenile delinquency on pinball parlors and comic books… or cultural critics of the ’20s and ’30s to blame movies for a variety of social ills.” Warren Spector, Veteran Game Designer

“I think that the game industry should be encouraged to achieve the lofty levels of great art forms. The President could inspire the game creators to create great art that is also fun, rather than games that appeal to the lowest common denominator. He could encourage people to create non-violent games or those that educate.” Dean Takahashi, Game Journalist

“As a game developer, I view games within the larger context of media and entertainment available to people. So, we have movies for adults, games for adults, movies for kids, games for kids. All media has this spectrum. My children are not yet ready for The Walking Dead in either video game or television form. Studies have shown repeatedly that there is no correlation between video games and violence. However, and this is alarming to me, parents often assume that because it is a game, that it’s fine for their children. They often overlook the ESRB rating and buy the game for them anyway. While ratings and point-of-sale ID checks have certainly prevented children from purchasing games designed for adults,  it has not done all it could do in terms of educating parents that media is media, whether it is a game or a film. As a developer, like a film director, we are able to explore the full range of the human experience. Parents need to view games within the larger context of media and not as as “just for kids.” As an aside, how about some gun control. Games don’t kill people. Real guns, real bullets and real people do.”  Brenda Ramero, Game Developer

“By the way, violent media decreases crime. Not because it changes violent people, but because it keeps violent people in front of screens.” Ted Castronova:

“We can do all these talks but the best thing we can do is to make games and get them into people’s hands. That way they can how fun non-violent games can be.” Jennova Chen, President and Creative Director of thatgamecompany

“So how about that as a solution to Nicole’s original problem, then? Create an ARG where the players (perhaps tens of thousands of them, maybe more) collaborate to find optimal solutions to the real-world problem of reducing violent crime. Feed the output of that game back to Biden.” Ian Schreiber

“Just like XEOPlay’s Tilt World, create a game, a fun game to teach kids just every thing about not using violence to resolve issues/angers and all that. I’ve reading more stories coming out about that raped woman in India, it broke my heart every single time. 
Gamify the education of anti-violence, anti-gun. And that’s what you, Nicole Lazzaro is a master of!” Shirley Lin, Managing Director at 800 Birds

“We’re not totally clean – media has impact: and now let’s focus on video games.  Yes, we keep hearing that no direct correlation has been proven between violent video games and acts of violence.  However, as Co-President of Games for Change it’s hard for me to argue that games have no impact or ability to train, teach, and even change behavior.  If this power can be utilized for positive outcomes, it must also have negative consequences.  Fortunately, there are rating systems for movies, video games and other media.  So instead of saying that we are clean, I would argue – let’s review our systems, make sure they are working, and more importantly – make sure that the regulations are followed. My suspicion, especially when I watch an R-rated movie in a multiplex cinema and hear children cry in the back is that in many places the rating system is simply ignored.” Asi Burak Co-President – Games for Change, Faculty at the School of Visual Arts in NY (MFA)

“Researchers have routinely found that games don’t cause children to become uniquely violent any more than movies, TV or books have in previous generations. But this easily confounds most parents, teachers and psychologists. After all, how can experiences so engaging and violent be completely blameless? As much as the games industry wishes it wasn’t true, they are somewhat to blame. Games may not create the violent impulse in the first place, but they certainly can make kids better at violence if already predisposed to it. Games are, after all, an effective training tool in other contexts — so why shouldn’t this be so for murder in real life? Games are used to train air force pilots, nuclear plant operators, hotel desk clerks and bus drivers — each job being more complex than shooting up a room full of defenseless, naive 6-year-olds. So why can’t games — with their powerful engagement mechanics and ever-more realistic interactions — help make better killers?” Gabe Zickerman, Gamification Expert

“I don’t think this issue can be addressed by one industry only. As an industry that is focused on entertainment, free market forces will continue to compel the industry one way or another. It is precisely the social norms that need changing — and this will impact everything else from types of gaming content consumed to embracing stricter regulations around firearms and monitoring their usage.” Margaret Wallace, Game Developer

“Support and expand games education: A better educated, more diverse audience is the best way to change the content and aesthetics of games. Until consumers start rebelling against hyper-­‐real, hyper-­‐violent content, there’s no incentive to deliver any other kind of content. Developers and publishers follow the market; they don’t drive it. And even if you don’t believe that games CAUSE specific behaviors or even general types of behaviors – and I steadfastly refuse to believe that – there’s no question in my mind that we’ve reached a point where a lot of games are just going too far in terms of violent content. It’s just in bad taste and culturally corrosive… “ Warren Spector, Veteran Game Designer

How do you think Vice President Biden should reduce gun violence?
Leave a comment. It’s your move!

Game On!
\o/
Nicole

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