Another Videogame Rant

So, for quite a while I brought in sheet music I had found to my piano lessons, all from video games. It was months before my teacher showed any interest at all in the subject, when she brought up Scribblenauts. And then I realized - she thought all games were first-person-shooters.

I began to wonder - how many adults think all videogames are violent and influence young people to do bad things? There are so many other genres, such as puzzle games (such as Tetris and Bejewled) and RPG's, most of which fall into the adventure category (too many to list here). Then there are platformers (like the Mario series) and arcade games (Pac-Man is my example here). There are simulation games (The Sims) and even more RPG's (like Lego Star Wars). Then, there are first-person-shooters (like Halo), which are what most teenagers play. I am a teenager, however, and I dislike those sorts of games. So why must all adults assume all games are violent? Tetris sure isn't violent! And what about games like Earthbound? Although it has fighting, you can hardly call it graphic, or even violent. Certainly not the sort of thing that would influence children to love violence. Oh, the poor misnomers like Chrono Trigger, that are wonderful (I haven't actually finished it though) but because of something in the name it is assumed to be violent. Well, Chrono Trigger is somewhat violent, but it's definately not even related to first-person-shooters.

People need to see the whole picture. Yes, first-person-shooters are the most common among young people, but adults need not assume that we're all playing mindless gory war games. I play RPG's. I play puzzle games. I play games like Wii Fit Plus. I play The Sims 2. BIG FLIPPIN DEAL. Mother 3's plot was more moving than most, no, any book I've ever read. And people have the nerve to suggest I play those sorts of games I hate.

Disclaimer: I have nothing against those who play first-person-shooters, just the games themselves.