FPS: The Play premieres in San Francisco

Author: Joe Martin
Published: 8th May 2007
Comments (6) Stumble
FPS: The Play tries to examine how computer games are blamed for real life violence.

FPS: The Play tries to examine how computer games are blamed for real life violence.

This weekend was an exciting time if you happen to be a theatre-loving geek in San Francisco as the new game themed play, First Person Shooter: The Play, premiered over there recently.

The play is about a start-up computer game company that launches into the limelight after making the most gruesome and violent game on the market. We won't spoil anything, but it inevitably goes wrong after the game is blamed for a schoolyard shooting.

Of course, such a preposterous thing would never happen in real life, would it...

The show was written by Aaron Loeb, former journalist for IGN. Loeb says the main goal of the show was to " show the "controversy" to be the inhuman and immoral boondoggle that it is. That we respond to something so horrible as a school shooting by trying to figure out a quick and easy blame-based sound-bite ("videogames did it" or "bullying caused it") is horrifying. In the face of these tragedies we need to talk more, not less."

It's an admirable effort to be sure and, given the recent tragedy at Virginia Tech and the foolish attempts of some campaigners to pin blame on computer game developers early on, it couldn't come at a better time.

"Ultimately, I hope people who see the play will, if they don't already, start questioning Dr. Phil's motives when he rushes out to say "videogames did it." I hope that they will ask, "Is this really what we should be talking about now?" Aaron said to Kotaku today.

We want your thoughts on First Person Shooter: The Play - too much too soon or the perfect thing to talk some sense into J.Thompson Esq.? Let your vote count in our Discussion Forums.
Downloand Mercenaries 2: World In Flames Now!
Quote L2wis 8th May 2007, 12:19
video games are always an easy scape goat for things that go bad or are unexplainable... it's just how the media portray things and mould ppl into mindless dummys. Debate is great when there are taboo's in the air. good luck to 'the play'
Quote Bauul 8th May 2007, 12:47
Good luck to them, it's funny how certain things are used as scapegoats for tragedies like this. As everyone knows following Columbine, Heavy Metal was blamed as a key reason for the shootings, but following the discovery the Virginia Tech Shooter was a big grunge fan, no-one turned around and blamed Kurt Cobain for mass murder, it's strange. I guess it's just a lot to do with public perception. Violence breeds violence and all that, despite scientific evidence to the contrary. In fact, from a limited selection of games, the most soothing were found to be the ultra violence ones such as Doom or Mortal Kombat, whilst the one that made it's players the most bad tempered, short fused and agressive was, quite logically in hind sight, Tetris.

In other words, it's all the Game Boy's fault. :D
Quote Dr. Strangelove 8th May 2007, 14:07
hmm wonder if someone is now going to shoot a lot of people and claim it was because he watched this play?
Quote speedfreek 8th May 2007, 16:25
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bauul
whilst the one that made it's players the most bad tempered, short fused and agressive was, quite logically in hind sight, Tetris.

In other words, it's all the Game Boy's fault. :D
Yes it was, it was the cause of fights over who got to play too.
Quote thecrownles 8th May 2007, 21:24
I don't see how this play is going to draw an audience, unless there is something really special about it, because if the target audience is theatergoing computer gamers then they have a pretty small target to hit. Maybe I'm just underestimating writers but from the title I wouldn't want to see this play.
Quote DXR_13KE 8th May 2007, 21:38
GAMES CAUSES TERRORISM!!!!!!![/sarcasm]
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