Violent Video Games Lecture Notes Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the historical development, legal milestones, and major controversies surrounding violent video games as detailed in the lecture transcript.

First Amendment

The amendment to the U.S. Constitution that provides free speech protections, which the Supreme Court has ruled covers video games.

Adam Lanza

The individual responsible for the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, whose history with violent games sparked national debate.

First-person shooters

A genre of video games where players view the action and engage in combat from the perspective of the main character.

Representative Frank Wolf

A longtime critic of the video game industry from Virginia who advocated for government responses to game violence following the Newtown tragedy.

Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

The publication that featured a March 2013 study suggesting a correlation between playing violent games and increased levels of aggression.

Journal of Psychiatric Research

The publication that featured a February 2012 study concluding that violent video game play resulted in no negative outcomes.

American Psychological Association

The organization that conducted a research review suggesting that video games may help children release aggression in a safe way.

Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association

The 2011 U.S. Supreme Court case that overturned a California law banning the sale of violent games to minors, affirming their status as protected speech.

Edward Condon

A nuclear physicist who developed a computer game based on Nim for the 1940 World's Fair.

BASIC

The programming language created by John Kemeny in 1964 that simplified the process for developers to create games.

Ralph Baer

The inventor who patented the first interactive television-based video game console in 1968.

Magnavox Odyssey

Released in 1972, this was the first home video game system based on designs by Ralph Baer.

Atari

The company that released the arcade version of Pong in 1972 and the 2600 home console in 1977.

Maze Wars

A 1973 game developed by NASA interns and MIT programmers that is recognized as the earliest first-person shooter.

Death Race

An Exidy game released in 1976 that caused controversy for its objective of running over stick figures that resembled humans.

C. Everett Koop

The U.S. surgeon general who suggested in 1982 that video games were a secondary factor in family violence.

Custer's Revenge

A 1982 adult-oriented Atari game that faced significant protests due to its depiction of sexual assault.

Mortal Kombat

A 1992 fighting game that featured gory finishing moves called fatalities, leading to renewed public controversy.

Night Trap

A 1992 game using full-motion video of live actors that became a primary target during early 1990s congressional hearings.

Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB)

A self-regulatory organization founded in 1994 to establish age and content ratings for the video game industry.

Doom

A highly popular 1993 first-person shooter that became a focus for critics after several school shootings in the late 1990s.

Grand Theft Auto

A controversial game series by Rock Star Games where players earn points for committing various crimes in an urban setting.

Columbine High School

The site of a 1999 massacre that led to significant debate and lawsuits regarding the influence of the game Doom on the shooters.

Judge Lewis Babcock

The U.S. District Judge who dismissed a lawsuit against game manufacturers in 2002, ruling they could not be held liable for the Columbine shootings.

Justice Antonin Scalia

The Supreme Court justice who wrote the majority opinion in 2011 stating that psychological studies did not prove a causal link between games and child aggression.

Violence in Video Games Labeling Act

A bill reintroduced in 2012 by Joe Baca and Frank Wolf that proposed cigarette-style health warnings for violent games.

Parents Television Council

A conservative advocacy group that supports laws restricting the sale of adult-rated games to minors.

Adam Thierer

A researcher from the Cato Institute who observed that juvenile violent crime arrests dropped significantly during the peak of the game industry's growth.