Everybody knows that Shigeru Miyamoto is a lovely little imp. Not only is he always grinning like some sort of lunatic, his games are colorful, gentle and most importantly, not all that violent. In fact, in a recent interview, the legendary game creator stated that violent content in games concerns him.
“[I’m] concerned that many developers focus just on excessive violence in order to stimulate people’s minds. I believe that here are more ways of grabbing players’ attention than violence alone.
I also hope that parents take advantage of age ratings when letting their children play.”
Miyamoto is right when he says that there are more ways of getting our attention, but let’s be honest — rarely are they quite as effective as a hammer to the skull or a chainsaw through the neck. Like it or not, we’re a violent species, and while most of us have reined in our base instincts to become civilized people, the majority of us still have an underlying fascination with the brutal.
Rather than be too concerned, I would instead be glad that a lot of people can release their violent sides through a videogame rather than let it explode in real life. There is a reason that stuff like violence and sex sells — it’s because deep down we’re all vicious, horny bastards.
Even, I’d wager, Miyamoto … and that’s a scary thought.
