It is pretty likely that in the last few years you have heard countless stories that link video games, mainly those featuring a lot of violent content, and aggression in reality.  Finally researchers have found proof that this link may not be entirely true, and they have also determined that game play might have some benefits.

At the University of Goethe in Sweden a team of researchers got together to put the theory of violent video games leading to aggression to the test.  To do that they played competitive online video games and watched others for hundreds of hours.  The games that were chosen were not just aggressive in content, but they encouraged fighting against one another.

The results that the team found are contrary to what many people actually thought.  The majority of the time, the game players have to play nice as opposed to just going after each other.  Using coordination and clear thinking are also required skills in playing.

It was found that players who tended to act out of emotion or with aggression did not fair well in the games.  Another issue with players was rudeness.  If a player was not polite or too obnoxious that generally means fining people to play along with is difficult.

It was those two findings that led one of the researchers, Jonas Ivarsson to put down the studies and ideas that liken aggression in real life to that in a virtual world:

The suggested link between games and aggression is based on the notion of transfer, which means that knowledge gained in a certain situation can be used in an entirely different context.  The whole idea of transfer has been central in education research for a very long time.  The question of how a learning situation should be designed in order for learners to be able to use the learned material in real life is very difficult and has no clear answers…In a nutshell, we’re questioning the whole gaming and violence debate, since it’s not based on a real problem but rather on some hypothetical reasoning.

The results of this study are clearly going to encourage all of the people who have for a long while been on the defense for video games and the claims that they are the cause of many societal issues.  Of course, those on the other hand with a clear agenda against violence in video games will likely have a problem with these findings from the University of Goethe.  No matter, it is nice to know that there is more data and research to have around.

For a game that’s all about using blocks to build anything you can imagine, to construct labyrinthine chasms or stack up the heights of mountains all while keeping your dug out areas from flooding or caving in, it sure has gained a tremendous following.  I myself have spent hours playing Minecraft (much to the dismay of my doctor and my discount health plans), and it really never occured to me that anyone would actually spoof it with a song remix.  Yet, that’s exactly what the following people have done.  Enjoy.

Best Buy if offering this promotion to get more attention for its Best Buy Mobile business as it strives to gain market share and up the competition in the smartphone and wireless markets. The company has already earmarked $25 million for marketing in the upcoming holiday season, with even more promotions expected in the coming weeks.

Allister Jones, head of marketing for Best Buy Mobile, said, “We want to get customers to realize there is a better way, and that better way is Best Buy.”

Five years ago when the company launched its mobile department as a major add-on to its electronics retail store services, reception was slow going at first.  To step up interest in its mobile offerings, Best Buy Mobile now offers an optional buy back program — not limited to mobile devices, but that is certainly a bonus for anyone purchasing expensive smart phones.  Further, Best Buy Mobile sells a protection plan for a monthly fee that covers any and all types of mishaps, including theft, loss, and accidental damage that includes the all important screen of the devices.  It also comes in handy if you happen to drop your smart phone into a swimming pool, or toss it out the window while breezing down the highway. No other protection plan out there covers all of these things, but it comes at a price:  buyers will need to be prepared to pay up to $17 per month for the Black Tie Protection Program from the Geek Squad.  Also, with all these goodies in your house, you’ll want to make sure you have home security.

Unfortunately, this is not the case for everyone who enjoys games like World of Warcraft.  Like anything else in life, it can be abused, or twisted into something sinister that no longer resembles what it was meant to be.  In the mind of certain personality types, games like WoW can even be dangerous, as you’re about to see in the video clip below.  Certain types of people just cannot maintain an ordinary life while participating in imaginary worlds, because for some reason, they decide to dwell there instead of here.  Enjoy the video, but view it with a grain of salt.  We at Draagon.net in no way imply or agree with the notion that WoW is of itself dangerous — only that certain personality types may not be suited for playing.

Oatie has a partner, Quinoata, his Native American counterpart who is a whole grain with extra special powers, since he contains what is nutritionally known as a complete protein.  His special powers allow him to do certain power-ups and attacks that no other character in the game can accomplish.  He has what is sort of like a mana meter, and although his powers are certainly natural in nature, he can raise up his arms to the sky when at full mana, and wipe out all enemies within a 50′ radius with a power blast.

About the enemies:  the big one is TransFatula, an energy sucking vampire made of globulous heaps of gelatinous yellow goo.  He’s the Big Boss of the game, and no one gets a shot at him until once, at the end of each of 18 levels.  It’s really a cool game, so I’m hoping to get some friends behind it who know a thing or two about development.