Hey, good news, everyone! It turns out that adult human beings are still blaming video games for murder! It’s good to be back in the discourse after ceding ‘the problem with kids these days’ to social media. Let me back up. Whether you’re in America or not, you’ve probably heard about the murder of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson and the arrest of suspect Luigi Mangione, a name that, as many have pointed out, is far too close to Luigi’s Mansion for comfort.
Of course, this is serious. The case is constantly evolving. There’s still a lot to learn. But some of those things we’re learning are – I swear to God – making media outlets act like playing Among Us was a contributing factor. You know, Among Us. The wildly popular family-friendly game with the aesthetic of a ‘00s flash animation. The game in which you play a nondescript space crew as they try to find a traitor and the traitor, yes, tries to kill everyone. But is it an assassination simulator? Is it really? Come on. Bit of a stretch, I think.
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Among Us Was A Ridiculous Game To Drag Into This
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably played Among Us. And if you’re reading this, you’ll likely find it weird to blame that game for a very specific murder by a person who – while still a suspect – sure seems to have a history of frustration with the current social system and rage against the constant failures of the healthcare industry. I’m not a smart man, but I’m pretty sure Among Us wasn’t even in the top 100 of reasons he snapped. It’s kind of stupid to even bring it up as a noteworthy part of his life when it sounds like it was just a game he played with friends.
Yes, I’ll grant, the article that started this only takes this half seriously. The other half treats it like a confirmation on the type of guy the suspect is. We’re supposed to roll our eyes and go, “Yep, of course he liked video games!” And now it’s spawned other articles ‘explaining’ Among Us in the context of the suspect. So, regardless of how seriously reporters are treating this completely unrelated information, the game is now going to be associated – at least for a short time, in a small way – with a murderer.
And the fact that he played the game is being called “ironic,” as if Among Us is anything remotely close to what happened in New York or him playing a game like that at all is spooky in retrospect. I dunno, man. I used to work near that hotel where the shooting happened: It is as far away from the environment of Among Us as possible.
It Trivializes An Issue It’s Trying To Exaggerate
I want to emphasize that I don’t mean to dismiss or diminish the crime itself. And, in fact, I’d argue that the media focusing on stupid red herrings like a suspect’s favorite video game pushes aside the real narrative of what this is all about. What could cause such a tragedy? What could cause someone to go this far? Of course, we should not live in a world in which public, targeted killings happen. Of course, we should also not live in a world in which a small handful of folks benefit by denying the insurance claims of millions of suffering people.
Navigating America’s healthcare system can be intensely demoralizing. If it’s true – as alleged – that this suspect has a long history of speaking out against the healthcare industry and enduring massive chronic pain, well, I think that pretty much tells us most of what we need to know. And, yes, for a lot of us, this whole story is a blender of conflicting feelings and philosophies.
But what it’s not is a video game’s fault. This just makes me sound like a jerk, but the murder wasn’t even like the game Among Us! That’s such a silly, stupid, and worthless thing to point out. For the love of God, at least pin an international newsworthy crime on a game that makes sense. If a chef murdered her chef spouse and both were obsessed with Overcooked, that would feel more significant to me than this suspect (I’m sorry, but calling him Luigi is just too tempting to go too tasteless) playing Among Us.
If the suspect is – again, allegedly – telling us why he did this crime, maybe we should believe his stated motives? Not to use a game metaphor, but the guy doesn’t seem to be hiding the ball here. You don’t have to agree with his motives! You don’t have to condone what he did with those motives! But they do, at this point, seem pretty clear. I don’t think he was tricked into becoming violent against the healthcare industry because he lost to the weird doctor in Guilty Gear.
This Is An Old Story, And Still Makes No Sense
This case has far greater implications than what second screen multiplayer games the killer may have or may not have played. But I’ve been hearing this same old song for years since I was in high school when Columbine happened. It’s far easier – and more comforting – to blame violence on personal media preferences than it is to blame violence on extremely complicated, extremely hard-to-solve problems.
Perhaps that’s what bothers me, too. The side effect of making games a sort of personal flaw or quirk. Aren’t we past that? Video games are putting up big numbers. But it’s still simpler to say some teen is having trouble because of a game than it is to address the note behind the note of why a kid might be spending so much time in there. None of this is at the top of the list of importance, none of this is the biggest issue, but it’s a cycle that repeats while bigger, deeper issues get ignored.
Even if it’s a cute, silly, ‘fun fact’ distraction, that still makes it a distraction from real discussions about the healthcare industry and gun violence. Yeah, I do recognize there’s some hypocrisy in me giving this more coverage, but this is specifically a video game site and I’m tired of this crap.
I get it. You get it. Why even talk about it? I know I’m preaching to the choir. But it’s so, so, so absolutely stupid that video games always get blamed after tragedies in which a human being made a choice to be violent. I certainly think the anonymity and competitiveness of certain games can make people act horribly to each other. I certainly think that the pubescent peer pressure and the popularity of certain gaming influencers can teach some bad life lessons. But you know what? None of that is coming from the fictional experience of trying to sabotage a spaceship. It’s coming from the people.
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