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Wednesday, October 12, 2005Duped Again!So most of you who know me, know my passion for video games. Hell, even if you don't actually know me, but only read about me, know my passion. Well, today, during lunch, I visited one of my favorite web-based game sites to skulk around and see if there is anything new, or anything I haven't played yet. I found a couple that I found amusing and then saw one titled, "Adventures of Jack" which looked to be ok. So I click on it and begin to play. At first it appears to be about some guy who is trying to score some blow, and that is the point of the game. So, I'm thinking, pretty lame premise, probably some cokehead game designer, but I'll see how it turns out. But then I thought, and this should've tipped me off, Cokehead's don't play video games, Stoner's play video games, so who came up with this crappy premise for a game. Well, after clicking on the cop and the old lady, only to discover there were in fact, not, drug dealers, I proceeded to click on the pimp looking fellow with a wad of cash in his hand. When asked if he is a dealer, he responds that of course he is. He then proceeds to sell you the "white stuff" though he never takes money from you, and you are now at home with 3 piles of coke in front of you, labeled, small dose, normal dose, and overdose! If only it were that easy in real life then so many more of our musically inclined rock gods would be touring at 70. So depending on the three different scenarios you choose, you die in 3 different ways. Apparently this is all a anti-drug commercial, disguised as a crappy game that most children won't ever play. The good part was that it wasn't as long as the stealthy Christian game I played a few weeks ago, but it is annoying all the same. Here I am, looking for a little mindless fun, and I get told not to do coke, as I will die instantly after. My bigger problems with the game involve the fact that adults cannot ever accurately portray drug use, dealers, or the users. If all I ever learned about coke was from this game, I would know the following: -All drug dealers dress like pimps -Walking up to random people on the street and asking for drugs is the best way to get them -Cops and old ladies typically don't sell drugs. -Drugs are free, dealers will just hand it out to you (usually two feet away from cops) -Only slackers who wear their hats backward, dress like a freak, and already look stoned use drugs -Its very possible a dealer will sell you flour or washing powder instead -Flour will make a sandwich come out of your nose, but washing powder will kill you! -Using only a small amount drugs will just annoy you, so make sure you use a lot! -Using drugs will get you killed in a drive-by, by the Japanese Yakusa's -Drugs are conviently labeled in overdose capacities -Asking a cop if he's a dealer (always a good idea) will get you beat and arrested My problems with games like this are that they create an extreme unrealistic impression of what actual drug use is like. When children get out into the real world and have contact with it for the first time, they realize that everything they were told up until then about drugs has been a lie! If they were lied to about furry coated pimps, why wouldn't they have been lied to about the actual harmful effects of the drug. "Adults drink alcohol after they tell us its bad for us, maybe this is just another lie so they can have more coke for themselves." Scaring children with incorrect information will only work for so long. How about a realistic game, where your friend is the one using and trying to get you to. Or perhaps your best friend is the dealer. Maybe your uncle is doing coke off a stripper's ass as you accidently walk into the living room {awkward}. Rather than have a kid get shot up by the mafia, perhaps have his girlfriend get into his stash and OD at a party. You know, realistic things that actually happen. (Well, they happen on the O.C., anyway!) So, if you haven't done so already, check out the Adventures of Jack, it'll only take about 3 minutes. I knew I should've just stuck to Beaver Dive (not making that up) , its much more fun anyway!   
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