X-Men

Replacing Preconceived Accounts of Digital Games with Experience of Play: When Parents Went Native in GTA IV

Schott and van Vught's study challenges the reliance of public and policy debates on preconceived assumptions about digital games, arguing instead that understanding comes from actual play.

• Schott and van Vught argue that public and policy debates about digital games rely too heavily on preconceived assumptions, and that understanding should instead come from direct experience of play.
• The study observed 20 parents (7 men and 13 women) playing roughly an hour of Grand Theft Auto IV in a structured session that included the "Ivan the Not So Terrible" moral-dilemma mission and support from an expert gamer.
• Participants often found GTA IV easier and more enjoyable than expected, frequently rejected its violence, and recognized its satire, irony, and moral complexity, though not all deliberately avoided violent encounters.