Today’s Metro reports that ‘Playing driving games on consoles makes people more dangerous in real life’, citing research carried out by Continental Tyres. Strangely, I can’t find any mention of this ‘news’ on the Metro web site or the Continental Tyres press site but it is in the print edition of Metro, page seven, top left corner.
According to Metro, ‘Fans of titles such as Gran Turismo and Grand Theft Auto are more likely to crash when they get behind the wheel. They also have a higher tendency to try risky overtaking moves, run red lights and suffer road rage.’
Oddly, Continental Tyres do not make any inference that playing Grand Theft Auto makes you want to beat prostitutes to death, surely if their research shows that driving in GTA influences you in real life then it is logical that every aspect of the game will determine how you behave?
“Gamers take more risks than non gamers, possibly due to the lack of real consequences in the game,” said Continental safety expert, Tim Bailey.
In other news, Continental Tyres seem to have forgotten the award picked up Chris Rado of WORLD Racing when his Scion tC was named Best Asian Import in the seventh annual Gran Turismo Awards ceremony. The Scion has Continental tyres, as proudly boasted by this press release.
Continental Tyres seem blissfully unaware that over half the UK population are regular gamers and that Grand Theft Auto IV is one of the best selling games of all time. So they, and/or Metro have just labeled an awful lot of their customers as bad drivers.
Source: Metro (Print Edition)
NotoriousGTT
“So they, and/or Metro have just labelled an awful lot of their customers as bad drivers,”
And they would be absolutely correct
shields_t
I’ms ure a survey could be conducted to prove otherwise but I cannot see that there is likely to be a link between people playing driving games and driving like numpties, otherwise GT5 will have trumped Black Ops in sales because 95% of the people I see driving the M4 drive dangerously.
Lordfloyd
oddly, I have never seen a game that involves lorries overtaking other lorries whenever they fancy, nor have I seen a game that forces you to drive in the middle lane of a motorway when the inside lane is completely empty…
Grey_Ghost13
What a complete waste of space the media is becomming. I wish they would try to back up these sensationalist headlines with some more proof! Come Continental give us this research in it’s entirety!
If true how can a non experienced driver compete in the GT championships in a nissan 350z with help from the GT Academy, due to his time spent on Gran Turismo???
sorry about the spelling mistakes, rage typing took over!!!!!
shields_t
It was only this morning that I got a vertical takedown on the way into work.
Seriously, a real load of toss gets written in the Metro.
nofi
To be fair, I can see how this is true.
bunimomike
I’m quietly concerned when, one day, we have dashboard mounted laser projectors beaming data onto the windscreen and our GPS linking us up with “races” on the likes of Google Maps. Imagine us driving around a chosen city with “Checkpoint reached” being flashed up on the windscreen and a timer being refreshed with added seconds. It could happen!
iucidium
Jesus, someone watched ‘Fast And Furious’ a little too much, this and weed and dubstep makes bad drivers.
XisTG
Dub step never hurt no one.
quinkill
yeh, but for a majority or a tiny minority? I mean last week news in the US was reporting that the bomb attack in Moscows’ Airport was directly influenced by the ‘No Russian’ level from MW2. Now do you think the majority or a small minority of all those who played MW2 are plotting to take out a Russian airport.
quinkill
Sorry I get quite angry at articles like this. I can’t stand ‘Associated Newspapers’ and their Daily Mail coverage of games and gamers in past few years has been appalling. Why they treat games and gamers differently to any other piece of entertainment or consumer is beyond me.
minerwilly
I thought that article was disgusting sensationalism and im surprised Eurogamer printed that article . Can you imagine how we would feel if journalists where writing that after something happened either in London or whichever capital city is yours .
Just because it was Moscow and they used to be the big bad “enemy” it seems game to have a cruel jibe at their expense . I have no Russian heritage or whatever but that was bang out of line .
tonycawley
Look at it logically. Which age group plays these games the most? 16-19 year olds. Which age group has the most driving accidents? 16-19 year olds. Definite and obvious correlation. However, as we all know, correlation does not prove causation. I don’t think this article explicit blames gaming for car accidents, it just highlights the correlation. Japan has a long life expectancy. Japan also has the highest rate of smoking ion the world. Therefore smoking makes you live a long time.
The Guvnor
I can only agree with nofi. When i was deeply into GT5 I found myself driving a lot faster and really testing my car, I even slip streamed a few people!!
Dont get me wrong, I’m not even an easily influenced person (usually) and have been gaming all my life. Im 26 and can easily see younger, more influential people doing the same as me.
bunimomike
Gaming has nothing to do with me driving dangerously. A mix of drink, drugs and trying to steer with my feet whilst I recline on the back seat and am simultaneously being fellated by a gender confused Filipino I feel is a far greater influence, but I’m no expert.
toutski
Haha. Brilliant!
Klart
Pics or it didn’t happen.
bunimomike
Like I could hold a camera steady!
Kronik76
‘being fellated by a gender confused Filipino’
That’s just so wrong! Unless of course nobody saw it…
quinkill
Sorry was that Metro or The Daily Mail? All those B.S. spewing rightwing “newspapers” all seem to blend into one…and the fact that they have no online material to back the article up on Metro website or Continental Tyres press site goes onto establish their reputations as the UKs leading source of fair, balanced and well researched JOURNALISM!
BG123
and leftwingers never spew BS?
quinkill
Not like the UK media. When our papers are 90% rightwing you only get 10% leftwing BS. Where’s the balanced BS spewing?? I’m not trying to say leftwing doesn’t talk s**t too but the only places they can talk all this s**t is the BBC (and that’s rare), The Guardian and the Observer. That’s it!! Now list every other media outlet (except a few foreign news orgs like Al Jazeera etc) and 50% owned by Rupert-I need to control the whole world-Murdoch and the other 50% are trying to catch up with his insanity i.e. Associated Newspapers and News International.
ARUMIR Sympozium
Someone get Amy’s Piku Piku something hammer….
Peco
“Gamers take more risks than non gamers, possibly due to the lack of real consequences…” – Are they trying to say I can’t just restart if I crash my car?
Forrest_01
Reset to track/road = usually select. :)
simplebob
Better switch your stereos off as well…http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1870853.stm
Press pointing the finger again
TSBonyman
I was thinking this recently as i tried to hurl my car around a bend.. must.. slow .. down.. :S
bunimomike
You’re not a real gamer! :-p
Real gamers drive whilst thinking “apex… off the throttle… gently… gently… power down… GO GO GO” then drive into KwitFit and shout obscenities until they’ve changed the tires.
Grey_Ghost13
Or bang off the barriers round the fast corners, that always gets you where your going quicker!
GTRsannin
lol i haven’t had the need to drive like a maniac even though i’ve played GT and GTA games ever since the first ones came out