Is This Real Life? Is This Going to Be Forever?

The market for 3D visuals is currently booming. It seems a though more and more industries are coming out with 3D integrated product and services. The most recognized use of 3D visuals is within the movie industry, as companies like IMAX and RealD offer a unique viewing experience that immerses the audience into the movie. However, new technologies such are developing rapidly, and soon consumers will be able to view 3D images on their handheld devices, their home television screens, and even in the classroom. While 3D is an impressive and captivating technology, my concern is the potential influence this medium can have on society’s perception of reality.

          For example, many critics and researchers believe that playing violent video games as a young child can strongly influence an individual’s perception on violence. They argue that when violence is portrayed in such an entertaining and penalty-free light, gamers’ understanding of the severity of the negative consequences of violence. However, many argue that humans, regardless of age and maturity, have sufficient common sense to differentiate between real life and a video game.

However, what happens when the video game suddenly seems real. While playing a 2D game, regardless of how advanced the graphics are, the brain can easily distinguish the gamer from the game. There is a physical gap between the medium and the audience, allowing the individual to process the difference. However, replacing the 2D medium with a 3D medium erases this physical space, making it more difficult for the gamer to differentiate between the game and reality. So what happens when a 13 year-old boy is so immersed in a 3D game of CoD that he feels as though he is actually firing a real gun, and killing real people? What happens when he continues to get as much enjoyment out of this game, as he did when playing it in 2D, and potentially even a greater sense of entertainment? Finally, what happens when this same boy buys an Airsoft gun off the internet and starts simulating this game with his friends who also bought guns? The subtle progression of steps is more probable than most of us would like to admit, and for us entirely rule out the possibility that a young boy would replace his Airsoft gun with a real gun for a competitive advantage is foolish. Society has reached a point where the line between reality and fantasy is so thin that it is practically non-existent, or at least thin enough that it can easily be ignored.   So how will we keep ourselves from confusing the two? Or perhaps we shouldn’t even bother…