Well, that seems to be the impression Patrick Bach, executive producer of Battlefield 3, has. When questioned by a competition winner from Rock, Paper, Shotgun he remarked, “If you put the player in front of a choice where they can do good things or bad things, they will do bad things, go dark side – because people think it’s cool to be naughty, they won’t be caught… In a game where it’s more authentic, when you have a gun in your hand and a child in front of you what would happen? Well the player would probably shoot that child.” As a subsequence Battlefield 3 is not going to be keen on letting you strafe any civilian life you encounter. Personally I think his comments are a little naive and at best uncharitable to us gamers.

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Your phone is now a potential therapist. You sit on a couch, you talk to it, it listens, it charges you money, you feel better. Ok, ok, that’s a tad cynical of me. Let me begin again.

Dr. Nader Amir, a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, suggests that the days of software-based psychological help are upon us. Dr. Amir has conducted a study into the potential of Blackberry software to help people with social anxiety. In one exercise, a human face with a neutral expression flashes on the screen at the same time as a face with a disgusted mien. A millisecond later, the software prompts the patient to identify a letter that materializes on the same part of the screen where the neutral face appeared. With repetition, the patient begins to ignore the negative image and look to the neutral zone for answers, which eases anxiety.

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If my real life personality reflected my in game characters then I would be adopting the persona of a cold lifeless body most days. Having spent the best part of the last hour nestled behind crates, walls and rocks employing my Red Dead Evans Repeater rifle to good effect on any such opponent that dared blink, I got to ponder the relationship between my real and in-game personalities. Is my real personality really that cautious and disciplined?

If I’m honest, then I must admit that I tend to be more impulsive and rash in many of my day to day decisions. So if I reflect my personality in the virtual world then I should be that cowboy sprinting down main street whooping and firing and dying in a hail of enemy shells. In other first person shooter games of which I have offered myself as cannon fodder I tend to play the same – remaining hidden and waiting for the enemy to make a move. So who am I? Am I the sneaky hidden marksman or the gun totting lunatic? So, perhaps I have a split personality? In fact when I think more on this issue, it’s more likely that I have multiple personalities.

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Well things have certainly changed in Boy Scouting since i donned shorts and a woggle. I remember the satisfaction of getting my washing up and way-finding badges. The knots badge always escaped me though, as I could never get that damned rabbit to run around the tree and get down the hole. How envious was I when I read reports that our North American scouting cousins, The Boy Scouts of America, are changing that by adding new gaming awards for Tiger, Cub, and Webelos Scouts. These awards will be given for specific video game-related tasks.

My mind immediately went into overdrive and I experienced a twinge of jealousy, as at first I thought I would be missing out on badges for dragon slaying, zombie survival and planning virtual airstrikes. But not so it seems. The awards will be less virtual and more related to real life skills associated with gaming. I can breath a sigh of relief that no one will be getting that elusive ‘best dressed mage’ badge before me.

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I am sitting here wondering if the marketing department at Nintendo has resorted to the covert in order to corner the female gaming market.

Recently, the UK papers have been running with a story about a woman from Manchester who claims that her Wii has turned her into a sex addict. (I can just picture the new box art for Wii game packages.) In news which is sure to send Nintendo Wii sales through the roof, Amanda Flowers slipped on her Wii Fit training board, and suffered nerve damage. I won’t really comment on the fact that the balance board is about five centimeters above ground level, but the resultant nerve damage has caused what doctors refer to as “persistent sexual arousal.”

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Yes, I know a standard type opening from me, the Psychologist. We are presently conducting some research on Personality and RPG’s and all your lovely help would be most welcome. We are taking a quick snap shot on how (and indeed if!) your personality has any bearing on such things as your choice of game, character, race and class in RPGs. We are also interested in finding out if your main game character follows or detracts from your real life personality. So this is an opportunity to a) complete a psychometric personality test, b) make you think about how your personality impacts on your game play and c) add to our knowledge of gaming. We will of course relay the findings directly to the Adrenaline Vault. So if you have 10 minutes to spare from slaying baddies we would very much appreciate your input. Rest assured all of your answers are confidential and anonymous! Thank you!

Never one to shy away from big philosophical issues, I thought I’d just grit my teeth and tackle this one head-on. Rather than discuss specific games in detail, judging the merits of one over another, I just thought I’d ask, “Why do we play video games?”

Firstly I should at least apologise to you all. Asking such a question obviously could spoil the gaming experience for some of you. I suppose its almost in the same ballpark as asking a “what’s the meaning of life?” question. Do we really care or do we just like the experience? So is it better not to question and just keep our heads down and get on with it? Why question the experience? I play games, so I’ll just enjoy them. Questioning why we play might well spoil the whole experience for us. So with that thought as a warning, read on at your own risk!

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That was the advice of Caressa Cameron, crowned Miss America 2010 on Saturday night. Obviously the broadcast journalism student failed to do her viewer background homework when she made these remarks and promptly annoyed 175 million US gamers. Not a bad start to her “love the world” plans. “Take away the TV, take away the videogames, set some standards for our children,” the newly crowned queen of beauty and all-round guru of public policy declared. “Parents should encourage their kids to play outside,” she continued, “playing imaginary games with sticks in the street like I did when I was little.”

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I thought I might champion the little games today. Why not? It’s Friday and I’m feeling pre-weekend charitable. After all, they have been keeping me company of late during my coffee breaks at work. That’s the nice thing about Flash games – click and play. It’s not as if I have to lug my Xbox all the way to work and set it up (under the watchful, raised eyebrows of my co-workers). Yes, the big games usually grab our attention (not surprisingly, given all the marketing that trumpets their imminent arrival). These might be little minnows in the gargantuan pond of Call of Duty, Halo, Mass Effect, etc. But they can nonetheless provide as much fun and adrenaline as the big-hitters. Flash games that can stretch my scheduled 10-minute break into half an hour are worth a mention, but those that result in my coffee going untouched and cold are the ones that really interest me. If they can distract me from my caffeine rush, then they must be worth my attention. So without any fancy trumpets, dramatic drum rolls (or even a lone party popper), here are my three favourite Flash games of the moment (in no particular order):

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Now I must hold my hand up straight away, be completely honest and tell you that I’m going to cheat here. Like many college students in an exam situation, I’m going to see the relatively straightforward title of “Game of the Year,” but interpret it in my own way so that I can answer it how I want to. So while many might see the title in terms of the best released game of 2009, I’m going to consider it to mean the best game I played in 2009. So don’t you all start writing in and telling me off in terms of the game’s release date. My take on the question also makes life easier for me; due to various work changes and large home improvement challenges, I didn’t get time to play as much as I would have liked in 2009. Admittedly, if I could I’d play games all day, but sadly I won’t be able to do that if I don’t pay the electricity bills. So if any game developers are reading this – come on guys, isn’t it about time you created a game that earns us a living while we play? I’m not sure how much longer my super-ego can persuade my id that time spent at work is not lost game time. Still, my id being as strong as it is, I did get some game time in this year. So my candidates for best game (I played) in 2009 are:

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No, not in terms of shooting at people, running them over, stealing cars, engaging in vandalism or enjoying random acts of arson. I meant in terms of my poor spine! Forget all the commotion about video games being the psychological tool of the devil – it’s the ability to bend my spine into contorted unnatural shapes that keeps me awake at night.

One of the most common medical problems connected typically to playing computer/video games is crooked posture. There is a considerable percentage of children in Junior High and High School who have a crooked posture as a result of frequent gameplay sessions. Personally I think this counteracts the video-game-begets-violence argument quite well – I mean, how intimidating is a limping, arched-over, neck-crocked game player? He probably can only see my shoes, let alone try to throw a punch at my face! The press recently had a story about a boy who ended up in hospital thanks to the fact that he used his force-feedback controller seven hours a day, which severely damaged his wrists, knuckles and hand nerves. Hardly stands him in good stead to terrorise his local community, does it?

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So I just spent the weekend delving into the Xbox 360 1943 Pacific download. Laugh? My neighbours, concerned at the noises emanating from my house, nearly called emergency services twice. Somehow I don’t think Activision had the game down as a straight comedy. I must admit, it’s not a straight comedy—I found it veering from hilarity to extreme frustration in a matter of minutes.

Overall, the comedy seemed to eradicate the in-game frustrations, which was quite handy. I fired my Thompson SMG point blank into the back of an enemy soldier (who thought he was successfully hidden in a copse of trees)—I know, sneaky of me—but he turned around and offed me with a samurai sword, which was a tad annoying. Minutes later I was roaring with laughter as another enemy soldier tried to spike me with a bayonet, but I dodged sideways and watched as he continued forward over the cliff behind me, never to be seen again. Then there was the time another enemy and I ran into the same small shack at the same time to chuck grenades at one another. Somehow we both survived; the building didn’t. The funniest for me, though, was the enemy who obviously thought he was a reincarnated “Mad Max,” ripping through roads in his jeep, squashing all who dared stray into his path. He tried the same with me, but he failed to spot the destroyed bridge section in the road directly behind me. I can still hear his yell of victory turn into a wail of despair as he and his vehicle plunged into the surf below.

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I just wanted to say ‘hello’ from the little island state called Britain. I have been invited to contribute to Avault and am excited at the prospect. I have been providing the odd news announcement over the pass few months. While I am typing this I have half an eye on 1943 which is downloading from Xbox Live – thought I might give it a go this afternoon. In fact for maximum effect I am going to combine four shots of expresso with my first few 1943 missions…apologies if I join one of your games – I’ll be the one running about like a headless chicken shooting at my own shadow…if I am on your team then I might prove a distraction to the enemy and if I am on the opposing team then I will provide an erratic target! Anyway, my aim on this site is to continue contributing to the news for Avault and also to involve you all in some interesting (hopefully) discussion and research…ok enough speak…off to the coffee altar…