[simonh]

There are arguments to be made for both. Some crimes, even if virtual, can stain or corrupt the perpetrator in ways inimical to society. There are plenty of examples of people who fantasised or role played abhorrent behaviour and went on to perpetrate it in real life, so there is a real danger.

For example we tolerate computer games with virtual killing, but don’t tolerate virtual rape games. Even with virtual killing there are limits. Should we tolerate nazi death camp torturer simulation games?

[haswell]

I'm trying to understand the connection between the original question and video games.

This seems like an orthogonal set of considerations.

[Aeolun]

I think it has to do with the part where the perpetrator is a concious being. Clearly the enemies in the games aren’t concious, but does it still stain the human playing the game?

It was an angle I didn’t consider at all, so it was actually quite interesting.

[Aeolun]

> Should we tolerate nazi death camp torturer simulation games?

This immediately brought the “Farming Simulator” imagery to mind. I can totally see how they’d make a nazi death camp simulator seem soul crushingly boring.