Survival horror keeps the number one chart spot plus driving games leaves players more aggressive than shooters and G-Force Wii screens
Want to know which game is the most popular in the UK? Well, wave a rather frightened 'hello' to Resident Evil 5. Capcom's survival horror zombie shooter has made it to a milestone 3-week hat trick run in pole position. The last game in the series to manage three consecutive UK number ones was Resident Evil 3 on the original PlayStation, released all the way back in 2000. If RE5 can hold on to the top spot next week it can officially claim to be the series' charts champion. We think it has every chance of doing so. Wii Fit continues to hold firm in second place with Capcom also slipping into the third spot with the gorgeous Street Fighter IV beat-em'up.
Meanwhile, hot on the heels of news that playing certain types of games may actually improve eyesight, we've now got hold of another new study that suggests driving games makes players more aggressive than shooting titles. This is the finding of Dr Simon Goodson and Sarah Pearson from Huddersfield University who will be presenting their findings at the British Psychological Society's Annual Conference today in Brighton.
Previous research has supported a link between violent video games and aggression by measuring the physical and mental reactions of the players. This study used the one of the latest consoles (Xbox360) and three different game genres; a first-person-shoot-em-up (FPS), a driving game (Project Gotham Racing) and a 3D table tennis game. Thirty participants, aged from 18 to 45, took part in the study and were measured for changes in their physical responses (EEG, breathing and heart rate) and mental responses (aggression) before and after playing. The driving game induced the greatest change in heart rate and brain activity and surprisingly the FPS induced the smallest change.
Dr Goodson and Sarah Pearson commented: "Previous researchers have made sweeping generalisations about the nature of videogames. This study is one of the first to use one of the latest games consoles that have a much higher level of realism. Surprisingly the results showed that the driving game made participants more agitated and aggressive than the game with graphic violence. Given the high levels of realism in modern games a re-evaluation of the relationship between videogames and violence is needed."
No wonder we get road rage every time we play a session of Wheelman!
To round off we head over to the Wii and get to grips with some brand new screens of G-Force, courtesy of those nice folks at Disney. The game ties in with the forthcoming Disney movie of the same name about an elite force of guinea pigs! Players control Darwin, the G-Force team leader, and housefly surveillance commando Mooch. Darwin and Mooch team up with the rest of G-Force to use their high-tech gadgets, stealth mastery, and pint-sized teamwork to save the world from a robot army of evil household appliances in what the developers tout as a 'fast-paced' action game. A full release is scheduled for summer 2009.
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