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THURSDAY, MARCH 31, 2011
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THE TIMES LEADER
www.timesleader.com
Drug fighter considers ‘shooter’ video danger At issue is a game portraying people who have shot others inside schools. By MATT HUGHES mhughes@timesleader.com
A video game that casts players in the roles of the masterminds of the Columbine and Virginia Tech massacres has caught the ire of an area drug-and-alcohol counselor. Carmen F. Ambrosino, CEO of Wyoming Valley Alcohol and Drug Services, said the game, titled School Shooter: North American Tour 2012, crosses the line of good taste, and he wants parents, teachers and school ad-
ministrators to be aware that it is under development and may be available soon. “We know there are links between crime and drugs and alcohol,” Ambrosino said. “Kids are impressionable; they’re vulnerable; they’re here-and-now oriented; they’re fixated and fascinated on these sorts of topics.” Ambrosino said he has notified the superintendents of area schools and federal and state legislators representing the area as well as major retailers such as Kmart, Walmart and Target about the game. He issued the notice at the request of the state Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Programs, which is urging treatment and prevention
professionals to take a formal stand against the game’s release. “We feel this is a serious threat to the health and safety of students and campuses,” Ambrosino said. “Acts of violence and suicide are linked to alcohol and substance use… BDAP advocates for stronger prevention policies, and this would include supporting efforts to prevent this harmful and dangerous video game from being released.” The game itself is actually a modification of the first-person shooter Half Life 2. According to the website of developer Checkerboarded, it will outfit players with weapons used by Columbine High School shooters Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold and
Virginia Tech killer Seung-Hui Cho, among others, and turn them loose inside school-themed levels. “The possibilities are endless, you are free to do whatever you want. As long as it involves shooting people,” the game’s website states. At the end of the game, players will have the option of committing suicide, the game description adds. The website, copyrighted 2010, says the game is still in development, with no release date set. An e-mail seeking comment from the Checkerboarded Studios was not returned Wednesday. While research indicates a
DON CAREY/THE TIMES LEADER
Drug-and-alcohol counselor Carmen Ambrosino shows a video previewing the School Shooter: North American Tour 2012 game.
game such as School Shooter may not be dangerous in and of itself, Ambrosino said, in the hands of an at-risk teen, it could have adverse effects. Ambrosino said his organiza-
tion has never spoken out about violence in video games before, but that the game’s content “seems to be so far outside the boundaries of what is decent and acceptable,” he had to speak up.
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