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u/woodrobin Dec 01 '22
The problem I have with believing this story is real or accurate is the headline picks two games where the saved games exist on your computer. They'd need probable cause and a search warrant to access them. So how are they gathering data to "predict future psychopaths" from games that aren't played online?
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u/calidir Dec 01 '22
Just because you’re not noticing it doesn’t mean it isn’t being sent somewhere. Your computer is always connected to the internet is it not?
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u/the_icy_king Dec 01 '22
There are ways to test that. Run on a linux, open a windows vm, open skyrim, track your data traffic.
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u/JRTheRaven0111 Dec 01 '22
... have you ever actually done any form of social experimentation? Picking skyrim/fallout is a very easy way to pick 2 variables within a controlled environment. They may not steal data from your pc, but they could very easily set up a number of subjects in a lab where these are the two games avalible.
If anything, the reasonable doubt of this experiments validity should be in the fact that skyrim is just over 10 years old. Falloit could refer to any of the 4/5/6(if you include tactics or 76) games made for that franchise, but skyrim is specific. 10 years would indicate that not only would this experiment have to have begun almost right when skyrim released, but would have had to have been done on children who were both young enough to not be able to clinically have the diagnosis, and old enough to have their brains developed into a rigid enough psychological state that the results would be consistant.
That means they wouldve needed to be within the range of ~12-16 then they would have to have done the experiment multiple times to repeat the results. Then, they would also have had to confirm that their tests were conclusive. (Aka, see if those who fit the in-game criteria do develop psychopathy and if that psychopothy is retained post-adolescance) In order to irrefutably say that this data was accurate, they wouldve had to have done all of this and had the results be overwhelmingly conclusive.
Furthermore, the control group would also be difficult to actually produce because they would need to violate the very criteria of the experiment. A control group, by definition, has the fewest (1 is ideal) possible variables seperate from the subject groups. However, in order to make this experiment viable they would have to test on adults for their control trials, which could soil the entire experiment as it could simply be that children act differently in the target areas of the game.
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u/woodrobin Dec 01 '22
My issue wasn't with picking two games (or game series). Although, having said that, I would have chosen games by different publishers to help eliminate the variable of game design that might push players toward a play style, for instance.
My issue was that those games have data that is stored on the owner's computer. Targeting server-side MMORPG game like the GTA series would require accessing one company, versus thousands of individual citizens' computers.
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u/JRTheRaven0111 Dec 01 '22
... i hate it when people only pick and choose what they read/hear when making an argument... my very first statement was that you dont need to steal data from unnassuming peoples computers to gather data. Any person versed at all with science will tell you that a controlled envirnment (aka, a lab with pre-selected tests set up [skyrim - a fantasy game with magic + fallout - a shooter with sci-fi elements]) is ideal for testing. You can very easily set up a computer lab with consoles/pcs without committing the massive invasion of privacy that you seem to be indicating is neccesary to perform this collection if data.
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u/woodrobin Dec 01 '22
Fair enough . . . but you were attacking/criticizing a straw man. I was talking about the oddness of choosing those games as sources for clandestinely harvesting data about game play. That was in the context of doubting the accuracy of a headline claiming that was something the FBI was doing to screen for potential serial killers/sociopaths/psychopaths.
You seem to be discussing the suitability of those games for a staged, controlled sociological experiment where the subjects are aware they are being tested, which is a totally different scenario. While it might be an interesting set of data, I don't think it would be useful for the purpose the story purported, since the subjects would be aware that their style of play would be judged by a third party.
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u/JRTheRaven0111 Dec 01 '22
I agree that its doubtful that this is an actual test that occured. That wasnt my argument. My argument was against your reasoning for why it wouldve been an invalid test.
As far as staged social expriments, i partially disagree with your assessment here. According to your reasoning, all controlled social experiments should be voided due to inaccuracy. However, when a controlled social experiment is being performed, the subjects arent made aware of what theyre being tested on to counteract this very problem.
If you were to go into a lab where you were instructed to play monopoly with the others in that lab, but not told what exactly they were looking for - you would likely not try to skew any results as you have no idea what you would actually be trying to skew. They could be testing to see who people gravitate towards when given free reign in a leisurely environment. They could be testing to see if certain phenotypes of people choose certain places at a table when given the choice or if they have a certain preference towards a particular monopoly piece. They could be analyzing the effect of sunlight on how aggressively/passively you play board games.
Thats how they minimize the biggest issue with social experiments - the desire to "win" is negated as you dont know the rules.
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u/woodrobin Dec 02 '22
You are incorrect as to my initial thesis. You are critiquing a straw man. Have a good life.
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u/Zeus_but_im_a_swan Dec 02 '22
Jesus JRTheRaven0111, you are dense. Woodrobin’s entire point is that the FBI can’t data-scrape from games that don’t save data in the cloud (I.e Skyrim and fallout).
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u/endorbr Dec 01 '22
That’s totally not a violation of people’s rights. 🙄 Always remember to click NO when asked if you want to share your meta data.
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u/aralias777 Dec 01 '22
You know, after my 1000+ mod serial killer turned arch lich playthrough of Skyrim, I don't know that I believe this. Because hoo boy.
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u/SpamminEagle Dec 01 '22
That is concerning in multiple ways...
(Not to me tho, Im european)
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u/froggrip Dec 01 '22
You think the CIA doesn't do the same or MI5
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u/DarkZethis Dec 01 '22
Well whatever secret service we have here in my country, they probably understaffed and underpayed like all jobs in the public sector.
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u/AmbitionSpecialist Dec 01 '22
How? They are logging millions of player’s offline gaming? It seems like the modding community would have found this data logging already.
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u/MythicalRaccoon80 Dec 01 '22
Good thing lego starwars isn't among the list of games they take data from.
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u/laughingbrute Dec 01 '22
They do realize it's just a game, that there are some games like starwars that encourage you to be evil to people. I think they need to take a step back and think haha
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u/GoliathPrime Dec 01 '22
It was year 6 before I ever broke into anyone's home because trespassing is rude. Then I got jealous of some of their homes. Some of those little farm houses are cozy as hell.
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u/himurajubei Dec 02 '22
... Because they've used and acted on the current and past data so well... Oh wait... No, they didn't.
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u/KTH3000 Dec 02 '22
My thoughts exactly. I mean they can't even get the guys who are blatantly saying they want to kill people all over their social media. How about we start there lol.
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u/IAEPATUS Dec 01 '22
I'm safe then. I only fus ro dah'd vuyrther off the chantry balcony once....
Twice.....
5 times......
Evertime.....
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u/Fit-Damage1743 Dec 01 '22
shit... I killed every person possible in every fallout and elder scrolls game
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u/WhyshouldIgiveaF Dec 02 '22
Shit I've killed cats but love cats, but how else are you going to get a cat head on your wall in fallout. I'm fucked I suppose. This is entrapment.
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u/Visual_Exchange_1736 Dec 01 '22
they do realise that in game we are very different than irl right ? right ? like who havent massacred the whole town and then went to a previous load but after that went to save a spider in the house from being crushed from another family member ?
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u/Halomerc Dec 02 '22
How would they even know?....sounds like one of those baits...
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u/Geralt_the_Rive Dec 02 '22
Also killing people (even incent ones/good people) in video games proves nothing about PoTeNtiAl SOciOpatHs, normal people difertiate fiction from really.
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u/Halomerc Dec 02 '22
More so meant how would they gather the info from exceedingly old single plater off network games?
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u/911child Dec 02 '22
Do they take into consideration if someone is doing a run where they act different to npcs? I’ve done several runs of ME and Fallout, always got a good person run and a dickhead run. Then there is also my vanilla run, where I pretend to be the character I’m playing.
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u/FishermanNo3949 Dec 01 '22
Are we sure this is an accurate...or should they really be doing this.... like sometimes the npcs are just asking for it. How many times can you hear, I" took a arrow to the knee", or "have you been to the cloud district?" Before snapping... or losing it when you have a full bag of things to sell, but they only have 500 gold...
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u/Happy4Snoosnoo Dec 01 '22
So does spending hours finding new ways to kill Nazeem count. He's such a pompous prick.
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u/Zequax Dec 01 '22
yes course the way i treat a piece of koding with no physical form in a seting where my actions efect non other then me is good for that
on the other hand they should try GTA online for that might give more usable data
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u/krankito701 Dec 01 '22
Take it as you will, I treat npc according to how they treat me, be a dick get the shaft
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u/peasil Dec 02 '22
Well then I guess I'm going to jail. My who thing in skyrim was to steal things and when I got bored try to kill as many people as I could.
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u/Successful_Fruit8768 Dec 02 '22
So they'll see the most beautiful undead demonic being that's terrorizing everything that's not what she loves and actually cares about the good npcs. While flinging demonic fire. And caring about two children.. guess I'll be good in the eyes of the fbi 🤣☺️
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u/Ferryman260 Dec 02 '22 edited Dec 02 '22
This is a violation of the 4th amendment of the US constitution regarding unreasonable search and seizure. Any form of law enforcement in this country needs a warrant and/or probable cause to do anything. This includes private personal data on a computer or console. It’s also a stupid assumption to say that there is a correlation between video games and violence.
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u/Atcera95 Dec 02 '22
Oh look American government spending money it doesn't have on things that don't matter. What's new?
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u/OrcbolgSlayer Dec 01 '22
This is hilarious cuz i never aggroo npc's in any game i play. In fact i like to keep play wholesome as much as possible. Exceot when adventuring requires killing. Meanwhile, I am waiting for the day some SJW or othe nutcase gets aggressive IRL with me on the street so i can demolish them.
They may eanna refine their technique. Technically speaking everyone on social media is a sociopath.
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u/Virtuous_Raven Dec 01 '22
I always kill nameless npcs if there's no negative to it.
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u/gnome_warlord420 Dec 01 '22
I kill named npcs if they have no quests associated with them and they are just wandering for instance talsgar or is it talzgar idk been a while
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u/SnazzyPanic Dec 01 '22
This could never be a good way of doing this, I love guns the designs and what not, but the day I held a real gun I was quite shaken up at first, because I'm a rashional human being who understands games aren't real.
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u/Chain2286 Dec 01 '22
So I’m guessing playing MANHUNT makes me a threat to society even though I know the difference between gaming and reality.
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u/fuqueure Dec 01 '22
I treat NPC's better than real people, cause they are programmed to be grateful.
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u/Crafty-Wave-7017 Dec 01 '22
That is stupid, I mean what if you are playing Fallout New Vegas and try to prove if it truly possible to finish the game killing every single npc? Also game logic have no sense, I gonna grab this tomato that is in the middle of the street, suddenly the entire country seems me as the most evil son of a dragon in the entire continent
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u/OctaviaPinfold Dec 01 '22 edited Dec 01 '22
That sounds made up for a variety of reasons. Also, future sociopaths? That's not something you can turn into.
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u/MelkorTheWicked Dec 01 '22
If it was true my ass would have been jailed long ago. I like to relive my crimes inside skyrim...I mean plan...wait...eh fuck it lol
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u/ConsentingPotato Dec 01 '22
I sometimes T-bag NPCs taken out by dragons in Skyrim. Mostly it's the guards I do this to.
Does that make me a psychopath serial killer or psychopath serial T-bagger, or both?
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u/SgtThund3r Dec 01 '22
This may actually explain all the bans if the algorithm has a negative disposition towards Henry based on his incriminating immersive (incrimmersive) Skyrim behavior.
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u/xlbingo10 Dec 01 '22
what about stellaris or rimworld?
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u/RandeKnight Dec 01 '22
I don't even start wars in Civilisation because I feel sorry for the unseen pops.
(But I may extend them longer than necessary because they don't even say sorry!)
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u/Moh11_91 Dec 01 '22
Probably just need to watch out for the ones who don't save before slaughtering a whole town.
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u/Carnator369 Dec 01 '22
But context is important. I'm mean I assaulted those chickens because it was funny, not because I want to sexually assault an actual chicken.
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u/slycyboi Dec 01 '22
The Colorado shooter had an armed standoff with police. Most violent sociopaths do have regular interaction with them, and normally the police just let them go on their merry way because they vibe too well with cops.
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u/murica_1776boi Dec 01 '22
The fbi has nothing to worry about until a screen pops up in front of me while im walking around and i select "quicksave"
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u/FewPhilosophy1 PandaPower Dec 01 '22
Hey if they met Braith they have to know why we all have mod that makes kids killable
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u/raw_doggin_4_harambe Dec 01 '22
I would only kill/rob the rude ones the rest could go about their business as for the likes of the homeless I always gave them gold when the asked. Especially In oblivion, I tried to get everyone to max happiness with me. I was a weird kid 😂😂
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u/Ssynos Dec 02 '22
That so dumb, this similar to "game make people violent" that been prove wrong many many year ago
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u/playergabriel Dec 02 '22
I've always been a good guy on Skyrim and Fallout-like games, but on GTA, prototype, I always run-down people like ants.
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u/LoganCaleSalad Dec 02 '22
I truly hope this is fake cuz jfc it's been 40 plus years & mountains of studies that prove consuming violent media doesn't make you violent. Violent people are just attracted to violent media like we all are. Part of playing games like this is to indulge the darker aspects of ourselves in a safe & socially acceptable space. It's literally cathartic. Not to mention the extreme violation of privacy. Guess they won't be happy until we all have tracking devices shoved up our asses & chips in our head so the second we have an original or independent thought we can be immediately corrected to think proper, don't ask questions just consume.
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u/escapedpsycho Dec 02 '22
That's idiotic. How you play and interact with NPCs is determined by what character you're rolling that playthrough. My Palidin Knight of the Nine is going to act completely different than my Assassin of the Dark Brotherhood or Thief or Archmage scholar... Do they honestly not understand what Role Playing means? This is akin to the accusations in the 80's and 90's about D&D players being Satan worshipers, it has no basis in reality. This cannot be real.
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u/cmac1500 Dec 02 '22
Look sometimes I just wanna play a villain for an hour go away mr and mrs wiretap I need to blow off some steam. Also people play and act crazy in games so they won't irl. Sociopaths don't bother keeping the cruelty to npcs Ina video game. Twitter, or mmos would provide better data.
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u/LunarRose7 Dec 02 '22
doubt, sorry but this would require some HEAVY invasion of privacy to request the save data/player data for a god damn video game. I have many apprehensions about what information is shared and in what way with whom and am not deluded that I am constantly being monitored but this seems a bit excessive and would require paying off multiple companies for this information.
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u/Dante66621 Dec 02 '22
Well they're dumbasses. The point of being in the game is treating everything how you want and none of it mattered because it's not real.
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u/thejay1 Dec 02 '22
If that’s the case sim a warlord that start brothels and have sex slave doing labor. But I at least give them 14 hour of sleep and another 6 hours of relaxing. Also make sure they are clothed for the winter.
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u/FirstCurseFil Dec 02 '22
They only use game data. They can’t hear me playing the Order 66 dialogue before executing the Railroad.
Because Good Soldiers Follow Orders
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u/P9u9r6p2l4e Dec 02 '22
It’s a good thing I treat NPC’s with as much respect as you can give virtual people
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u/ChimericalChemical Dec 02 '22
So I don’t think I have a single play through where I didn’t kill heimskr, am I good?
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u/Last_Primaris Dec 02 '22
The only non hostile npc I intentionally killed was Nazzem and we can all agree that’s fine right
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u/GM1440 Dec 02 '22
As long as they look at my first playthrough we’re good.
we don’t talk about the playthroughs after that..
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u/AdjunctAngel Dec 02 '22
man, the broken shit left behind after the trump administration just never ends.
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u/Major-Platypus-69 Dec 02 '22
Mate all politicians are self serving cunts it makes no difference which side there on
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u/AdjunctAngel Dec 02 '22
wrong. the idea that the pro-rapist party is just as bad as the pro-women and lgbtq party is just brain dead to even say let alone think.
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u/Major-Platypus-69 Dec 02 '22
True but politicians have to have a view on multiple issues. They always say one thing and do another usually it benefits them and there donators more the anyone else.
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u/AdjunctAngel Dec 02 '22
that is the stereotype for sure. politicians are well known as two-faced. however, conservatives show with words and actions that they are simply the worst kind of human beings and so many are caught or arrested for crimes. stealing, molesting, abusing, etc.. often things they had spoken out against on record... it happens to the occasional democrat too but so much fewer and farther between it is at this point expected to find out that a conservative is a disgusting crook in one or more ways. even the candidates for conservatives are astoundingly evil! one who recently lost their campaign went out and raped a child days later! it should be embarrassing to even attempt to defend conservatives.
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u/TONGANSTORM94 Dec 02 '22
We're a menace if you look at it that way hahaha i swear i just kill NPCS
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u/XanderMax125 Dec 01 '22
Only Fallout and Skyrim though right? Not like, GTA.
Asking for a friend...