Arcade experience - violence in games

I know that we've spent time discussing violence in games over on blogger, but I didn't really get it until I went to an arcade last week. Have you guys been to an arcade recently? First let me say that I haven't been to an arcade since I was a kid. There were almost no adults there. I was the only woman there who wasn't there with kids. That I expected, but what I wasn't prepared for was the level and graphic nature of the violence of MOST of the games. Based on what I saw, it's true that the games are directed more towards boys. Nearly all the games were first person shooter type games or first person driving/racing games. The games had rating stickers on them, for example "Animated Violence Strong" or "Mild Violence".

That may not sound like much but, I played this game called "The House of the Dead" rated "Animated Violence Strong". In it you are an agent who had to rescue hostages (and fellow agents). Zombies are trying to kill you with axes as you enter. The street and house scenes are incredible lifelike. Also, as you shoot the zombies, flesh, blood and body parts fly off them. If you don't completely kill them they keep coming at you. In order to encourage you, you are presented with a fellow agents who beg you to save the others. As you get close a zombie picks the agent up and throws him over the ledge. I think this is to encourage you to continue and to reinforce (if you haven't already gotten it) that the zombies are bad. Overall, I was both impressed and shocked at how lifelike and gruesome the graphics were. If you haven't been to an arcade or played a playstation type game recently, you should definitely try it, if for nothing else than to really understand what's out there.