‘Animal Crossing’, ‘Call of Duty’, ‘FIFA’… Which video game gets your blood boiling most?

First-person shooter games like ‘Battlefield’ and ‘Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’ tended to make players who participated in a recent survey particularly angry. Image: Syldavia/Istock.com via AFP Relaxnews

In a recent study, which will be of interest to parents worried about all the time children spend playing video games, American psychologists found that fans of “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare”, “Battlefield” and “FIFA” were more aggressive than those who preferred titles like “Candy Crush”.

With scores for “Grand Theft Auto Online”, “Minecraft” and “Fortnite”, the ranking was also marked by the surprise inclusion of “Animal Crossing”.

Often presented as an ideal antidote to the recent lockdown, “Animal Crossing” is not as benevolent and relaxing as it seems. For proof, look no further than the study, which listed the Nintendo social simulation in fourth position in its ranking of games that made players more physically aggressive.

The study surveyed a total of 964 video game players who were asked to complete the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire. On the basis of their answers, psychologists were able to determine which video games generated the most hostile behaviors among gamers, who were then more likely to become angry and engage in verbal and physical aggression.

Another surprising finding was the discovery that certain types of gaming equipment, notably Xbox and Playstation consoles, were associated in the survey with more aggressive players than others.

Although Nintendo users were calmer than their peers who made use of other proprietary platforms, they were nonetheless more likely to physically express anger and frustration than smartphone gamers.

Regardless of the equipment used, gamers were all more likely to engage in hostile and aggressive behavior when they spent more time playing. And this was especially the case among those who devoted 11 to 30 hours per week to gaming.

Here is the ranking of video games that made players the most aggressive:

1. “Battlefield”

2. “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare”

3. “FIFA”

4. “Animal Crossing”

5. “Grand Theft Auto Online”

6. “Minecraft”

7. “Fortnite”

8. “Super Smash Bros”

9. “Pokémon”

10. “Mario Kart”

11. “The Sims”

12. “Angry Birds”

13. “Candy Crush”
IB

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