In the aftermath of the Columbine High School massacre , a $ 5 billion lawsuit was filed in 2001 against a number of video game companies and id Software , the makers of the purportedly violent video game , '' Doom '' by victims of the tragedy . Also named in the suit were Acclaim Entertainment , Activision , Capcom , Eidos Interactive , GT Interactive Software , Interplay Entertainment , Nintendo , Sony Computer Entertainment , Square Co. , Midway Games , Apogee Software , Atari Corporation , Meow Media , and Sega . Violent video games mentioned by name included '' Doom '' , '' Quake '' , '' Redneck Rampage '' , and '' Duke Nukem '' . The suit was dismissed by Judge Babcock in March 2002 in a ruling suggesting that a decision against the game makers would have a chilling effect on free speech . Babcock noted that " it is manifest that there is social utility in expressive and imaginative forms of entertainment , even if they contain violence . " In 2003 , Washington State enacted a statute banning the sale or rental to minors of video games containing " aggressive conflict in which the player kill , injures , or otherwise causes physical harm to a human form in the game who is depicted by dress or other recognizable symbols as a public law enforcement officer . " In 2004 , this statute was subsequently declared an unconstitutional violation of the first amendment right to free speech in the Federal District Court case of '' Video Software Dealers Ass 'n v. Maleng ''
Columbine High School massacre
Columbine High School massacre
Nonviolent video game