It’s official: Playing violent video games is linked to increased aggression, according to a new analysis of studies by an American Psychological Association task force.

Those conclusions are based on a comprehensive review of the research literature published between 2005 and 2013 on violent video game use, including more than 150 scientific papers, Medical Xpress reports.

"The research demonstrates a consistent relation between violent video game use and increases in aggressive behavior, aggressive cognitions, and aggressive affect, and decreases in prosocial behavior, empathy and sensitivity to aggression," concluded the APA Task Force on Violent Media.
The analysis is the first in this field to examine the breadth of studies on the issue.

"Scientists have investigated the use of violent video games for more than two decades but to date, there is very limited research addressing whether violent video games cause people to commit acts of criminal violence," said Mark Appelbaum, task force chair. "However, the link between violence in video games and increased aggression in players is one of the most studied and best established in the field."

The analysis indicates no single risk factor consistently leads a video game player to act aggressively or violently. “Rather, it is the accumulation of risk factors that tends to lead to aggressive or violent behavior,” the task force wrote. “The research reviewed here demonstrates that violent video game use is one such risk factor."

The APA has called on the industry to design video games that include increased parental control over the amount of violence the games contain.

"We know that there are numerous risk factors for aggressive behavior," Appelbaum said. "What researchers need to do now is conduct studies that look at the effects of video game play in people at risk for aggression or violence due to a combination of risk factors. For example, how do depression or delinquency interact with violent video game use?"