Marcoleta cautions against blaming video games in Tacloban shooting

newsinfo / Nation Nation Marcoleta cautions against blaming video games in Tacloban shooting By: Isabelle Pechay - @inquirerdotnet INQUIRER.net / 01:06 PM June 27, 2026 Share: Sen. Rodante Marcoleta MANILA, Philippines — Senator Rodante Marcoleta on Friday cautioned against rushing to blame video games for the deadly school shooting in Tacloban City.

Marcoleta said some of his colleagues in the Senate were quick to conclude that video games were to blame, without first thoroughly studying the circumstances surrounding the June 22 shooting. “Some of my colleagues in the Senate, they’re quick to make a decision, quick to conclude that video games were to blame,” Marcoleta said in his program “Sa Ganang Mamamayan.” Article continues after this advertisement He added that officials should carefully analyze the facts before assigning blame.

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Marcoleta did not identify any senator by name, but his remarks came after Senator Risa Hontiveros called for a Senate inquiry into the Tacloban shooting and said she wanted to question GoreBox developer Felix Filip about the game’s age safeguards, content moderation, and the possible exposure of children to harmful online communities. Filip, through an email to the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality, declined the invitation to the scheduled panel hearing chaired by Hontiveros on July 1. Article continues after this advertisement Filip, who also told Inquirer he is already cooperating with the actual investigation with other Philippine authorities, said that “for the committee’s record, GoreBox is classified 18+ and is not intended for, or directed at, minors.”

In her earlier statement on Friday, Hontiveros also said foreign-based developers and online platforms that profit from Filipino users “must respect our laws and our institutions,” arguing that child safety should be the minimum standard for companies operating in the country. Article continues after this advertisement Without naming Hontiveros, Marcoleta also took issue with those remarks. He noted that GoreBox is developed in Germany, is available worldwide through Google Play and Steam, and carries an 18-and-above age restriction.

Marcoleta likewise recalled seeing comments saying that they were “barking at the wrong tree” for blaming the game for what happened. Instead of faulting the game’s developer, Marcoleta said government agencies such as the Department of Information and Communications Technology and the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) should determine whether stronger regulations or safeguards should have been in place to prevent minors from accessing such content. GoreBox remains blocked after the CICC on Tuesday imposed a temporary ban on the gaming app.

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Subscribe to our daily newsletter SIGN ME UP By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. “We’re not saying that a single video game caused this tragedy.

But if there was an online environment that may have contributed to children’s exposure to violence, it is our duty to investigate it,” Hontiveros, meantime, said. /gsg READ NEXT Marcoleta cautions against blaming video games in Tacloban sho... P82.

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