Disclaimer: This article discusses sensitive topics, including school violence, harm, death, and mental health issues involving minors. Some sections contain the author’s personal opinions, interpretations, and commentary and should not be taken as established fact. Readers are encouraged to consult reliable sources and official reports for factual information.
I was really hesitant before creating an article about this, given just how gruesome and shocking these events are, but I want to make a stand because everyone, especially the government representatives, seems to have been barking at the wrong tree.
School violence is not uncommon in the Philippines, with fraternities, bullying, and other forms of physical and other forms of violence occurring inside schools. However, actual school shootings in the Philippines are rare, since gun laws here are much stricter compared to other countries like the US. The Philippines is not exclusive with this school violence issue; rather, it is happening globally.
I want to talk about the two recent incidents and uncover the facts, the motives, and why government officials are so quick to blame video games as the primary reason behind this, and why they’re wrong.
Remembering the Tacloban Shooting
On June 22, 2026, around 9 a.m., two suspects, Nash (14 years old) and Rod (15 years old), used a caliber .38 revolver and a 9mm Glock pistol and killed three students and injured twenty others. The suspected motive was bullying.
The Glock pistol allegedly belonged to a policewoman who was one suspect’s aunt, while the other firearm was tied to a security agency.
Online Exposure of the Suspects
The suspects were found to be linked to the online extremist network “764,” known for nihilistic violent extremism.
Upon further investigation, one of the victims was discovered to have been an active player of GoreBox, a chaotic, physics-driven sandbox game that looked similar to Roblox.
The Ban for GoreBox
Instead of restricting minors’ access and encouraging parents and guardians to monitor their children’s online activity, especially in connection with the 764 online group, many government officials were quick to blame GoreBox.
Blaming video games has been a long-standing issue where people correlate them with real-life violence; it’s nothing new, so I’m not surprised by Jonvic Remulla’s push for a violent video game ban. It’s on par with the idea that watching too much TV will rot your brain. That said, I have to disagree with him that banning these games will actually help prevent or mitigate future instances like this.
However, some of their takes are among the dumbest I’ve ever seen. They wanted to invite the GoreBox game developer, F2Games, to the upcoming hearing. It’s like calling the kitchen knife manufacturer in for a hearing after a murder happened using a knife he manufactured.
It’s even more absurd how Aboy Paraiso is threatening to keep the ban on the game because the developer doesn’t want anything to do with a crime he isn’t even liable for, or even aware of.
I’m just baffled that some random guy publishing games for fun is in trouble because of the neglect of the parents and guardians. And even if he did agree to appear, what were they planning to ask him? What bit of information would that provide, when the guy doesn’t even know the suspects personally?
Hear me out though, what if, instead of targeting GoreBox, we strengthened anti-bullying campaigns, parental liability and responsibility, and actually cracked down on 764 online group members in the Philippines?
Survivorship Bias and Online Casinos
Now, a lot of people in the comments during this time were quick to point out two things.
First, most pointed out that they played much more violent, gorier, and bloodier games but grew up fine. They claimed they had good character or never committed a crime. That’s fine and a good thing, but not everyone thinks and functions the same way.
Second, and here I actually agree: why are we so keen to ban these video games but keep allowing the absolute plague of online casinos in the country? These legitimately ruin lives and families, and some of them are deceivingly advertised as a way to escape poverty. The common conclusion for everyone is that it’s because it brings in money, and money is never bad for these officials.
Ateneo de Zamboanga School Shooting
On August 18, 2026, around 7 a.m., Mohammad Mael Jalani, a Grade 9 student, went on a Facebook Live carrying what appeared to be two pistols, one with attachments made to look like a rifle.
Early in the live stream, he appeared to be gearing up in what looked like the comfort room of the school.
While still live, he opened fire, hitting a Grade 10 student on the fourth floor, then went to the fifth floor and jumped from the building, taking his own life.
Two people died, including the shooter, and at least nine were injured during this attack. The motive is still not clear.
Both pistols were licensed to his father, Lt. Lars Jalani II, head of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) Enforcement and Security Service in Zamboanga. One was government-issued, while the other was under a personal license. He had been relieved from his position prior to the incident.
The mayor described the shooter as a “very bright student” who was reportedly a “Roblox fanatic.” There are images online of the suspect holding a certificate recognizing him for receiving the highest honors.
Eumir Marcial’s Push for Online Games Ban
Why are we so quick to bark at online video games? Social media, bullying, and the people the kid grew up with are just as responsible as video games are in influencing a kid’s decisions.
A lot of commenters have also brought back to light the infamous “bugbog o dignidad” video, the 2018 Ateneo junior high school bullying incident in the Philippines. In the video, a student demands that a peer choose between being beaten up or kneeling to degrade himself in the boys’ comfort room. The victim chose to stand his ground and was beaten up by Joaquin Montes, a black belt taekwondo practitioner.
That was indeed a sport he practiced; it was never revealed that he actively or openly played violent video games, yet he was still able to commit such horrible physical abuse and bullying against fellow schoolmates.
Final Thoughts
In both cases we’ve seen here, the guns were acquired through a family member. Why can’t people see that, instead of pointing to video games, we should point to the fact that these immediate family members are not storing their guns properly?
Moreover, why aren’t these parents checking up on their children? A person doesn’t just wake up and decide to do such acts on an intrusive thought; both of these were clearly planned.
Video games are a double-edged sword, but just like anything else we consume, too much can be harmful, even sports, even television, and everything else.
I just hope more people realize that it’s not actually the video games’ fault, but rather the other factors in these children’s environments that need to be considered. And sometimes these factors seem so blatantly obvious as a huge influence, yet everyone seems to miss them.
What do you think of this situation? Comment down below your thoughts.
References:
Wikipedia, “2026 Tacloban school shooting” — en.wikipedia.org
Philippine News Agency, “Raps filed vs. minor in Tacloban school shooting” — pna.gov.ph
Philippine Daily Inquirer, “Guns in Tacloban shooting belong to suspect’s cop aunt, security agency” (Jun 23, 2026) — newsinfo.inquirer.net
Philippine Daily Inquirer, “School shooting kills 3 students in Tacloban” (Jun 23, 2026) — newsinfo.inquirer.net
Philippine News Agency, “CICC bans mobile game Gorebox after Tacloban school shooting” (Jun 23, 2026) — pna.gov.ph
GMA News Online, “Tacloban shooting prompts DILG’s Remulla to push for gun owners’ liability” (Jun 25, 2026) — gmanetwork.com
Philippine Daily Inquirer, “Permanent ban on violent video games pressed after Tacloban shooting” (Jun 26, 2026) — newsinfo.inquirer.net
Philstar, “GoreBox developer declines Senate invite” (Jun 27, 2026) — philstar.com
Philstar, “Gorebox ban risks becoming permanent, says cybercrime center chief” (Jul 2, 2026) — philstar.com
Wikipedia, “2026 Zamboanga City school shooting” — en.wikipedia.org
CNN, “Philippines shooting: Students and teen gunman dead at school attached to Ateneo de Zamboanga University” (Aug 17-18, 2026) — cnn.com
Rappler, “2 dead in Ateneo de Zamboanga shooting: What we know so far” (Aug 18, 2026) — rappler.com
Philstar, “2 firearms, ‘voluminous ammunition’ recovered after Zamboanga shooting — PNP” (Aug 19, 2026) — philstar.com
SunStar Philippines, “Government issued firearm used in Zamboanga school shooting” (Aug 18, 2026) — sunstar.com.ph
Rappler, “Gun issued to Customs official used in Ateneo de Zamboanga shooting” (Aug 18, 2026) — rappler.com
Philstar, “BOC relieves father of school shooting suspect” (Aug 19, 2026) — philstar.com
Manila Times, “Young shooter used Customs-issued firearm in Ateneo de Zamboanga shooting” (Aug 18, 2026) — manilatimes.net
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