A new study is out on the effect of violent video games. "Oh no, not another one" I bet you're thinking.

Unlike other studies though, this one doesn't offer conclusions like "violent video games is teh evilz." Their study only offers what the data says, with a methodology that's direct to the point and simple, if a little limited in scope and test groups.

Their study asked boys aged 12-15 to play two different video games at home in the evening, one violent, and one with ponies non-violent. Monitoring their heart rate, they found that the violent game had a higher effect on heart rate than non-violent ones, lasting even into sleep.

While the boys themselves said that they didn't sleep poorly after playing the violent games, the results suggest that the biological system is affected - to a degree - by violent video games without us even being aware of it.

The study offers no conclusions as to the long term effects, but it does give a definite link to violent video games and biological functions. Mental links are a different matter altogether, despite what Jack Thompson would have you think.

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Look how many studies have been conducted and don't agree with each other!

• ECA: recent study on violent video games is wanting
• Violent video games make you aggressive
• Look, Ma! No hands! Study suspects violent games are healthy for kids
• Study: Video games activate reward regions of brain in men more than women
• Bet you didn't know: video games are good for you; study shows social, political, civic effects
• Study shows playing video games may damage brain
• Pyschologists: obsessive video game habits are part of larger issue