Ask HN: Why are video games violent?

I was thinking of picking up a ps3 since the price of the console has dropped so significantly the recent months. I was looking for what games that might be interesting to play with when I realize that pretty much all games recommended (with scores greater than 90%) where violent games. I have been playing shoot em up since the my amiga days and of course Duke Nukem 3D/quake/doom, but after playing Battlefield 2 in clan, I grew tired of all the Shoot'em up. So now I'm looking for something that does more than put a weapon in my hands, stimulates my narcissism, and pretty much dumb me down.

My question is this; why is violent games so dominant? Do we yearn so bad for reptilian behavior?