POTW: Reality in our games

PALGN Feature | What do you think?

You may have seen last week's news about Konami's upcoming 'Iraqi themed third-person shooter', Six Days in Fallujah (you can read Kimberley's article here). The article and subsequent media prompted discussion among PALGN members about whether real life events - particularly sensitive ones - should be allowed to 'spill over' into the gaming arena. Accordingly we thought it would be apt to ask the question in this week's poll of the week and firmly capture the thoughts of the PALGN community.

Fantasy versus reality. Are you seeking an escape from the real world when playing games? Is the active perspective of gaming - versus the passive perspective of other media, whether that be viewing or reading for example - what makes these themes uncomfortable for us? Maybe there's a certain amount of time that needs to pass before events can be played out in games, i.e. your World War II titles? Or is gaming, as art, perhaps a mirror to society and one that should reflect it regardless of the subject matter?

So give it some thought and please tell us, should sensitive real life current events be portrayed in gaming?

Vote | View Results

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29 Comments

IISpacebreakII

9 months ago

Dang I didn't think straight, I voted no but that was because as soon as I read the question I instantly assumed that via real life events they mean the negative ones for example the war in Iraq.

Benza

9 months ago

Yes, to not do so is to limit games significantly as a medium.

Passa

9 months ago

Well, I know Six Days in Fallujah is getting a boatload of bad press, and I can see why (hell even I was a bit miffed by it).. however as some other users have suggested, you should read the Wikipedia article to hear the background of the game from the developers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Days_in_Fallujah

I'd say it's a day one purchase for me now. I am very intrigued.

BurnZ

9 months ago

I reject your reality and substitute my own.

Lord Haart

9 months ago

Yes, but only if you can do them justice. And to an extent; there are certainly topics that are just not right for games. Making someone act as a cold blooded murderer or rapist in a realistic situation is pretty disgusting, and whether it's against morals or not, I certainly will never condone it.

The difference in shooter games is that the player accepts the fiction, in fact embraces it. When games mix with reality without the proper feedback (ie people feeling real consequences for their actions), then it's crossed a line.

elnoob

9 months ago

For an example of why it's really difficult to take a real-world event and portray it in the form of something for someone's entertainment, this article is worth a read:

http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/04/200948132212418175.html

We laugh at games like GTA IV, where it's fun to watch a dude in the street roll underneath the wheels of your car. But it becomes so much more intense if you crush the body of an insurgent under the wheels of your tank. Because it's easier to see it happening. It's easier to picture someone doing exactly that in the Second Battle of Fallujah. Should it be made into a game? I don't know. Would I buy it? I have no idea. But it's worth giving some real thought to. As a parallel, consider what a World War II veteran would do playing something like CoD: WaW, or a Vietnam veteran playing BF:V. How would they see it?

Food for thought.

Till@

9 months ago

To expand upon what Lord Haart said, I think reality in video games (in relation to negative things at least) needs to be general, for instace it has been proven that games set in world wars are acceptable becuase they are not hugely specific. But if you were to relese a game based on a single serial killer and their actions it would be crossing the line.

Thats what I think anyway.

Nic_231

9 months ago

My thoughts on this matter are unclear, but as this is an internet forum, I have every right to air them

I am all for games as the next medium but I worry that the production of games such games are a move made too early.
Games need to gain some credence with broader society before they can tackle (if that is indeed what Konami intend on doing) current events such as this.
What I don't want to see done with this title is a lot of screaming 13 year olds screaming baggin' out 'yo mamma' on Xbox live multiplayer...
It seems like Konami are going for the generic war FPS (which sells nicely) and cheapening the experiences of all those veterans who have lived through the combat in Iraq.
I am well aware that titles like COD World at War might face the same criticism but I would argue that the WW2 myth is a part of our shared history and can be fictionalized in games whereas something this recent cannot. I am particularly concerned that this is being handled by a Japanese company (a nation not noted for their cultural sensitivity) and I imagine its realism will do more to harm games as a respected medium than benefit them.

Nic_231

9 months ago

Sorry, to clarify my last post, I am all for reality in games and I think that games could be a unique way to experience events. I am just a concerened about realistic settings being comercialized (in online multiplayer etc) and think that games as a medium aren't ready to deal with such content until they are accepted by the general populace.

Benza

9 months ago

Quote

It seems like Konami are going for the generic war FPS (which sells nicely) and cheapening the experiences of all those veterans who have lived through the combat in Iraq.

Wow, try actually reading about the game first.

Quote

And to an extent; there are certainly topics that are just not right for games. Making someone act as a cold blooded murderer or rapist in a realistic situation is pretty disgusting, and whether it's against morals or not, I certainly will never condone it.

I have to massivley disagree with you there, games more then any other medium can put you in the shoes of another person. A game based on Al Bundy for example would do a far better job of putting you in his shoes and examining why he did what he did then any of the movies they make about him.

rufati

9 months ago

Yes. People can write books or make films about sensitive issues and it's a lot more widely accepted. Yet when a game tries to do something similar it gets a lot of hate (even from gamers).

Running down and reversing over a grandmother while watching the blood pool is awesome, but crushing an enemy combatant under tank treads is just offensive? How does that work? Because crushing someone under a tank is a possible real life scenario and, therefore, easier to envisage? God knows how many people get shot dead in America (and elsewhere) everyday, yet first-person-shooters are among the most popular games. How have we formed such bizarre double standards when it comes to virtual worlds/experiences?

I think it's unfair for gamers to, on the one hand, talk about how games aren't just a kids thing anymore, then turn around and say "oh but [game] is going too far." It doesn't help that games are being made for the sake of making money, and not to further the medium (although that happens sometimes). So until there is consumer demand for mature games they aren't going to come along very often.

We see/hear about these kinds of events on tv, in the newspapers, in films, and so on. Why is it so bad that a developer - with the help of people who were a part of the events - wants to make a game based on it? Especially considering it was the returning marines that asked Atomic Games to make it in the first place.

/end slightly disjoint thoughts

Benza wrote

Yes, to not do so is to limit games significantly as a medium.

Or I could just say that.

Fly

9 months ago

As with anything it needs the context to make it a meaningful contribution other than the possible "lol Iraq derka derka" in this instance. There is no reason why interactive entertainment should be excluded from "partaking" in enlightening or highlighting their opinions on current events & "reality" through their work unless you call up Andrew Bolt "sorry mate, your column is negative find another outlet thanks"

Special interest dribble.

sobriquet835

9 months ago

I don't have any problem with games like Six Days, but the developer needs to make sure the game does not come across as being pure propaganda, or have other strong political views. As long as the developer is a little bit careful, they should be able to make games on whatever they want.

Glen McLeod-Thorpe

9 months ago

I'm sorry Benza, I know it's serious but I had to laugh,

Benza wrote

A game based on Al Bundy for example would do a far better job of putting you in his shoes and examining why he did what he did then any of the movies they make about him.

Haha, good one!

Benza

9 months ago

****!
I meant Ted Bundy.
I always get those two confused.

... It's made for some very awkward conversations.

RooRage

9 months ago

I swing with the "It depends"...

Me thinks a Josef Fritzl RPG would be slightly bad taste...

Island_Wolf

9 months ago

^Or genocide or a dictator regime

unlachs

9 months ago

i'm all for current events/political struggles to be the subject of games, just as long as it's not exploitative or propagandistic, and some kind of insightful commentary is provided.

Skiller

9 months ago

I don't know which way to vote on this one, I'm completely for having sensitive real life events portrayed in games but I don't think that they should because 99% of the time they'd just be completely crap cash-ins.

So I'm thinking that's probably a no but with the condition that it's still possible to do so, but then again I don't like decisions being made on what someone should or shouldn't do as that's just taking away their freedom.

The Genius

9 months ago

I really hope Konami can pull off well the Six Days game for the sack of the gaming community. The last thing we need is more bad publicity from the media about games.

As long as the troops fighting the war on terror are potrayed accurately, then it's all good.

RooRage

9 months ago

The Genius wrote

I really hope Konami can pull off well the Six Days game for the sack of the gaming community.

The gaming community can stay away from my "sack"!!

rodvcpetrie

9 months ago

This is a great way to recruit for the military....

Aftershock

9 months ago

rodvcpetrie wrote

This is a great way to recruit for the military....

Not if treated accurately to the real events. That was not pleasant for the soldiers involved, to say the least.

America's army. That is a recruitment tool, and a good one.

Benza

9 months ago

rodvcpetrie wrote

This is a great way to recruit for the military....

Uh the game is being marketed as a survival horror game.

So it's kind of like a recruitment for the military in the same way that Silent Hill does well for the tourisim of tiny american towns.

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