Video Game Industry -
- Darfur is dying
The Darfur conflict presented one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world. This conflict fared in 2003, when rebels in the region took up arms as a result of what they referred to as the government neglect of the region. This forced the government of the previous larger Sudan to respond with a campaign to counter the insurgency, leading to the displacement of about 2.3 million people and most of them started living in fetid camps while others ran to the neighboring Chad (Toïngar, 2013). Many of civilians who did not manage to escape came under heavy attack from the rebel groups, government forces and the pro-government militia. As per the year 2013, almost 400,000 people had been displaced show the dire consequences of the war. Many villages were destroyed, further complicated the situation as more people fled their homes and this was blamed on the government as part of its ethnic cleansing policy in order to cripple any support for the rebel groups. There was a lot of looting, burning of houses while rape cases were reported to be very high (Toïngar, 2013).
Darfur is Dying, an online video game seeks to bring to attention he larger social awareness to the conflict that was taking place in Western Sudan. The game enables the players to be take action and be actively involved in the Darfur conflict. This game which takes around 15 playing minutes looks too real and sometimes not real enough in the depiction of the situation in this conflict area. The video represents a movement whose subject involves very serious issues challenges faced by the society but not just irrelevant fighters (Knowlton, 2009). Basically the game uses digital simulation and traditional narrative to advance the intended message.
To represent the real situation on the ground, the game involves two-level structure and the player is either outside searching for water or building shelter and collecting food in the refugee camp. The structure used in the game is a straight forward one, where there is an outline of the way in which players would use it. Users are also allowed to read information relating to the conflict at top of all screens. There is also information provided on the way action can be taken to stop the conflict. Simple progression is used within the game play, while few choices are available allowing than enable the user have direct impact on the story and any choice will led to the continuation or conclusion of the game (Knowlton, 2009). For instance, the user cannot choose a male of 39 years of age, given that it is unlikely for adult males to search for water which shows that female and especially younger ones were the targets of rebel groups. There are also common objects where characters can hide which includes rocks, bushes and rotting carcasses. The user is caught if unable to hide and information is presented on what is likely to happen to the character. The environment provided by the play is one that depicts the hardships that the individuals in the Darfur conflict have to undergo in the hands of warring parties (Michigan State University, 2008). The game successfully delvers short persuasive messages which serve to compel the players to take an action outside of the Darfur video game, in the real war-torn region.
- Power dynamics of Grand Theft Auto V to Portal 2
The videos Part 2 and Grand Theft Auto V basically represent the speculative fiction of mankind driven by fantasies and have great impact on human perspective on real life issues. The infrastructure employed in the design of the games are directed towards fulfilling the power fantasies of the players given the level of immersion that they have to embrace in order to feel part of the game. Both videos have end goals which involved players having to reach their own desires and may be to have such players illuminate their own story.
Grand Theft Auto V involves seeking physical power in an extraordinary universe which works as an exciting setting but also as a nihilistic satire more so on the western society. Considering that the game appears as very misogynistic, vulgar and violent, it immerses players into an internally-consistent world which requires thick and complex analysis (Stuart, 2013). The game can best be described as having set up a satirical carnival. The power dynamics in the game can be seen in the way it slides into narrative. It can only be tolerated in an open world obsessed in power fantasy and the endless outlook makes the users eyes to be stuck on its mini-map. The game is defined by attitude to openness and freedom giving someone little liberty for escaping its structure. The game is more about culpability and complicity and raises the question of what the player is prepared to do in a real world and how much they are responsible for. Moreover, the GTA video game is basically a gangster narrative with violence showing a genre that has a history of looking into the male’s aggressive pride or machismo while disregarding all other perspectives (Erick & Gaines, 2013). It is parody of the idiotic misogyny of power hungry and violent men. It shows the satire of modern life, and the players being driven to the fixation with power fantasies, political apathy and to crown it miserable self-obsession (Stuart, 2013).
On the other hand, Portal 2 exhibits a rare ability to form a resonating impact on players by use of emotions or persuasive themes. The game has a process aspect of action and the consequence which and seems to gain rhetorical meaning by empowering users so that they have an experience instead of observing and to invest instead of watching (Dafnis, n.d). Unlike the Grand Theft Auto V, Portal 2 is based on personal perspective with no extreme nihilistic motives. The characters of the game impact heavily on the persuasive nature of the game, and it becomes easier to understand the impressionability and motives of such characters. The major themes in this video rarely on obsession for physical power but the exploitation of players emotions so that they become very emotionally attached to it (Dafnis, n.d).
These power dynamics are just fantasies given that there is really no power gain in the process. It is a fantasy of meaninglessness which evokes the outside explosions and dominance display that is not real. The players get so lost in fantasies especially if physical power that they forget the difference between reality and fantasy. Engaging in non-power fantasies would involve integrating social fabrics into the game. Examples of such fantasies include having allowing players to reach non- controlling goals, practicing skills that do not involve violence or a structure of sharing success among characters in the game.
- video games as a cultural form
Video games have a significant part in human culture. The video games have reached gained a high cultural legitimacy which was previously reserved for other things such music, literature, film and art. They can no longer be treated as only a medium of entertainment but as a form of expression or as a tool for presenting various topics common in the society (Burrill,2008). This means that there is no ground for treating games as being different from other forms of literature as more and more games are becoming artful and in a form that should be recognized in the same manner. Just like other arts, the video games have been used to show the intrinsic ways of modern life and has had great influence on various aspects especially innovative media technology. The video gaming community aspect has had effect on the social interactions of consumers and their collective behavior. Moreover, just like any other forms of culture such as music, video games need to be learnt by users before they engage in playing (Burrill, 2008). Experiencing the games on a basic level needs some considerable effort for them to be ingrained in the systems of people involved.
The symbolic, developmental and social value of the games can be recognized having great impact on anthropology and sociology studies. Games tend to organize the behavior of individuals, and provide practice in exchange of language, synchronized expectations and even performance. The pleasure obtained in games lies in both communication and inactions, and matching of languages to action and it involves arranging both into a social interaction pattern (Burrill, 2008). The video games have been adopted by many people and have shifted from being just for young males, something which has been assisted by the ever increasing presence of Smart phones. Those games referred to as casual have attracted demographic of users, beyond the teenage boys to include the hobbyist development across the globe (ESA, 2013). In addition, they have become a significant part of popular culture which an aspect which has been enhanced by the internet culture. Many of the people involved in playing the games identify themselves as gamers, which could mean a person who is passionate and enjoy playing. The increasing online capability of the games and social multiplayer has seen them grow into social networks. This multiplayer aspect can be seen in the improving gender distribution pattern which has been observed to be reaching almost equilibrium as per a study done in 2011, which shows 42 percent of the gamers being female. Majority of individuals in the 6-49 has been gamers and the older players are growing in numbers (ESA, 2013). A reason that can be used to explain the increase in the popularity of video games includes the rising number o genres which needs less specific audience. Games such as Wii Fit and Wii Sports have been developed to widen the six of audience.
Games are also well suited to take up the position of cultural ratchet, where they preserve a pattern of behavior from a generation to another, through the inherent pleasure of shared imitation and attention (Newsman, 2013). Playing games can be said to be a way in which general habits of synchronization and sequencing of actions are transmitted. Video games cannot, therefore, be separated from other forms of culture in the society.
References
Toïngar, E. (2013). Idriss Deby and the Darfur Conflict. 84-87.retrieved from: https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=_pHLAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA90&dq=Idriss+Deby+and+the+Darfur+Conflict&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Idriss%20Deby%20and%20the%20Darfur%20Conflict&f=false
Michigan State University,(2008)."Gaming" Genre: Serious Games, Genre Theory, and Rhetorical Action. ProQuest.44-53.Reteived from: https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=E_IlMoS1mBYC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Gaming%22+Genre:+Serious+Games,+Genre+Theory,+and+Rhetorical+Action&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Gaming%22%20Genre%3A%20Serious%20Games%2C%20Genre%20Theory%2C%20and%20Rhetorical%20Action&f=false
Knowlton,Q.(2009)Darfur is Dying: A Narrative Analysis. Retrieved from: https://www.academia.edu/1334277/Darfur_is_Dying_A_Narrative_Analysis
Stuart, K. (2013). GTA 5 review: a dazzling but monstrous parody of modern life . retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/sep/16/gta-5-review-grand-theft-auto-vErick, Gaines.(2013).Nuances of Satire: Falling into GTA V’s Biopolitical Trap. Retrieved from: https://higherlevelgamer.org/2013/10/08/nuances-of-satire-falling-into-gta-vs-biopolitical-trap/
Dafnis,J(n.d).Thinking with Portals: A Rhetorical Analysis of Portal. Inscriptionsjournal. Retrieved from: http://www.inscriptionsjournal.org/thinking-with-portals-a-rhetorical-analysis-of-portal/
ESA,(2013). Essential facts about the computer and video game industry. 8-16.Retreived from: https://web.archive.org/web/20140217085611/http://www.theesa.com/facts/pdfs/esa_ef_2013.pdf
Newsman,J.(2013).Videogames. Routledge . 63-65. Retrieved from: https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=n8O_fLVjjhsC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Newsman.Videogames.+Routledge&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
