[quote]Uncle Gabby wrote:
ChrisPowers wrote:
Uncle Gabby wrote:
ChrisPowers wrote:
I agree. Also, I probably shouldn’t have used the word bias, but I couldn’t think of the more appropriate term. I don’t believe they’re actively sitting there, plotting ways to indoctrinate the player into their anti-wealthy belief system.
It’s just that indoctrination into that way of thinking has gotten so bad in this country–particularly on the coasts, where most of these game companies recruit–that the designers aren’t even aware that there’s a legitimate opposing point of view (or that their own beliefs are inherently anti-capitalist [but that’s clearly my own opinion]). But that’s how I generally feel these things happen.
I agree completely. The middle class/suburban/college educated class definitely marinates in Marxist doctrine without even being aware of it. The biggest failure of our education system is that it doesn’t encourage critical thinking, free thought, and self examination. It produces kids who, though no supporters themselves still speak in terms taken from Marx. I can’t count how many times I have been in the middle of a discussion about capitalism with someone, and hear them define it in terms taken from Marx, and they aren’t even aware of it. Who knows, it could all be a “Communist plot” as a bitter old drunk I used to work with used to say, or just intellectual laziness and stupidity.[/quote]
I’m sure it’s the latter. The reason it’s effective, in my opinion, is that it’s couched in the language of rebellion and counter-culture trendiness. So the kids get to feel like they’re exercising independent thought as they march in lock step.
[quote]This is a great point that I hadn’t thought of. Probably seeing too much red in anticipation of encountering what my own pre-conceived notions caused me to expect. I guess that might be part of why I even asked the question in the first place, though: is their approach that the wealthy are overprivileged and naturally prone to abuse those “less fortunate,” thinking they’re producing some incredibly poignant metaphor for our modern times, OR is their approach that feudalism is inherently broken for those very reasons, and therefore capitalism is actually a good thing, and the best system to allow for opportunity, etc.?
Wow, I’m probably expecting too much from my video games. But honestly, they’ve been around long enough (and their audience is supposedly now old enough) that I don’t think it’s too absurd to expect some legitimate maturity of thought in games. And no, blood, sex, and rape don’t count (which is another pet peeve of mine, but I digress).
I’m constantly dissapointed at how little is spent on the writing for video games, especially when you compare it to the amount spent on graphics. I think you’re probably right that they are trying to make a retardedly heavy-handed and obvious metaphor for capitalism in the US, because, really, how many people know anything about feudalism? Maybe 1 in a 100. And since the system is pretty much dead it’s hardly relevant to preach about it’s short comings. It would be like preaching against sacrificing virgins to volcano gods.[/quote]
I agree. I mean, nice graphics are great and crucial, and games can almost be seen as art delivery systems in a way. But don’t make a story-driven game and skimp on the damn story. The worst is when you’re playing a game that’s supposed to take place in like, 19th century London or something, and you have to hear the main character utter some nauseating, 80s-inspired tough-guy line like “this…ends…here,” or “this is the part where you die,” or some equally childish fucking nonsense that actually causes me to feel embarrassed for the dialogue writer. I mean, grow the fuck up, man, come on. Not every game is Duke Nukem.