Video Games Promoting Nationalism and War?

I used to play Mechwarrior Online. It was a really fun game. One of the reasons I stopped playing it was because it just became boring since it was still in early development and it felt like I was aimlessly playing the same match over and over even if they were on different maps - but doing it toward no goals or aims or context. Recently, they finally released a feature they had been promising their player-base for a long time (a feature many had doubts they would ever come through on) - Community Warfare. Community warfare entails grouping together all the different factions (all of which represent sets of different nations of people that tend to resemble Earth's current nations), implementing a map of interstellar territory (which coincides with the game's quite expansive lore), and having people from these factions go to planets in systems along the edges (front lines) of their territory to "invade" and claim them to expand their faction's territory.

Now, as a game this sounds quite fun, much more fun than the game was before (now they have a reason to be fighting according to this new "invasion" game mode). However, while I was sitting here going "sweeet!"... I then stopped and found myself looking at the whole thing in a bit more of a critical light... The thing that seems so fun about this new mode, also feels dangerously promotional to what I have spent years now trying to not be a part of: Justifications for war, nationalism, division, etc. I stopped to ask myself, "Is this game simply promoting and sensationalizing nationalism and war?" ... And then I asked myself "Granted it is just a game, do I really want to spend my time playing a game based on an idea that I would rather not personally endorse?"

I've yet to jump back into the game. It looks fun, but it just doesn't feel right.

What are your thoughts on games like this?

My husband loves that game. Go big stompy robots!

I see where you're coming from though. But I think games can provide a great immersion into another world or view. You can act out scenarios that you wouldn't normally be involved in, do, or even encounter. So you get to fight for a faction for territory. How does it feel to lose? To win? What about the other guys? How do they feel?

And if you don't feel like being philosophical, well, it is just a game. I quite enjoy Grand Theft Auto but I don't condone theft, murder, or street racing. I love fantasy games but I don't condone dismembering people with swords or turning them into sheep.

Personally I think that as long as there is no real-world endorsement of the things I dislike (such as funding game profits towards those things) then I don't have a problem with playing the games that do things I'm personally against. Besides, without conflict, where is the triumph that makes games worth playing?

I recently noticed I no longer enjoy simulated violence in MOST movies and television

I think its ok to enjoy whatever one enjoys
and ok to not enjoy
years ago I had this idea.for a game I called Nippon
the idea was to be synthesis of a really in depth Rpg conttextual background of having a free roaming world to explore as a fuedal japaness warrior/samurai
but think along theines of the rpg gams where you build ur character
ronin ninja even sorcerers eventually because underlying all of the stats the player would.be choosing from was a consistent but unspoken theory of KI which would eventually result in supranatural abilities
it was to be interactive online similar to wow or any other CLAN ATTACK games but there were also 1 v 1 tournament conditions where the player gets a really in depth fighter like tekken or street fighter or soul caliber ect
tthis was all FLUFF to keep people jnterested
the real POINT of the game was to teach people about warrior philosophy using ancient\historical japan as the. backdrop

everywhere you went you would learn real historical info on japan
also there was constant use of source material like musashi BOOK OF FIVE RINGS and HAGAKURE and ART OF WAR ect


in my mind the stadard were
this is a homework assignment for college history

this is a fighting game that tournament levelmplayers like EVO champs will love
an rpg that makes DnD players wet their pants

hats the future of games and the future is now

War is only interesting to those who have never fought in one.

Death only fascinates those who have never killed or watched others be killed.

Nationalism only finds passion in the young and idealistic, the old and wise know that no nation, no man, no ideal is worth sacrifice as it will be replaced (possibly by something even worse).

The fantasy will always be better than the reality.

If I may add here? There is a old saying that has been forgotten over our course of modernizing. The saying is "I'd you don't bring it to the island, you won't find it" better known as "garbage in garbage out." it's a easy theory in which a person's mind and heart are a empty box. What we put in it WILL indeed come out. The expectation of having diamonds and treasures exit a box we put in rocks is far fetched and left to true alchemist or illusionists. Lol Same rules apply to what ever we place in us, mentally physical or spiritually. To change the output, we have to change the input. What comes out is what is...inside

Kohadre wrote: War is only interesting to those who have never fought in one.

Death only fascinates those who have never killed or watched others be killed.

Nationalism only finds passion in the young and idealistic, the old and wise know that no nation, no man, no ideal is worth sacrifice as it will be replaced (possibly by something even worse).

The fantasy will always be better than the reality.

I endorse this entirely but if I may I would like to add one thing and that is that war is also.intersting to those who realize they are eventually going into one.

for this reason Jedi do well to consider the study of war in its many facets az a serious and very personal matter
is easier to be outmaneuvered by a thing one does not understand

Eeeek, :woohoo: I love MWO. The snow maps always remind me of Hoth. I only do public drop's and still enjoy them too much, but I find community warfare difficult to get into, literally, I must be impatient as I always seem to miss the match starts and get left in the lobby for about 15mins. Go Clan Jade Falcon!!!

I tend to view games like MWO as tactical simulators and not war simulations. MWO being fantasy equipment set in outer space also differentiates it from reality.... I find its only relevance exercising awareness and skill in using systems in a contested environment.

Though games like Operation Flashpoint/ARMA: Armed Assault were attempts at real war simulation. OFP has large open battlefields, all vehicles and weapons accessible, it was the individual player who could recreate large sets of human behaviour in realistic real world environments in a complex scripted nation level war environments. I think these are more dangerous because it fool's people into thinking they have had experience of war, and even worse makes them disassociate the reality of war from undertaking it.

A derivation of OFP was/is used by the USMC for training its so realistic compared to other FPS shooting games.... perhaps not in graphic quality, but in operational applicability. So any game which is set in a real world environment, which includes death and destruction of people and real environments probably should be for adults only IMO. They should code in compassion to these things, such as taking prisoner etc is more rewarding them just non-stop slaughter - make information and storyline more important then just kill counts, But aliens, robots and other fantasy stuff seems ok to me
:evil:

Proteus wrote: What are your thoughts on games like this?

I'm with Kamizu for the most part. I often play games that don't reflect my world view or personal moral or ethical beliefs. In fact, as Kit suggested, I use videogames as an outlet for exploring thoughts and feelings that I wouldn't be comfortable tackling in the 'real world'.

My favorite videogames typically end up being those that make me think about things from perspectives that are in conflict with my own. I like to push myself as far as I can go with games and engage fully with the subject matter, in part to see how far I'm able to move beyond my everyday understandings.

If someone evaluated my character based on the videogames that I play, it's possible that I'd be seen as an irresponsible, warped, murderous, sad, and hateful person. I do balance out my depraved gaming experiences by playing (or creating) games with thoughtful or reflective elements, but those elements are not always my focus or concern when gaming.

I would generally agree with Carlos' "garbage in, garbage out" comment. However, in the case of videogames - for me at least - that line between fantasy and reality is very clear and I don't get hung up on the thought that I might be destroying my mind. In truth, I wouldn't be who I am without videogames, so I've chosen to acknowledge and accept the positive and negative aspects of gaming.

:laugh:

There is nothing wrong with gaming. I have from atari to nes to genesis and wii... I'm a old school gamer you might say lol.