Robespierre2.0
8th June 2009, 21:56
(This is basically copied verbatim from my blog. I just wanted some feedback on this idea that I had, so I'm posting it in shit-chat. Of course, I'd prefer positive feedback, but either way, I'm bracing myself for some 'you fucking suck, stop writing' kind of stuff)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Video games. They are one of the newer forms of media, powerful because of the interactivity they allow. However, as it has become another multi-million dollar industry, it is inevitable that they become as heavily saturated with ruling-class ideology as any other medium of entertainment.
For instance, take the 'Mercenary' games. I'll admit, I played the demo of the first one, and liked it at the time. After all, I was still a revisionist at that time, and to me, the DPRK seemed to be 'bad guys' that I could maim and kill without any remorse. Looking back, that game and its' sequel disgust me- Though the game is open ended, and you can end up working for factions besides the United States, the fact is that you play a mercenary carrying out imperialist actions towards the DPRK and third-world regimes resisting imperialism.
Well, there are exceptions. We have games that seem to be critical of modern bourgeois-democratic society, but it is always in a cynical, post-modernist sense. They rightfully take the piss out of this corrupt, fake society, but never proposes any real solution; The best example of this is the 'Grand Theft Auto' series- Again, it provides good criticism, but callous, greedy individualism and lumpen behavior is the only possible course of action to take in these games.
I'd love to see a real alternative to this- Something produced by an independent game studio, which keeps in step with the other video games today, featuring ridiculous and unrealistic animated violence, and an over-the-top storyline that the kids these days love, but with an underlying message that serves a progressive purpose. Here's my idea:
We need a first-person shooter, preferably based off of the Duke Nukem 3d engine, for ironic effect (ironic, as Duke symbolizes the all-Amerikan, sexist 'badass' persona), in which you play as an attractive female North Korean soldier, wearing a military uniform that hides her figure- We deliberately make our character attractive, but dress her modestly as a rejection of the commodification of sex all too typical in video games these days.
The rest of the game will proceed as follows: The evil imperialists attack the DPRK, therefore, our hero, a female super-soldier, armed with the Songun revolutionary spirit, takes it upon herself to smash the South Korean puppet regime and bring down the U.S. government, freeing the citizens from capitalist slavery, slaughtering scores of imperialist soldiers, destroying national monuments (dubbed 'symbols of oppression' in-game), and eventually destroying the U.S. Capitol, and installing a replica of the Juche Tower in its place. No corner will be cut- Absolutely everything will be tailored with the intent to make the blood pressure of conservative pundits rise.
You see, the strategy here isn't to endorse the DPRK. I happen to support them, other people don't, and I'm fine with that.
The strategy is expose the youth to an alternative point of view- one critical of Amerikan imperialism, through the power of contreversy and memetics. Of course, immediately after the game comes out, nobody is going to pay attention to it, but the idea is that sooner or later, some conservative pundit- preferably that asshole Glenn Beck catches whiff of it, and begins another 'moral panic', warning people about how 'evil commies' are 'brainwashing the youth' through their video games.
Then, we get exposure. The youth will flock to it for several reasons - because some actually are of an anti-imperialist persuasion, some are curious, some will think it's hilarious because it's 'epic trolling', and some will play it just because it's fun...
Oh wait, that's one of the important parts. The game should be FUN. That's why I picked Duke Nukem 3d in the first place for this game to be based off of. Even despite the sexism and other reactionary baggage, the game was an absolute blast- an ultra-violent tour-de-force from beginning to end.
So yeah, that's something I'd love to see done. If someone were to begin work on such a project, I'd gladly contribute in whatever way I can, drawing enemies, writing dialogue, whatever is needed (probably not the music, as bombastic North Korean propaganda music would best suit the atmosphere of the game).
Of course, there are plenty of other ways in which the video game genre could be used to bring a progressive message to an audience rife with apathy- perhaps in ways that don't promote mindless violence, but this is just one suggestion, solely concerned with using the power of shock value.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Video games. They are one of the newer forms of media, powerful because of the interactivity they allow. However, as it has become another multi-million dollar industry, it is inevitable that they become as heavily saturated with ruling-class ideology as any other medium of entertainment.
For instance, take the 'Mercenary' games. I'll admit, I played the demo of the first one, and liked it at the time. After all, I was still a revisionist at that time, and to me, the DPRK seemed to be 'bad guys' that I could maim and kill without any remorse. Looking back, that game and its' sequel disgust me- Though the game is open ended, and you can end up working for factions besides the United States, the fact is that you play a mercenary carrying out imperialist actions towards the DPRK and third-world regimes resisting imperialism.
Well, there are exceptions. We have games that seem to be critical of modern bourgeois-democratic society, but it is always in a cynical, post-modernist sense. They rightfully take the piss out of this corrupt, fake society, but never proposes any real solution; The best example of this is the 'Grand Theft Auto' series- Again, it provides good criticism, but callous, greedy individualism and lumpen behavior is the only possible course of action to take in these games.
I'd love to see a real alternative to this- Something produced by an independent game studio, which keeps in step with the other video games today, featuring ridiculous and unrealistic animated violence, and an over-the-top storyline that the kids these days love, but with an underlying message that serves a progressive purpose. Here's my idea:
We need a first-person shooter, preferably based off of the Duke Nukem 3d engine, for ironic effect (ironic, as Duke symbolizes the all-Amerikan, sexist 'badass' persona), in which you play as an attractive female North Korean soldier, wearing a military uniform that hides her figure- We deliberately make our character attractive, but dress her modestly as a rejection of the commodification of sex all too typical in video games these days.
The rest of the game will proceed as follows: The evil imperialists attack the DPRK, therefore, our hero, a female super-soldier, armed with the Songun revolutionary spirit, takes it upon herself to smash the South Korean puppet regime and bring down the U.S. government, freeing the citizens from capitalist slavery, slaughtering scores of imperialist soldiers, destroying national monuments (dubbed 'symbols of oppression' in-game), and eventually destroying the U.S. Capitol, and installing a replica of the Juche Tower in its place. No corner will be cut- Absolutely everything will be tailored with the intent to make the blood pressure of conservative pundits rise.
You see, the strategy here isn't to endorse the DPRK. I happen to support them, other people don't, and I'm fine with that.
The strategy is expose the youth to an alternative point of view- one critical of Amerikan imperialism, through the power of contreversy and memetics. Of course, immediately after the game comes out, nobody is going to pay attention to it, but the idea is that sooner or later, some conservative pundit- preferably that asshole Glenn Beck catches whiff of it, and begins another 'moral panic', warning people about how 'evil commies' are 'brainwashing the youth' through their video games.
Then, we get exposure. The youth will flock to it for several reasons - because some actually are of an anti-imperialist persuasion, some are curious, some will think it's hilarious because it's 'epic trolling', and some will play it just because it's fun...
Oh wait, that's one of the important parts. The game should be FUN. That's why I picked Duke Nukem 3d in the first place for this game to be based off of. Even despite the sexism and other reactionary baggage, the game was an absolute blast- an ultra-violent tour-de-force from beginning to end.
So yeah, that's something I'd love to see done. If someone were to begin work on such a project, I'd gladly contribute in whatever way I can, drawing enemies, writing dialogue, whatever is needed (probably not the music, as bombastic North Korean propaganda music would best suit the atmosphere of the game).
Of course, there are plenty of other ways in which the video game genre could be used to bring a progressive message to an audience rife with apathy- perhaps in ways that don't promote mindless violence, but this is just one suggestion, solely concerned with using the power of shock value.