#68 - It's WAR!

Being a grown-up is a right pain in the arse isn’t it?

When you’re seven-years-old there is nothing finer than pointing your finger at your best mate and making rat-a-tat-tat noises. It’s ace. War is brilliant for the young. Easily identifiable bad-guys, chances for lone heroics and you should never ever underestimate the power of a good comedy death routine – not to mention the hidden advantage of getting out of the way of the grown-ups.

But then you go and grow up and suddenly war becomes an extension of politics. It becomes about oil, and international terrorism, and sometimes it’s good but mostly it’s bad and suddenly you simply don’t know who the bad-guys are. Even the sureties of childhood start melting away as you realise what the history books, and the big-red-map and John Wayne don’t tell you. You read Catch-22, you march against nuclear weapons you spend evenings alternatively decrying the ‘situation’ in Iraq and the price of petrol and it all just seems so complicated. War, the thought of it, the prospect of it and, if you’re unlucky enough to be living in the wrong place at the wrong time, the actuality of it clouds your thoughts, affects your judgement and influences your decisions.

Which is where videogames come in.

Videogames allow us to satisfy both our rational grown-up “war is a bad thing, mkay?” beliefs while, simultaneously, allowing us to point our virtual fingers at our mates and make rat-a-tat-tat noises (somewhat more convincing as they may be). All in the safe knowledge that no-one really gets hurt and you can all wander off to the shops for a sherbet lemon afterwards.

Well, we asked you to write about War and, as can be expected from such a hazy all-encompasing brief, we got back a myriad of different perspectives. Leading the charge is Russ with a piece that may have you reevaluating your approach to videogames. Yes, I mean it. Koworld, Bog and Fuseball talk about three very different wars indeed and TT does some stupid things for your vicarious entertainment. Again. We’re beginning to get very worried about his penchant for dressing up. We’re putting off the ‘games for girls’ issue until we get to the bottom of that one…

Next month, we’re covering the delights of homebrewed entertainment. Is it as good as the real thing? Does it have a future, despite Sontendosoft’s attempts to crack down on it? Is it just a thinly veiled excuse for piracy after all? Find out with next month’s dose of the Original Spirit.

Chris Ahchay, Editor August 2005

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A view from somebody else.
This has been a tough issue for many of us. We've tried to confront directly the specific issue of 'fun war' without attempting to come to Daily Mail conclusions, or to completely support the gamers claim that videogame violence exists in some sort of splendid and special isolation. I won't lie to you: I've shed tears over some of the stuff here this month (as well as having shed tears over the fucking tooth root-infection that has delayed it's publication!).

I won't give the game away but I would like to direct your specific attention to our Desert Storm veteran's answer to the question: "How does killing a real person in a real war compare with its virtual equivalent?" The answer, my friends, is chilling. Even if the answer given is unique to that veteran (and I suspect that it isn't) then it is still a ramification that I find hard to cope with.

I come from a military family (luckily my Dad managed to get away with the TA, and running up and down hills in Wales, when his brother bobbed about the ocean somewhere wondering why people were shooting at him) and I understand soldiers. I'm even a little bit envious, I'm a conscientious objector by politics but I'd relish the opportunity to fight if presented with it. And that's the gap the increasingly realistic videogames appear to be beginning to plug. But so long as videogames are war without consequence they will remain devoid of the visceral element lusted after by humans.

To kill.

Welcome to the War Issue.

Richard Hammond, October 2005

Next month:
We Are
Homebrew.
This is your chance to contribute. We are looking for articles by readers reflecting on homebrew and indie gaming please.
Don't be shy - it's about your perspective not your technical writing profitiancy.
editor@retailkings.com is your friend in this.