Value based gaming — Brainstorming

DISCLAIMER: I am, and have always been, an entertainment for entertainment’s sake developer. I believe that most customers do not want to be lectured on ANYTHING when they play a videogame or watch a film. I am not accustomed, nor am I particularly pleased nor excited to be making a video game that lectures others on social/political beliefs. However, it is a requirement for my school program. I will be expressing some of views on certain controversial topics. These views are not necessarily my own; they are simple prompts I have come up with in order to create a simple game. These games may clash with your own personal beliefs.

#1 — Disarmament

The first title that I am considering approaching would be to provide commentary on the constant government overreach of disarming law abiding citizens in a blasphemous guise of protecting those same citizens from violence. The reality is unfortunate but simple: evil people exist. These people do not care for the laws of a country nor the morals of a people; they will harm others if it benefits them. With this in mind, I am considering portraying a nightmare scenario of a home invasion, where an unknown individual has broken into the player’s home at night. The player is not aware of the motivations nor arms the invader possesses, and must rely on the response from police in order to secure their home. This scenario is genuinely horrific, especially if you have children in your home. The inability to protect yourself nor your kin due to unconstitutional removal of your rights to a firearm is a horrid reality many face in certain states in the US.

For gameplay, the player will have to attempt to hide and wait for police response (which takes an average of 11 minutes) in order to survive the intruder. This is an insanely long time to attempt to hold back someone who has already made it past the most impregnable hurdle of your home; your perimeter.

To drive the point home, after the player finishes the experience, the game starts again. This time, after hearing the shattering of glass, the player retrieves their own firearm and can now properly defend themselves from the intruder. The gameplay now shifts to where the player is capable of returning lethal force.

#2 — “Alternative Facts”

One of the most frustrating and commonplace issues in modern communication is the perpetration of dishonest information. There are ways to present the same exact statistical information that can change how someone interprets it. This is general accomplished by changing the words used.

Example: You want to ask a group their opinion on a climate change.

“Do you believe humans have an impact on global climate?”

Odds are most people will say yes; this is a very provable fact. So let’s assume 80% of the group asked say yes.

Now the media, social media, etc will take this and say:

“80% of people agree that humans are destroying the planet and support making rapid and radical changes”.

It is telling a lie using a kernel of truth.

This example is not the only real world situation you will see this in, it is just a simple one to explain the concept.

So for the gameplay, the player will be tasked with selecting the correct option of how to ask the question to a group to get the desired statistical outcome. Player’s will receive some information on the demographics of the group they are about to question so they can tailor the questions they ask to reach the desired result.

#3 — The Right to Drive Cars

One of my own personal gripes with the United States is one I rarely hear mentioned. Getting a driver’s license is WAY too easy! There are plenty of people on the road who drive with rampant disregard for anyone’s safety.

In this title, the player would be responsible for balancing the ease of access to a driver’s license with an appropriate level of training for applicants to safely be on the road. If they make the test too hard, groups will accuse of you oppression and you will lose your job. If you make the test too easy, more fatalities will occur on the road and eventually lead to you losing your job as the county’s fatalities statistic climbs. Toeing the balance is the only way to keep things moving.