The sociological value of games is something I am in the midst of researching for university. Referencing Jane McGonigal’s Reality is Broken publication (a must-read for those who wish to “fix society”) has allowed me to gain a perspective of the direction in which the games industry — or, at least, a section of it — is headed. Looking at Ian Bogost’s Persuasive Games argument and throwing myself into the topic of rhetorics allows me to examine why information is depicted in particular ways, specifically historical information and political debates. These factors will weigh heavily on the development of sociologically-valuable games in the future, and here’s why:

1. Games reach an exponentially-growing audience.
2. Games educate like no other medium.
3. Games change perspectives and opinions through influence.
4. Games empower users in ways real-life can’t.
5. Games are cultural and sociological, naturally.

Each statement above is pretty bold, so I will attempt to address each area accordingly.

Games reach an exponentially-growing audience.

Home consoles. Handhelds. Smartphones. PC. Social media. Card games. Board games. Playground games.

Diverse in nature, but united by one medium: games. Whether you’re shooting zombies on a digital screen, or chasing your friends through the park, games can be enjoyed by everyone. The digital kind has exploded in the past 30-40 years thanks to the early incarnation of arcades, to home consoles and entertainment systems, and now on-the-go gaming through smartphones and handheld devices. Digital games have become more prominent and fundamental to today’s technological culture, leading to a wider audience interacting with the medium.

As McGonigal explains, three billion hours have been spent in online game worlds (at the time of her research). That’s a large community of players bound together within a digital world, progressing and sharing, raiding and trading, befriending and investing. These communities have the potential to be harnessed and treated into making decisions that can affect real-life situations, such as hunger and poverty, with some concepts currently in effect.

Games educate like no other medium.

Schools offer a diverse range of topics. Universities and colleges even more. But games do it better.

For one, school (and, if you sign up for it, university and college) is mandatory. You are led down a “pass-or-fail” mentality that ultimately affects your future position. You work in a hierarchical environment with strict regulations, uniforms and homework. There are arguments to suggest that these elements could be counter-productive for learning. This is where games facilitate for learning better than contemporary schools.

While I do not like to objectify certain games in a “gamification” format, I do believe that every game holds some educational worth. Sid Meier’s Civilization taught me the problem-solving and strategising skills of Mathematics, and the lore of History. Thomas Was Alone taught me the benefits of teamwork unlike Sports Education, which taught me about masculine superiority and petty squabbling. Papers, Please provides sociological issues in an entertaining manner that Modern Studies textbooks cannot provide.

These are just some examples as to the content of education, but the feeling of control that players have in games is the deciding factor. Players choose what they want to play through entertainment values, interests and enjoyment based on their personal preferences — like the time in school where you pick your specialised subjects without the limitations of timetabled slots and not getting the subjects you wanted. There is no danger of failure leading to a lack of progression, as some games entice you to try again (in some instances, failing is more fun than not). And you play games in the comfort of your own environment, where you want with who you want. You’re not required to sit at a desk for three hours at a time and forced to provide answers or results — unless you really want to…

The benefits of games in an educational circumstance surpass the environments designed to educate, and they will continue to grow far and beyond the capabilities of classrooms and lecture halls.

Games change perspectives and opinions through influence.

This area is where my interest lies prominently. As a Scottish citizen with the future of my country of residence being hotly-debated through independence debates, I began to wonder if games will become the main media outlet for political persuasion and influence. Radio, television, films, posters and flyers have been exhausted, and I believe games could be the next outlet to be explored.

This argument lies with Bogost’s theory of “procedural rhetoric”, described as “the practice of persuading through processes in general and computational processes in particular”. Rather than looking at the content of games, Bogost argues that the rhetoric lies with questioning the processes in which the designer took to reach the conclusive content of the game (similar to the historiography process). Whether you agree or disagree with this statement, the potential to influence is massive, especially when you couple this suggestion with the information I have provided so far in terms of audience engagement and value of education.

Admittedly, my research is quite thin on this subject so far as it will evolve over the next few months in relation to my coursework. I do think that there is a cause for concern with this matter from a sociological standpoint. Yes, it is highly beneficial that games can be used to promote world issues and persuade active involvement in tackling these issues. But whether games will be used to influence in a positive or negative way is another story yet to unfold.

Games empower users in ways real-life can’t.

I like to think of games as a “digital Narnia”. Whether the player micro-manages a business or favourite football team, or controls a super hero in the fight against evil, games offer a portal of escapism from real-life to an alternative world where they have control, power, authorship and freedom.

The opportunity to experience these attributes helps to intrinsically motivate players: an important and natural tendency for social development. By being exposed to this surge of motivation, players will find themselves more apt to tackle real-world situations and more likely to adopt a can-do attitude to problems.

Is that not what we need in a climate of sociological affairs?

Games are cultural and sociological, naturally.

The culture of games has evolved since its conception. Often viewed in the past as a past-time for “geeks” that forget about the outside world, this has rapidly changed over the past number of years: with more people getting involved in the interactive medium, games are becoming a “social acceptance” unlike before. Whether the culture of games is pre-established or created through society, culture emanates from the experience of games.

From family-friendly content such as Angry Birds, to intensely-violent experiences like Manhunt, each type (or genre) of game is associated with sociological impacts. Multiplayer games, whether they are online, LAN or party games, allow for groups to converge and share the experience of games together, whether through collaboration or competition. Strategy and puzzle games require a level of intellect and experience to complete beyond certain levels of difficulty. Action and “beat-’em-up” fighting games have an associated competitive mentality.

With these attributes, games form sociological values that allow players to develop intrinsically. By establishing the sociological and cultural dispositions of games, we can understand what effects games can have on certain cultures, demographics and societies.

What about the future of game development?

The games industry is already experiencing a surge of games aimed to tackle the subject of sociology head-on. Space Budgie’s title 9.03m encapsulates the tragedy of the Japanese tsunami of 2011 in an emotional tribute, receiving critical acclaim for its message. Papers, Please (as previously mentioned) tackles communism and immigration through intense narrative direction and game mechanics.

I believe the focus of game development will be in the content of games: not so much why certain information is depicted, but what benefits the game’s content can offer from a sociological perspective. The world is changing rapidly, quickly, and we have two challenges from this: to keep up, and to keep relevant.