Training Our Moral Minds Through Gaming
Though I have written many times about the social ideologies that video games reflect, I have neglected to mention the activism and change on a societal level that video games have the potential to inspire. For most of our history with video games, the “point” has been to entertain and amuse, and as such the worldwide perception of video games is one of a fun pastime or a distraction. For this reason, we tend to be terribly dismissive of what video games are saying, especially with video games that make their message explicit. However, the best one can hope for when developing a game is that the audience thinks about it. If just one person can think about what has been written or said, that is the catalyst for video games entering the conversation as a force of social change. Like movies have struggled to be taken seriously as pursuits of positive change, so must video games, but video games have a couple things that movies do not. All literature is literature, and the sooner we recognize when texts are constructing meaning the better.
Video games have a particularly important leg-up in establishing communication between groups. In the article “Here’s why the UN is getting interested in video games” by Colin Campbell of Polygon, Campbell includes snippets of a report by researcher Paul Darvasi. “’Perspective-taking helps negotiate social complexities, diminish biases, improve inter-group attitudes, and encourage a view of outgroups as more self-like,’ states the report. ‘The potential to positively impact attitudes with digital games is not only rooted in their ability to grant perspective, but also in their potency as instruments of persuasion’” (Campbell p.9). This makes clear that in conflict resolution, taking another person’s perspective is the pathway to establishing empathy. Since video games invoke taking a new perspective quite literally, the possibilities here are endless. If we are to create a better world, the very first step is to establish better rapport and allow ourselves to challenge our preconceived notions of what life is like from a different set of positions and placements.
Paul Darvasi also discusses the importance of nuance in relation to the game 1979 Revolution: Black Friday about the 1953 Iranian coup: “’You’re asked to make very complex ethical decisions every step of the way. They’re not black and white, good and evil-type decisions that you would get in a less nuanced game. They put you in the position of somebody who has to make very difficult decisions. You often don’t have the opportunity to make a positive ethical decision’” (Campbell p.19). The ability for players to engage in the moral complexities and endure the ramifications of their decisions will undoubtedly result in a person who is more empathetic, well-rounded, and capable of complex emotional intelligence. To escape the echo chambers of one’s own frame is immensely important if we are to live in a more peaceful society, and nuanced moral perspectives will solidify this ability more. Because the world does not truly operate on truths and lies, this can pose a significant challenge to our psyches, which are programmed to see black and white.
The article “Activism-Focused Video Games” by Rachel Ament of NPR makes clear that there is a dilemma when it comes to how we approach activism: consumers will never intentionally purchase a product that defies their own personal worldview. Because we think in absolutes, activism pieces can make people profoundly uncomfortable. Thus, we subscribe only to what supports our belief systems. This is where the type of activism, as the article mentions, becomes important. “Nathan Piperno, the lead designer and writer… insists that the key to changing minds is subtle messaging. Unless a developer wants to simply ‘code to the choir,’ messaging should meld seamlessly with the rest of the storyline. ‘I think players don’t want to be lectured,’ Piperno explains, ‘But they can be extremely perceptive if important themes are delivered organically in the game’” (Ament p.8). Heavy-handed, explicit activism hardly ever works. The way to persuade someone to challenge their beliefs is certainly through subconscious programming. While I run the risk of sounding like a brainwash-advocating maniac, because our subconscious minds are more impressionable, the ability to suggest, not demand, is crucial. We operate on the subconscious reinforcement of implicitly-stated ideology. Our job is to make sure that this is done for the sake of humanity’s benefit and not its destruction. This all culminates into a single point: If we are able to delicately handle our attempts at advocacy for moral change and persuade more people that video games ought to be taken seriously as tools of change, we are well on our way to raising a generation of empathetic and intelligent individuals who do not rely on the frames that allow them the most comfort.
