At what? At a game about beating a woman. As in savagely, brutally, unforgivably, not as in “at badminton” or “in a round of cribbage.” It’s horrible, despite being nothing more than crudely looped video footage overlaid with a strangely undersized floating hand. As it spools hideously onwards, a voice demands you hit her harder, even as blood and bruises blossom gruesomely across her face. Horrible.
Shockingly, it turns out to be a Danish public service announcement about domestic abuse, designed to deter gentlemen who think of themselves as ‘gangsta’ from treating their girlfriends and wives with horrific, violent contempt.
Apparently calling you a “100% idiot” after making you spend five minutes beating a woman to the floor is enough to justify the game and to affect some kind of social change. Perhaps their insane approach to philanthropy sounded arch and affecting on paper, but all the good intentions in the world don’t change the fact that it’s still a game about repeatedly punching a woman in the face, and only that.
Since causing an understandable storm of controversy last week, the game’s now blocking anyone from outside Denmark (it was formerly available here, if you want to futilely click on something), but one chap managed to record a video, erm, walkthrough of the awful thing before it closed its door post-horse-bolting. Sadly he’s not translated the Danish dialogue, but instead overlaid some none-too-subtle captions of his own. The bewildering horror of the piece is very much intact, however.
Perhaps its message might have worked if it presented any possible interaction beyond violence – an opportunity to do the right thing, to learn, to refuse the shouting prompts to attack the poor woman. Instead, you’re essentially forced to hit her, depending on where you stand as to inaction being action. In a lot of ways, it’s doing what That Modern Warfare 2 level did – the same out-of-context shock tactics, the same confused belief that a message is stronger when couched in enforced moral transgression. November, you’ve done us no good.
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Where is the “put your arm over her shoulder and take her home” button? Leaving violence as the only *active* option makes this “game” pointless.
Um, has anyone ever stopped to ask whether games are even a good place to force in moral dilemmas?
Yes, they do lend you a greater level of interactivity, and theoretically giving you the choice should be quite powerful…but even now, there are no consequences, and there is no character growth beyond simple statistics.
For example, in an RPG like Dragon Age,The Witcher or Mass Effect, you are forced to make nasty choices (Kill the innocent kid or sacrifice his mother? Kill the innocent witch or an entire village?) but these in no way help you grow, or change the way you/your character reacts to future situations.
My gruff, manly dwarf, is still going to be a gruff manly dwarf after I *spoliers* kill the possesed kid at Redcliffe Castle */spoilers*, he won’t ever suffer from post traumatic stress disorder from fighting legions of undead and demons, he won’t go into an exisitential crisis from killing a group of soldiers.
This is a major part of literature, cinema and theater though, the whole idea of a character arc – and games lack this notably. Considering in a game you are always striving for improvement and for ultimate victory, is there anyway a proper character arc could be added?
More importantly, should it? Games should also be fun. What are the limits for using games to convey messages or dilemmas? Does the need for gameplay dilute this?
The character might not suffer posst traumatic stress disorder. I think what matters is how the player reacts afterwards.
This isn’t really/genuinely a game – it’s an interactive advert.
Thinking about it, it strikes me that this comes down to ones ability to process this “game” in to something real in ones mind. I found myself thinking about the invention of cinema and that (apparently – could be rubbish) people would dash to get out of the way of an oncoming train because they didn’t realise it wasn’t real.
If you’re appalled/shocked by this game then you’re clearly associating something very real with it, those of us who are not are almost certainly just seeing a silly animation with a actress and a script. It’s impossible to feel anything for it if you can’t disconnect from the reality of the situation – no one got hurt, this is not abuse that we’re seeing. I’d be amazed if anyone who’s posting here would be equally nonchalant when faced with genuine abuse.
Very nice post. :)
And you’d be right.
If this site was a webcam with a woman getting beaten for real, no one would act nonchalantly, but it’s not.
Now, the maker of that site also included a “gansta’” theme. Their goal wasn’t to make people play until they got the abuse out of their system, or even just to have them play a “realistic” game, but to ridicule abusers, showing them how much respect society has for them.
They probably didn’t succeed in that either.
Nice game.
If it was a man no one would say anything. Pathetic.
Respect for women, you say? It’s political correctness gone MAD!
I’d say something.
Total Black & White rip off.
I’m not sure I see what the fuss is about. It works, doesn’t it? It’s getting people all over the world to sit up and pay attention, and loudly proclaim how evil domestic violence is.
It’s also cheesy as hell and has bad voice acting, but they’re getting their message out.
I find it widely amusing that while being Danish, having read two news papers and watched two news casts this is the first time I hear about this.
The translations are wrong though.
When i read the translation of what she said i was so angry at her i closed down the game booted up defcon and nuked denmark so hard it would glow for the next 5000 years.
Bitch deserved it.
LMAO @ Heliocentric
I thought she was rather pretty. At first the slapping didn’t bother me but as it got more graphic it was most displeasing to watch. Still I don’t think a game can accurately portray the rage that over takes some guys leading to them beating their wife. It isn’t always a choice for some guys and rather is a mental problem that needs to be treated medically and with therapy ect. Some guys really love their wife/girl friend ect but for whatever reason when something triggers them they beat the crap out of them and then afterwards feel really guilty and depressed about it and say they’ll never do it again but of course, next time they snap it happens all over again. Yes the woman gets the short end of the stick (or whatever he’s using to hit her) and should probably get the heck out of that relationship at least until the guy has went to a doctor for some help with his rage issues ect.
“at least until the guy has went to a doctor”
or prison
A strange game. The only winning move is not to play.
Much like Nuclear War! Was this game on the list of games to play in War Games ? :P
People who play the game and complain about violence being the only option don’t get it.
You’re supposed to quit the game and not hurt the woman.
Like the experimental game “Exectuion”, from last year:
http://gmc.yoyogames.com/index.php?showtopic=375097
I didn’t notice people complaining about the only option of that game is to execute the person (you’re really just supposed to quit without doing anything), but I guess people are just too used to killing people in video games to actually care, as opposed to beating women.
Chrillen: funny you mention that, I always thought the same about Half Life….
There are numerically more videogames that I have decided *not* to play than vice-versa.
Here is translation:
She is saying: “I can decide who I want to dance with”, “No I did not fuck your best friend – he is just as ugly as you are”, “You are a disgusting little man”, “do you feel strong now”, “is that all you have”, “if you really loved me you would not force me to do things I dont like”. Then at the end the guy says “You Idiot – it is not gangsta to hit women – there is no excuse for violence against women”. And then it says that two girls in every classroom from 9th grade up live in a violent relationship and has info for help line.
I laughed at the subtitles. Should I feel guilty?
Railick – I couldn’t decide between these, so I uploaded both:
http://www.bozzley.co.uk/images/wargames1.gif
http://www.bozzley.co.uk/images/wargames2.gif