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Nov 7th, 2018 at 19:50:14 - Hitman (PS4) |
Dear diary,
I went to Paris! Not really. Agent 47 went to Paris to take out Viktor Novikov and Dalia Margolis They are the Sanguine’s CEOs who also double as the ringleaders of IAGO. Fun right? Mostly. First I had to get set up. See, before the mission truly starts you’re given the opportunity to choose your weapons, attire, starting location, and a few other things. Nothing really unethical about it, but it’s a fun mechanic for the game. Anyway, on to the game! I started out at the opening of a grand estate where a fashion event is being held. I apparently had an invite, likely forged, so I got in without having to sneak. Once in I was able to locate my targets easily enough, but then I had to find a way to get them isolated.
Cue famous person! I guess there’s a famous bald model at the event who I get to subdue and impersonate. Yay me! Oh, and with that act we can add impersonation or identity theft to the list of unethical issues. So I find the guy, take him out, dump him in the lake, then go get my makeup done. Because yes, ever Hitman needs makeup before they kill people. Actually I needed it for the catwalk, but details details. Once I make my 15 second appearance and get my little achieve I’m off to go a murdering! Now for someone who explored the estate prior to all this, I was able to find an invitation for the secret IAGO trade happening on the second floor. I’m not sure if it was useful considering my disguise, but I was able to get to my target easily either way. Then with a quick snap of the neck I was off to deal with the other one.
Now before I continue I feel I must remark on the numerous ways this game gives you to kill someone. You literally can use anything at your disposal, such as: scissors, wrench, gun, cord, your hands, and even a large set of lights. Gruesome right? In light of the fact that this game is a killing game, it isn’t terribly too surprising though. Normal hitman would use anything they could to get the job done, so this is just portraying authenticity. When considering ethics, however, one might say it’s a bit much. Nevertheless, dropping a very large set of lights on the second target is exactly how I managed to kill him. Was it over done? Yes. Did I get an achievement for it? Yes. Did I get caught? No. I was still wearing my previous disguise, so I didn’t have any issues actually getting back out of the estate. It was literally one and done.
With the Paris mission complete and my previous two entries done, I’ve got to say that I’m a little disappointed in Hitman. The game itself is everything I’d heard it would be, but I thought there would be a bit more controversy regarding the gameplay. Sure it had blood, dirty deeds, and scandalous lies. It even had an assortment of choices for you’re murdering needs. Yet, despite all this, I feel like it’s missing something. A big bang or shocking turn of events. Maybe I just want 47 to be more evil than he already is. Who knows. What I do know is that ethically this game has issues. Not as many as I thought it would, but enough to give the public a reason to keep it out of the hands of children. We wouldn’t want the little tykes learning how to murder, after all, would we?
Current missions complete, a dozen more to go,
Kia
This entry has been edited 1 time. It was last edited on Nov 7th, 2018 at 19:50:51.
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Nov 6th, 2018 at 17:15:25 - Hitman (PS4) |
Dear diary,
I messed up. Not on my mission, mind you, but in playing this game in order. Apparently you can skip through the prologue and go straight to the final test if you want. Not that it changes the story too much, albeit you do lose a bit of context. I wonder if future missions will be the same. Will I be able to jump around or will the story force me to go from point A to point B? Guess we’ll see. For now I suppose I should report on my gameplay and new findings. Not that there are many. I officially finished the prologue and training. In total, that means I had to kill 3 times--with one person dying two different ways.
The first time was what I wrote about earlier. The second was a rerun of the same area and the same guy. I just had to kill him differently. As a game this idea of thinking about different ways to kill someone is interesting, even fun. In real life, you’d be called a psychopath. This is doubly true for the final test. See, instead of outright killing this target, I had to trick him into killing himself. It was a lot of sneaking around and sabotaging a plane, but it worked. By the end of it the target, who somehow didn’t find me suspicious, pulled the active seat ejector and launched himself through the roof. I’m pretty sure if the glass he went through didn’t kill him, then the landing definitely did. In any case, I was able to sneak back out without being noticed and hit the button used to end the mission.
Speaking about the button, I have to say that is such an odd way to end missions. There’s nothing ethically wrong with it, but I think the creators could have come up with something better to signal your departure. Anyway, outside of more trespassing, theft, and murder, I couldn’t find any ethical issues within the rest of the prologue/tests. I did notice that the Handler was all too pleased to use 47 as a weapon, however, despite her superiors reservations. I point this out not because of those reservations--for they were not of good intent--but because using someone else as such is wrong. It shouldn’t matter if they’ve killed before. They’re still human. Of course this particular human came to them, if I’m not mistaken, so there’s only so much I can complain about his misuse. If he endorses it, is it still wrong? I’m not sure. In theory it’s wrong no matter what, but so is taking someone’s choices away simply because your beliefs differ. So I’ll have to see how things pan out. If Agent 47 endorses being used and abused, then so be it. If, however, there is a line he is forced to cross or a time in which he no longer appreciates being seen as deadly, then it may be argued that his treatment is indeed unethical.
“Three” missions down, a dozen more to go,
Kia
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Nov 4th, 2018 at 10:37:19 - Hitman (PS4) |
Dear diary,
Today I killed someone. The voices told me to. They even gave me a gun. All I had to do was figure out how to get close to the person without getting caught, but it was easy. They died quickly. A single shot to the head. I used my silencer so no one would notice. It worked so well that I wasn’t even suspected. I’ll be honest, I was surprised at that. I thought for sure someone would have outed me when I first entered the ship, but no. Apparently knocking someone out, stealing their clothes, and using them to disguise myself is enough. The only threat I had were the crew leads and I avoided them without even breaking a sweat. Thus my first mission went off without a hitch. My superiors say I’m perfect at what I do. A trained killer without a moral compass. They think I’ve been in this line of work before. I don’t remember if I have or not. My past is a mystery to all. I don’t even know my own name. Support is trying to figure all that out for me, but so far they have nothing to go on. For now, it seems, all I have are the missions and the hope that maybe my past will come back to me.
It is thus that Hitman begins. You start the game within the prologue as Agent 47 who must identify and assassinate a specific target without being seen. Your support helps guide you through, but you’re the one who must decide how things go down. It is a stunning game with beautiful mechanics. The characters are fleshed out, the story intriguing, and the execution flawless. At least, that’s my opinion so far. I have only finished the first mission. That said, I kind of wish Hitman’s ethical issues spread beyond trespassing, theft, and murder. It’s not that I want this game to be bloody, but I feel like it’d give the story more depth. It would definitely make it more unique and less on par with Assassin’s Creed. Then again, maybe that’s just me being particular. A killing game is good only so long as it is interesting. So here’s to hoping Hitman keeps me on my toes, else I’ll be very disappointed.
One mission down, a dozen more to go,
Kia
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Sep 23rd, 2018 at 17:02:49 - Nier Automata (PS4) |
A story of machine and humans, told in three parts. Part three:
So good news and bad news. The good news is that not all the machines are heartless monsters out for death and destruction. Some of them are peaceful. The bad news is 2B is still emotionally deficient and hasn’t experienced another glitch in her matrix. This is demonstrated twice in my play time. Once when 9S invites 2B to call him Nines, like the rest of his friends do. Then again, later, when 2B has the opportunity to reassure her operator in a time of need. Both times she uses her brain to speak instead of her heart. Sad day. That’s not to say she will stay this way forever. I’ve decided the creators designed her this way so as to prolong the story and give her more depth. What would be so interesting about an android who immediately went against her protocol, after all? Nothing! At least not for me. As I’ve said previously, it really bothered me that she was so quick to worry about 9S in the first place. A gradual change of heart is so much better! It also gives the player time to explore and discover as the story unfolds.
As for the machines, they’re not as evil as previously assumed. At least not all of them. Even before you enter the Amusement Park you face passive machines who’re just happy to wander harmlessly about. Only when you attack do they reciprocate. This begs the question, just how dangerous are they truly and why did they attack the humans in the first place? Could the androids understanding of them be completely skewed? I’m not sure, but I’m beginning to think so. In any case, the Amusement Park is where things truly start to get turned upside down. The machines are welcoming and even give you gifts. Many dance and sing, and throw confetti. They aren’t evil. They aren’t broken. To 2B and 9S, though, it’s all wrong. As they make their way through the ominous and creepy park, this unbalance in their understanding is amplified by everything they see and do. Clearly the creators wanted to put the player off their groove and make the protagonists question everything they’ve ever known about machines.
Of course, a single area full of “weird acting” and “weird dressing” machines doesn’t immediately change the protagonist’s views. They still have their doubts. They also have conflicting emotions about machines and the possibility that these said machines have emotions. With every new interaction, you can tell 2B and 9S are getting uneasy. Why? Does having emotions suddenly make murder wrong? Is it because having emotions means you have a conscious or do the two protagonists simply hate the idea that they’re actually hurting someone? Ethically, this matters. To hurt another human being is wrong. To hurt an inanimate object, not so much. It is still frowned upon, because it is considered vandalism, but you’re not judged as harshly. Why? Is it so necessary for an object to have emotions or will anything with an essence be considered precious? I think perhaps, this here, is exactly what Nier is trying to teach. Murder, in any form and towards anything, is wrong. The fact that you as a player and the protagonists do so without all the information in the beginning, is even worse.
Given this, what then could be said about killing your comrades? What if those comrades were trying to kill you against their will? Technically it's still wrong in my opinion. Your comrades cannot control what they are doing and would likely not kill you otherwise, thus you should not kill them. Despite this, that’s exactly what the game makes you do. I find this distasteful. It would have been better for the creators to allot you the chance to avoid their attacks and still go after the boss. Likewise, having the androids die in conjunction with the boss felt like an injustice to me. At least give 9S a chance to save them! But no. It’s better to give the player a lesson then to spare the innocent. This lesson just happened to be in correlation with the protagonists’ entire meaning in life. See, the androids hacked and held captive were only kept alive for one purpose: to kill their enemy. Sound familiar? If it does, then you’ve been paying attention. This ideal is exactly how the protagonists operate when it comes to YoRHa. They are made for YoRHa to be used by YoRHa for only one true purpose: kill their enemy.
Thing is, what happens when there is no more enemies? My guess is that there will always be an enemy. Right now it’s the machines, but later I think it’ll be other androids or even humans themselves. I’m rooting for it to be the humans. If only because I do not trust that these particular humans are actually innocent. In fact, I think they are the whole reason for any and all misunderstanding that lie between the machines and the androids right now. We’ll only know for sure, however, the more 2B and 9S learn. I just hope that what they find is fully laid out for the player to see, because right now the one sided story crap is annoying. I want to know why the machines are here, why they feel and act like humans, and why they have any reason to hurt humans in the first place. But, as a wise machine once said, “the only way to understand someone is to get to know them.” So that’s exactly what I’m going to make my protagonists do.
Here’s to a future of machines and androids. May they all get along!
Kia
This entry has been edited 1 time. It was last edited on Sep 26th, 2018 at 18:09:22.
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Kia has been with GameLog for 5 years, 8 months, and 12 days |
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