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John Oremus
Professor Zagal
Ethics in Video Games/Cinema
4/13/13
Super Columbine Massacre RPG! Game Log 3
A bizarre ending to Super Columbine Massacre RPG! was only fitting for the bizarre nature of the game. The Hell finale of this game was a strange experience and one that I have mixed opinions of. In this context I want to talk about was the artistic intent of the game. I was curious about the response of the game; I predicted extreme backlash and I was right. Instead of really reading reviews in depth, because I wanted to wait till we watch the movie on Wednesday, I decided to make some conclusions for myself so I could come to terms with it.
The game is not for everyone, especially those who have a faint heart. Super Columbine Massacre RPG! has a point to make and the means of achieving this point are extremely difficult to deal with. It felt like the game was trying to confront the matter of school shootings instead of dealing with it in the haze of the 24-hour news cycle, something that I found intriguing.
As far as whether or not the game was a sympathetic portrayal of the shooters or the sanctity of the victims goes I am not positive how I felt about it. It is not really for me to say because I am fortunate to have no connections with any victims of school shootings or anyone affected by them, but as a neutral player I thought the game handled it well. The game did not give Harris and Klebold particularly positive portrayals, but they did give the player a picture of their state of mind and the reasons they were in that state of mind instead of glossing over it as hellish evil. This was as bold a move as the game made and I imagine it would be part of the backlash. I thought it was important to do this because without it the game would not have as much body or depth. The tastefulness of the game can be debated till the cows come home and I myself am not even sure what side I am on. Ethically it is difficult to portray such a realistic and traumatic event in American history. Showing deaths that actually happened is a sticky wicket to get around and I think they did as good a job as they could. That doesn’t mean that it was tasteful at all or conservative in any way.
There was artistic intent here, the true nature of it was not to disrespect anyone. Does that make the creation of this game ok? Maybe. There are different avenues to explore this topic without basing it off a real event, but it did make news and it did create a conversation.
Rating (out of 5): |
