Gameplay Journal Entry #7

A game I feel expresses a vast and intricate political state is The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings. Although the entire series explores the choices and outcomes of a world constantly in turmoil, I feel the second game gives the clearest example of differing values clashing violently. In drawing parallels to our own world, there are rebellions, struggles for power, religious zealots, and racial discriminations. This game sets up the stage to alter the course of events as a neutral party, Geralt of Rivia, who has been accused of murdering a king, forcing him to take part in the political upheaval.

The game has moments of combat, but overall, the narrative is the driving force of the game, it places heavy emphasis on interacting with individual characters, learning their motivations and personality, and making decisions. Through this form of gameplay, it projects the various political and social values represented by factions. One admirable part of the design in this game, the final chapter where various nations and parties gather to discuss politics, purposely slows down the frequency and intensity of combat encounters. By doing so, the narrative is given the stage to decide the ending, and the tensions being built throughout previous chapters are culminated at last without the distraction of too much mechanics or combat. Belman and Flanagan state “To be clear, our point here is not that values-conscious games cannot be based on conflict. Certainly, games can make a powerful statement by reframing conflict in a way that doesn’t affirm violence as a value in and of itself.” (Belman & Flanagan) While arguably this game is built on conflicts, there is still the potential for uneasy moments of peace and discussion, which lends aid to developing the political and social values of this world and in turn creating new conflicts.

Reference: Jonathan Belman, Mary Flanagan. “Exploring the Creative Potential of Values Conscious Design: Students’ Experiences with the Values at Play Curriculum.”