The number one reason why I won’t be playing the new Call of Duty game, Modern Warfare 2 is that I haven’t played Modern Warfare 1, or any of the other Call of Duty games – I leave that sort of thing to the Mrs.   The main reason why I haven’t played any of the other Call of Duty games is that they are just too good.  I’m an old-fashioned sort: I like my video games to look like video games.For example, I loved the original Doom and Doom II, but could not really get on with the eagerly-awaited Doom III – it just looked too realistic.   Games represent some sort of simulation or representation of reality for entertainment.  Being old-school I am used to having to make the imaginative leap and fell a bit patronised when everything is made hyper-real.  If Duke Nukem Forever is ever actually made I expect to dislike it, as I disliked the latest Wolfenstein game, even though the original Wolfenstein 3D kept me happy for hours back in the day.

Part of the fun of games for me is making that imaginative leap.  So I quite enjoyed Carmageddon but would not enjoy a driving game that looked 100% real – I get that driving to work thank you very much.

A shame really.  Modern Warfare 2 looks like a real technological acheivement.   The already-notorious airport scene (see video here) does look tasteless and unnecessary.  But offensive?  Its a game.  We all do things in videogames that we don’t approve of.  The only game I play these days is Rise of Nations, where I tend to nuke cities, and shoot all the civilians to make sure they can’t continue to gather resources for the enemy.  Doesn’t mean its a tactic I approve of in real life.

Perhaps the game designers are bringing  this all on themselves by making their products look so realistic – it makes those who are never likely to play them anyway get easily confused.  Remember: the only video game that has ever really contributed to mass murder is probably Flight Simulator.   If a FPS game is too violent for you just stick to Frogger or something.

Be Sociable, Share!

•