Violence and ideologies in games have long been under discussion. On the one side computer game advocates argue that computer games are not the cause of violence while others claim that computer games are harmful. The truth is never as simple as either side would like to claim.
Americas Army is the official US army game and was developed by the US army (beginning in 1999) the goal is to allow players to develop into specialist â??Green Beretâ?? soldiers. The website contains information about US army recruitment centres.
Afkar Media is producing â??al-Qurayshâ??, a real time strategy game that tells the story of the first 100 years of Islam from the viewpoint of four different nations – Bedouins, Arabs, Persians, and Romans. The planned release date is September. Afkar Media hopes the game will help to reverse negative connotations of Islam in the west and evoke new pride among young Muslims. (Christian Science Monitor).
Last year Afkar Media launched the game Under Seige, which was inspired by actual Hizbollah missions. An earlier game on the same theme is Special Force. They write on their website:
â??The game â??Special Forceâ?? is based upon reality, meaning that the game is based on events that took place in a land called Lebanon. Lebanon was invaded by â??Israelâ?? in 1978 & 1982, and was forced to withdrawâ?¦we decided to produce a game that will be educational for our future generations and for all freedom lovers of this worldâ?¦â??
Games such as these are criticised for simply reversing stereotypes while their supporters claim to redress the balance in a genre dominated by western forces defeating Arabs.
Does Civilisation create a â??beat-them-upâ?? â??winner-take-allâ?? view of history? Do Counterstrike and Vice City lead to conflict? And then what do the Sims tell us about ourselves and which values do they re-inforce?
It is interesting to note that all sides seem to argue that â??the otherâ?? is unfairly portraying them as the evil enemy. The question of political propaganda in games is a large unexplored area. Taylorâ??s â??Munitions of the Mindâ?? is an excellent starting point for those wishing to better understand the history and impact of propaganda from a non-game perspective.