Google+

Morally dubious messages in seemingly innocent video games

Slyly sinister subtexts to quietly corrupt

Related

Games:

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

View Videos and Screenshots Hide Videos and Screenshots

Latest Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Videos

Latest Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Screenshots

  • Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Screenshot
  • Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Screenshot
  • Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Screenshot
  • Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Screenshot

Saints Row IV

View Videos and Screenshots Hide Videos and Screenshots

Latest Saints Row IV Videos

Latest Saints Row IV Screenshots

  • Saints Row IV Screenshot
  • Saints Row IV Screenshot
  • Saints Row IV Screenshot

Tomb Raider

View Videos and Screenshots Hide Videos and Screenshots

Latest Tomb Raider Videos

Latest Tomb Raider Screenshots

  • Tomb Raider Screenshot
  • Tomb Raider Screenshot
  • Tomb Raider Screenshot
  • Tomb Raider Screenshot

More related Games

Platforms:

Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, PC, Wii U, PS4, Xbox One

51 comments

  • JMarsella09 - March 21, 2013 6:33 p.m.

    Persona 3 & 4; There are no adverse effects to dating every girl you know as long as you manage you calendar correctly.
  • The_Ouroboros - April 13, 2013 12:58 p.m.

    Wait, isn't that true?
  • JMarsella09 - April 15, 2013 4:08 p.m.

    You really think that dating half the girls in your school, many of them friends with one another, won't result in them finding out and hating your guts?
  • The_Ouroboros - May 22, 2013 5:25 p.m.

    If only sarcasm was more easily conveyed via the internets... Or even italics around the 'true.'
  • JMarsella09 - May 23, 2013 12:36 p.m.

    Ah yes, I often face the same problem myself.
  • A1CxPlummer - March 20, 2013 6:54 p.m.

    Dishonored is wrong because you can go through the entire game without killing anyone if you choose. It's just more fun to kill.
  • rxb - March 20, 2013 12:28 p.m.

    Good work Hooters. Where the podcast?
  • ultimatepunchrod - March 20, 2013 6:08 a.m.

    I wonder how many times GR will use the Nathan Drake joke... also, I'm pretty sure the God of War bit is pretty on the surface. Not a lot of subtext there. In all seriousness, this was pretty funny.
  • avantguardian - March 19, 2013 11:31 p.m.

    total war series. history and geography can be educational AND cool! oh, by the way you're basically an armchair hitler.
  • Doomzer - March 19, 2013 11 p.m.

    Super Mario Series, Telling (or rather, showing) us how you get bigger and stronger by touching / eating red-white mushrooms, and eating stars can make you invincible, and you can totally throw fireballs from your hands if you eat orange flowers... Not in ANY possible way could this be mistaken for talk about drugs, if taken out of the Mario-game-context...
  • Rok - March 20, 2013 11:38 p.m.

    Hehe. You, Sir, are good. Well done. And thank you very much for sharing that in such a pleasantly sarcastic way. Loved it. And learned something from it; never thought about it that way, even if it's been more than 10 years since I played any Mario game. =)
  • Rok - March 19, 2013 10:51 p.m.

    Regarding the Uncharted series, where did the “mass-murdering” part come from? Isn't Nathan simply trying to survive? After all, those he shoots [are] murderous gangsters who started shooting at him with the full intention of killing him [and] his friends; you want him to not fight for his life? So, no, Nathan is not a mass-murderer, but yes, he [is] a grave-robber, an immoral thief. So why not just say that? Why add 'mass-murdering' to the mix? Do you see what I mean? I'm [not] trying to defend the series or Nathan; I actually agree that the message in the game is morally questionable, and that Nathan is a thief made to look really cool, handsome, lovely, funny, etc., but at the same time, I find the addition of “mass-murdering” a bit confusing, and actually makes the mind refuse the claim, and thus refuse the whole sentence. And maybe covert or dodgy agendas like Transhumanism are not considered “morally dubious” by everyone, but they are certainly very creepy and ominous to some people, and they certainly lead to morally dubious results with legalization after public acceptance or public desensitization toward them. So I'd personally add the Mass Effect series to that mix with a line like, “It is perfectly normal and logical to believe that the created can become more powerful than the creator and even rebel effectively against the creator (read: it is ok & logical to be a theophobic or God-hating atheist); and it is perfectly fine to not believe in the soul yet claim that artificial intelligence has a soul, actually...it has life, actually...it [is] life; and finally, it is the most beautiful thing ever to electromagnetically butcher human bodies and genetically mess with humans to turn them into half-machines, actually...that's just the inevitable ultimatum of evolution. As long as we stick the 'evolution', 'posthuman', and 'enhancement' labels on it, it is fine.” And, on the other hand, in defense of the article (if it is actually a serious one!), for the people who are asking, “Who said Saints Row / <insert any other game here> is an innocent game??”, of course 99% of the games out there are seemingly innocent, just as the author said, because they all hide behind a mask of humor, or fiction, or entertainment, and so on. I mean, come on, how many times have you heard the line, “Chill...it's just a game” from every airheaded gamer out there! Every game hides behind that mask of “It's just a game”, but it is never...“just” a game, or just a song, or just a movie, or whatever; it always shapes you somehow, teaches you something, inspires you of something. It is always a piece of culture, and it contributes to your own individual culture. And the more you play it (like Mass Effect serious or Call of Duty series), the more it contributes to your individual culture. Don't take my word for it; read up on the subconscious. Your subconscious is very, very bad at telling reality from fiction.
  • avantguardian - March 19, 2013 11:19 p.m.

    some serious generalizations going on in that last paragraph...
  • Rok - March 20, 2013 10:52 p.m.

    Specify and clarify, or save your breath. That goes for all criticism and everyone really.
  • avantguardian - March 20, 2013 11:53 p.m.

    "99% of games are seemingly innocent"- made up statistic. "they all hide behind a mask." all of them? so much hyperbole. "every airheaded gamer" -smh...so pretentious. "but it is never...“just” a game, or just a song, or just a movie, or whatever; it always shapes you somehow, teaches you something, inspires you of something. It is always a piece of culture, and it contributes to your own individual culture." as if you have any idea whatsoever what you're talking about. again with the hyperbole. "your subconscious is very, very bad at telling reality from fiction." again, you have no idea what you're talking about. and saying that you read it somewhere doesn't mean anything. not a single thing. you know nothing of my subconscious, let alone the other millions of people in the world. no amount of education that you think you have is going to change that. "save your breath." again, pretentious as hell.
  • The_Ouroboros - April 13, 2013 12:50 p.m.

    *claps* Simply beautiful.
  • avantguardian - April 20, 2013 12:44 a.m.

    *silent nod* ;)
  • brickman409 - March 19, 2013 7:27 p.m.

    how is saints row seemingly innocent???
  • winner2 - March 19, 2013 4:58 p.m.

    When in doubt, shoot everything speaking in another language - every CoD game ever

Showing 1-20 of 51 comments

Join the Discussion
Add a comment
(HTML tags are not allowed.)
Characters remaining: 5000

Connect with GamesRadar


Connect with Facebook

Log in using Facebook to share comments, games, status update and other activity easily with your Facebook feed.