Raising Social Issues Through Games
Maksym Semenov
Vir Games, Gamedesigner
- When:
- 15.07.2022, 16:30–17:30
- Hall:
- Red Sea Hall (game Design)
One of the key rules of game development goes: "No politics." A game must be neutral. Can we stay on the sidelines of current events? Should games be merely entertainment, or are they a full-fledged medium? The runner "Race at Full Power". Motives.
What the talk is about
Maksym Semenov asks whether games can be more than entertainment and serve as a full medium for social and political topics, despite the common "no politics" rule. He reviews examples: a military training simulator for the US army, a Polish survival game about life under siege, an ambitious reconstruction of a battle in Iraq that was criticized from all sides, in-game advertising in the 2008 election campaign, and political activism inside social games. The main risks are audience backlash, removal from app stores, and fast-changing events. On the other side, such games inform, support people after traumatic experiences, and offer a safe space for learning. He describes his own non-commercial mobile project about peaceful resistance: no violence against the player, a humorous tone, and a shift to Ukrainian events after the war began. Useful for developers interested in social games.