Now its easier to see how discourse creates reality in the world we all walk around in. As with each idea talked about and each action that individuals take the making of it is observable. Every piece of communication whether intentional or not serves to further the creation of the reality. How does the idea of discourse creating reality tie into video games though?
On one half video games are subject to the same reality that discourse creates for the rest of us. Video games simply acting as a tinted mirror, showing the same ideas and values but in another world. On the other half though video games are in a unique position to create their own discourse for reality. By using their creative potential video games can not only create a new world, but also create their own discourse to create reality within that world.
These contrasting possibilities put video games in a unique spot of both being able to change the discourse of reality directly and show another instead, and also change the current discourse of reality through the communication of the game to its players.
To examine this I'll be looking at the game Overwatch, produced by Blizzard, the same company that made World of Warcraft. Though I will look at the game in general, I will also be examining a specific controversy that happened in Overwatch's closed beta phase before its release. This controversy has been detailed in my previous posts, each concerning a different focus within the controversy. For reference they are as follows, Physical Portrayal Numbing, the Bechdel Test, and Ideology.
In short summary, the controversy concerned a pose for the character Tracer. A forum post was made arguing that the posed ruined her strong female character with a spunky fun attitude by turning her into a sex symbol. The problem for the forum user was that the pose was out of line with the Tracer's personality.
This controversy highlights a change in the video game industry that is becoming more prevalent. That of the players being able to change the reality of a game through their own discourse both prior and after its release to have effects in a relevant time. But wait has that not always been the case?
When a game is releasing, the company of course is making it for consumption and hence design it to be appealing and desirable. Which often means aligning the game and often times the discourse within it to resonate with the target audience. With all games there are bound to be people who complain about the product. It remains unavoidable as people tend to complain about anything that does not come as they want it. This group though is most often a very small minority and their complaints are often nit-picky or over the top extreme to the point of impossibility. So these go unnoticed. However this comes with the downside that most complaints about the game can be ignored. Which leads to nothing changing, or very small changes that do not create the changed desired by the community of players or does not actually fix the problem it was designed for. In this system the players though their discourse can be loud, it is deafening to the point of self harm in that it prevents the community of player's own messages from emerging clearly.
So how is this case of Overwatch different? Well the biggest change is that Blizzard, and specifically Jeff Kaplan the Game Director and Vice President of Blizzard, payed attention to the concerns of the community. This was in part made easier for them and the community as the community of players were more focused on certain points of concern. The voice of the community became more united. Blizzard showed its consumers and audience that it truly did listen to their concerns and more than that it showed that Blizzard would respond to it and make changes based on their concerns. This went to the extent where Blizzard made videos specifically to address concerns of the community. Even to the length of addressing coding mechanics of Netcode within the game and how it currently was effecting players and how they were changing it to be better. Though netcode is crucial for a online first person shooter game, it is not something that is openly talked about, particularly from the developer. This was but one of Blizzards strides to demonstrate their dedication to listening and responding to the community.
Blizzard creates a unique reality through their discourse on such concerns, both for their community and their game. Overwatch is a first person team shooter, meaning it pits teams of players against each other in a competitive style match. Within the game the discourse provided through both visual and audio cues is a sense of teamwork and cooperation within a team. Blizzard goes the extra yard here, continuing to show and build this emphasis beyond the confines of the game itself. Blizzard builds this idea of cooperation and teamwork into their community around Overwatch and into how Blizzard itself works with that community. This shows not only how a video game can be designed with a different discourse to create reality than that of our lives, but also how it can be used to affect the very reality we live within, creating new discourse within it.
The sexual depiction of the character Tracer emerged as a topic for the community, and one that got quite heated. It stirred up the dust and Blizzard was quick to respond. In fact they had another pose for Tracer already made as they felt the one in concern was one of her weaker poses. So they changed it in the next patch, to some mixed reactions of the community perhaps. As the community itself was split on the issue. The pose was changed from a over sexualized over the shoulder pose that emphasized her slim physic and rear to that of a pin-up girl pose. Aimed to serve both sides of the community along with maintaining Blizzard's design and depiction of the character.
Why is the discourse creating reality in terms of video games important? Do these games really portray different realities through their discourse or are they simply reflections of our own reality with some sprinkles thrown in?
It is unlikely that any game will not mimic or mirror our own reality and hence it's discourse in some way, after all these games are made from the experiences within that reality. I think it important to examine how the discourse within a video game changes both in itself, in order to create something new but also how that inner discourse goes to or can be extended to that of our own reality. Overwatch itself does not make any drastic changes to the same discourse of our own reality. It does however emphasize parts, communicate, and build itself differently. From there it even goes as an example of changing our own reality through both its in-game discourse and it's interaction with the external discourse of our own reality.
Video games serve as both tools and discourse to create our current reality but also as miniature examples of other realities. I think it important to learn as much as possible from such examples so as to become better able to shape our own reality with tailored and controlled discourse. Video games can serve as tools, examples, and experiments to change our reality towards something new.
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