Recently, Naughty Dog showcased a brutal display of survival in its title The Last of Us. The lengthy segment of gameplay showed off the game’s brutal hand-to-hand combat as well as gunfights that resulted in more realistic reactions to actually being shot. While it can be said that the industry has seen far more violent displays than what The Last of Us portrays, the question that follows is whether or not the gritty realism it pushing violence over the edge.
Gamers have been playing Mature rated games since the creation of the ESRB in 1994, and while an “M” rating doesn’t necessarily mean there will be violence, it is a pretty good indication. Infamous games like the Mortal Kombat series are notorious for their overly violent nature and, along with Night Trap, Lethal Enforcers, and Doom, were a large influence on the creation of the ESRB system. So why is it then, almost 2 decades later, there is still a controversy over video game violence? Are we as gamers being subjected to needless violence, or is it becoming a vital element of storytelling?
Game designer Warren Spector, who is currently working on the sequel to Epic Mickey, had plenty to say on the issue in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz. “…I do believe that we are fetishizing violence, and now in some cases actually combining it with an adolescent approach to sexuality,” Spector explained. While he gave no examples of this adolescent approach to violence in video games – though it can be assumed 2009’s Mortal Kombat and Dead Rising 2 were on his radar -, Spector was sure to praise his own work on last years Deus Ex: Human Revolution. “[It] had its moments of violence, […]but they were designed to make you uncomfortable, and I don’t see that happening now.”
Taking the opposite stance is Scott Rohde, the Playstation software development head, who feels that this progression in video game violence is simply in response to the ever expanding technology within the industry. “You just see that as technology continues to grow, […] I think you’re gonna se a more realistic depiction of what’s going on,” Rohde explained to GameSpot.com. In the same vein as Rohde’s belief, is it not then the fault of the gamer’s that violence is becoming so predominantly realistic? Anybody that has cruised through any gaming message board may find that it’s not the violence aspect that’s selling titles, but the realism behind it. Gamers are looking to stray away from the golden days of mish-moshed pixelation and bland coloring to an age where video games and movies are none too different – at least visually. Few people want to be fooled by poor displays of violence not because violence is “cool”, but when it is depicted accurately, it is a step in the right direction in terms of development.
Though the The Last of Us gameplay showed at E3 ending quite brutally, watching the segment almost made it necessary to keep the tone that Naughty Dog inevitably worked hard at creating. Some may see violence as a gimmick, but when utilized correctly (and, as of late, it seems to have strayed more from being simply senseless), it builds a tension that the story may have been lacking without it.
I wouldn’t say that violence is good for the industry, I would that violence IS the industry. Serioulsy, look at that E3 list, how many of those DON’T have some violence as the core gameplay. I bet even in that iCarly game you punch a guy in the face at some point.
Simulated violence is the life-blood of the console and pushing it further and further is the only way to stay relevant. It’s just a question of how far it’ll go. …Two men enter, one man leaves!