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Riders Republic and Skull & Bones in-game events will highlight climate issues

brian0057

Banned
It's funny how you somehow manage to completely miss the point. My point was never to point out that all games are political because they aren't. The point was to highlight the double standards regarding politics on video games that can be observed in gaming discourse and especially on GAF.
I've seen Catholic pastors less preachy than the average modern Ubisoft game (or any modern production, to be honest).
Bioshock, and all of those so called "political games", have the one thing modern day Ubisoft lacks: subtlety. It's the difference between good writing and bad writing.
And calling out bad writing is not a double standard.

Subnautica couldn't be more blatant about its antigun message if it tried. It's still one of my favorite games of all time.
Because it's not the point of the story. It's about surviving alone on a planet and trying to escape. Everything else is just ancillary to the narrative.
 
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Rykan

Member
I've seen Catholic pastors less preachy than the average modern Ubisoft game (or any modern production, to be honest).
Bioshock, and all of those so called "political games", have the one thing modern day Ubisoft lacks: subtlety. It's the difference between good writing and bad writing.
And calling out bad writing is not a double standard.

Subnautica couldn't be more blatant about its antigun message if it tried. It's still one of my favorite games of all time.
Because it's not the point of the story. It's about surviving alone on a planet and trying to escape. Everything else is just ancillary to the narrative.
You have got to be kidding me.

You honestly think that Bioshock is SUBTLE!? Wow. Just wow. Bioshock is possibly the single most blatant political game there is. The entire city of rapture and all the events that take place there is a commentary on objectivism. The creator of Rapture is called Andrew Ryan, clearly a play on Ayn Rand. There is not a single aspect of Bioshock that is not blatantly political.

I honestly can't believe you seriously claimed Bioshock is "subtle". That's the funniest thing I'm going to read this week.
 
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Apocryphon

Member
I don't have a particularly strong opinion on this either way but I do wonder how they plan to implement the gameplay portion.
 

Nydius

Member
Can't say I really mind the Rider's Republic part because okay, that seems at least somewhat grounded in reality in that forest fires happen around extreme sports areas all the time. But shoe-horning some stupid overfishing nonsense into Skull and Bones? That's where my eyes roll so hard they almost pop out.

Because when I'm playing a game about being a pirate who, by definition, is a law breaker, I totally want to be thinking about overfishing a fictional ocean... Just goddamn. This is the kind of forced virtue signaling that turns me off. If someone is making a social statement and its baked into the game as part of the design concept, cool. I'm usually fine with that even if I disagree with the message. Tacking on crap to flex about how socially forward they're being? 🤮
 

StreetsofBeige

Gold Member
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xrnzaaas

Gold Member

Taking place in late 2022 or early next year, the Riders Republic event will tackle the issue of wildfires.

As first reported by Axios, the “short and intense” live event will require players to team up to stop sequoia trees from burning down.

Players won’t be given advance warning of the event. “Instead, they will be immersed immediately in the consequences of wildfires on the outskirts of the map when booting the game,” Ubisoft said.

The sky will be orange, there will be smoke and fog throughout the game, and certain parts of the map will be inaccessible.

Players will have to identify the most fragile and flammable areas of Sequoia National Park and engage in collaborative activities to protect it.

Skull & Bones, which is reportedly due for release in November, will include an in-game event designed to promote the issue of overfishing.

“Our first activation will address resource exploitation, showing what happens in the game world and the real world when the demand for sharks’ fins results in the overfishing of sharks,” Ubisoft said.

“Players will have the choice to contribute to marine wildlife protection and comprehend the destructive nature of the shark fin trade.”

It added: “As players contribute to community challenges, rewards will be unlocked for all players depending on the overall level of participation.”
So when's the event that stops you from playing RR because you're scaring wild animals?
 

FunkMiller

Member
Tell you fucking what Ubisoft, instead of putting fatuous, meaningless virtue signalling in your games, how about you use some of those vast profits you get from the morons who buy them into reforesting areas of land? Help pay to restock fish species? Invest in green technologies and research?

Sticking some bullshit in a game, and not using single use plastic in your offices, isn’t enough. Put your fucking money into it, instead of lining the pockets of the super-rapey cunts who run the business.



I dislike Ubisoft a fair bit.
 
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Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
Tell you fucking what Ubisoft, instead of putting fatuous, meaningless virtue signalling in your games, how about you use some of those vast profits you get from the morons who buy them into reforesting areas of land? Help pay to restock fish species? Invest in green technologies and research?

I'm not as hard line as you and I think you have a point, but I also think the alternative is that they do nothing rather than something.

Some people are unaware of just how perilous our position is, and if a well meaning game designer manages to get an executive to sign off on including content which helps a few more people on the path to getting a better understanding or to asking a few more questions then it's not without merit, even if giant corporations could and should do more.

As things stand, things are going to continue getting worse and worse. We need all the help we can get.

Even if it's from ubisoft, even if it's less than they could do.
 
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FunkMiller

Member
I'm not as hard line as you and I think you have a point, but I also think the alternative is that they do nothing rather than something.

Some people are unaware of just how perilous our position is, and if a well meaning game designer manages to get an executive to sign off on including content which helps a few more people on the path to getting a better understanding or to asking a few more questions then it's not without merit, even if giant corporations could and should do more.

As things stand, things are going to continue getting worse and worse. We need all the help we can get.

Even if it's from ubisoft, even if it's less than they could do.

But this kind of ’help’ is like pissing into a hurricane. And it’s done to greenwash companies with god awful reputations like Ubisoft. It’s cynical bullshit.

Ubisoft don’t care about the environment, or the future of this planet. If they did, they would be investing actual large sums of money into projects that can do some actual good.
 

brian0057

Banned
You have got to be kidding me.

You honestly think that Bioshock is SUBTLE!? Wow. Just wow. Bioshock is possibly the single most blatant political game there is. The entire city of rapture and all the events that take place there is a commentary on objectivism. The creator of Rapture is called Andrew Ryan, clearly a play on Ayn Rand. There is not a single aspect of Bioshock that is not blatantly political.

I honestly can't believe you seriously claimed Bioshock is "subtle". That's the funniest thing I'm going to read this week.
Bioshock is not "political", it's philosophical.
It's discussing ideology and worldviews, not policy. And even then, it doesn't make it central to the plot. It's only used as a framework.

Ryan and Fontaine dooming the city because they wanted power is simple human history. Swap objectivism with any other ideology and the game is just as good. That's why people say Bioshock is not "political".

Once again since apparently it didn't click the first time: having a political theme (or in this case, philosophical) is not being political. Life is Strange 2 literally telling you " It's for people like you why we need a wall" is political.
 
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John Bilbo

Member
Wasn't one of the carrying themes of Bioshock "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs"? As in reference to communism.

Maybe I am remembering incorrectly.

Edit: Removed formatting.
 
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brian0057

Banned
Wasn't one of the carrying themes of Bioshock "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs"? As in reference to communism.

Maybe I am remembering incorrectly.

Edit: Removed formatting.
I don't think it is.
Andrew Ryan explicitly condemns it at the beginning of the game.
It's one of the reasons why he built the city in the first place.

Bioshock is Ken Levine misinterpreting Ayn Rand. Fortunately, the game is superb because as a treaty on objectivisim is really poor.
 

RareJordan

Member
Well, I’m glad I sold my copy. They had already been sprinkling in little bits of climate preaching in their in-game descriptions of national parks and landmarks.
 

Rykan

Member
Bioshock is not "political", it's philosophical.
Are you serious? Are you even aware that the term political philosophy exist? Bioshock is extremely political.
It's discussing ideology and worldviews, not policy. And even then, it doesn't make it central to the plot. It's only used as a framework.
You're trying to disconnect policy and political ideology from each other. Aside from the fact that it is very debatable whether Bioshock discusses specific policies or not, if you do insist on making a distinction between specific policy and political ideology and draw the line there, then you can't really criticize Ubisoft either. Or most other game that has political themes in it such as The last of us 2. After all, none of these game address any particular policy.

Saying it's not central the plot is silly. It's definitely central to the plot as all the events happening in the game are a direct result of that.
Ryan and Fontaine dooming the city because they wanted power is simple human history. Swap objectivism with any other ideology and the game is just as good. That's why people say Bioshock is not "political".
What? You can't just "change it with another ideology because Rapture is entirely designed around it. The whole point of the game is that society collapses if all sense of morality is abandoned and people are unrestricted in the way in which they enrich themselves. You can't just "Swap" out the ideology, All of Rapture would have to be redesigned in order for it to make sense.
Once again since apparently it didn't click the first time: having a political theme (or in this case, philosophical) is not being political. Life is Strange 2 literally telling you " It's for people like you why we need a wall" is political.
Sorry, but saying that a game which entire narrative and settings is a commentary on a political ideology is "Not political" is stupid. There's no other way to describe it.
 

jaysius

Banned


How to make a "please give a single fuck about the planet" without being preachy.

Fuck I wish there was something that told retards how NOT to throw full bags of Mc Donalds and Tim Hortons out of their fucking windows. Fuck corporate pollluting I'd be happy if I didn't see full boxes of Mary Browns chicken all over the highway.
 

brian0057

Banned
What? You can't just "change it with another ideology because Rapture is entirely designed around it. The whole point of the game is that society collapses if all sense of morality is abandoned and people are unrestricted in the way in which they enrich themselves. You can't just "Swap" out the ideology, All of Rapture would have to be redesigned in order for it to make sense.
Sure you can.
The reasons for why Rapture collapsed are irrelevant to the story. Be it a critique of objectivism, communism, free markets, anarchism, or whatever, it's still a city doomed by the ravings of madmen drunk with power. And that is not unique to objectivism.

It's good, old fashioned human nature. Ideology be damned. Rapture could look exactly the same. Andrew Ryan could be a raving Marxist and his collectivis ideas killed the city by devolving into totalitarianism and the story remains the same. Hell, even the "would you kindly" moment would still work.

That Ken Levine read Ayn Rand and missed the point entirely when making Bioshock is another matter entirely. Bioshock is a superb System Shock lite but a terrible treaty on Objectivism.
 
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jason10mm

Gold Member
Remwbwe in this game you had the choice to embrace the environment for your own gain or stamp it out in the name of progress?

Both sides, folks, gotta have both sides :p

qzoqeju.jpg
 

Rykan

Member
Sure you can.
The reasons for why Rapture collapsed are irrelevant to the story. Be it a critique of objectivism, communism, free markets, anarchism, or whatever, it's still a city doomed by the ravings of madmen drunk with power. And that is not unique to objectivism.

It's good, old fashioned human nature. Ideology be damned. Rapture could look exactly the same. Andrew Ryan could be a raving Marxist and his collectivis ideas killed the city by devolving into totalitarianism and the story remains the same. Hell, even the "would you kindly" moment would still work.

That Ken Levine read Ayn Rand and missed the point entirely when making Bioshock is another matter entirely. Bioshock is a superb System Shock lite but a terrible treaty on Objectivism.
The story of the main character and the story of Rapture are two different things. The story behind the main character is unintresting and clearly not the reason why Bioshock is praised. It's the setting and the story behind that setting that sets Bioshock apart. Saying that you can just "change the ideology" behind it is silly. The entire city of Rapture is designed with this philosophy in mind. That's what sets Bioshock apart: It's not about the "mad men". It's all about the reason why these mad men were allowed to do such horrific things in a society that goes completely unchecked by law or morality. Bioshock isn't about "One bad guy controlling everything.". It's a story about a society collapsing onto itself.

Ken levine didn't miss the point of Atlas Shrugged. You could argue that it's a fairly simplistic take on it, sure. But that's an entirely different subject
 
I own RR and am very curious to see how they execute this. If done well, it could be interesting to see how it fits - on the surface it makes sense. I like ideas like this, and don’t feel so strongly about the game that I’d be opposed to seeing something shake it up or provide a catalyst for a new direction.
 

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
I mean, my ass is sweating 23/7 in last month, I don't need to be reminded that shit like this exists.
 

Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
But this kind of ’help’ is like pissing into a hurricane. And it’s done to greenwash companies with god awful reputations like Ubisoft. It’s cynical bullshit.

Ubisoft don’t care about the environment, or the future of this planet. If they did, they would be investing actual large sums of money into projects that can do some actual good.
I agree with you, but I assume it's the act of a producer trying to use their influence to do some good, rather than ubisoft taking a giant corporate stance.

You can see in this thread that people generally don't understand the severity of the situation, but unfortunately, until more people are won over and demand that their representatives do more, not much will happen and featuring these themes in video games might help a few to understand or think about things.

There's not much point in escalating these conversations, people won't be won over in that way. It would be better to try and embrace the efforts of others and all push in the same direction, even if they could do more.
 
It's funny how you somehow manage to completely miss the point. My point was never to point out that all games are political because they aren't. The point was to highlight the double standards regarding politics on video games that can be observed in gaming discourse and especially on GAF.
Horizion, Elden Ring, Sniper Elite, Lego starwars, etc are all games where politics play a pretty prominent role in the game. Plus climate change isn't even political. The people complaining about it being political are the only reason it's seen as political. It's an Apolitical issue like the age of the earth or make up of the sun.
 
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