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The Top Three Politically Charged Games of Yesteryear

By Reggie Carolipio on Wednesday, September 27, 2006 at 12:00 AM EST  

Political Old 1
#3: Fallout 2
The threat of nuclear holocaust had inspired an entire generation to duck and cover, build bunkers in the backyard, and regard the Soviet Union as the enemy of mankind. Fallout 2 makes use of that history with its 50’s inspired art deco style, but it also fleshes out the backstory with an update to the fear borne out of the desperation for valuable resources to create its irradiated world. Although high gas prices today won’t force anyone to start thinking about building their own Vault, Fallout 2 and its predecessor have asked the question of what might happen when entire nations become hungry enough to fight for what their people need. Will civilization fall apart or will alternative solutions maintain what sanity is left? In the world of Fallout, that answer was given in a blinding flash of atomic light. Although the threat of nuclear annihilation has given way, in part, to nuclear terrorism, the end result continues to be the same.

Beyond Good and Evil
#2: Beyond Good and Evil
It’s not based on the book by Friedrich Nietszche, but the themes within the game share some common ground with the philosopher as the player becomes a freelance reporter in an adventure to look beyond the facts and discover the truth. In BG&E, benevolence is used as a blanket excuse to impose changes on society as everyone accepts their word as inescapable fact. Travel is restricted for the citizens’ own good, the press is forced to report only on what the government chooses for them to see, and not everything is as black and white. Peace is substituted for common sense and most of everyone within the game is content to live their lives without knowing the price that they are slowly paying, themes that are as important to the story of the game as they are in the world at large. It’s too bad that it didn’t get the attention that it deserves, but that’s par for the course in a market that refuses look past the fear of a new property and beyond the next sequel.

Deus Ex
#1: Deus Ex
Warren Spector’s dystopian vision for the future ‘war on terror’ would become somewhat self-fulfilling although not exactly in the same way as upcoming elections transform the phrase into a political platform and as the fear of another attack color codes our society. Although the United Nations haven’t formed a global anti-terrorism force like UNATCO, nanomachines can’t augment our skills, and FEMA’s performance during Katrina had robbed it of much of its conspiratorial clout in the public eye, the issues explored within Deus Ex’s narrative are easily found elsewhere today. The twisting conspiracy theories that prove true within the context of the game also touch upon a variety of other issues within its world, such as valuable cures that remain out of the reach of many and the gap between the poor and the rich that continues to grow. Street politics are also written into its story, as secret societies continue to vie for supremacy amidst the plotting of the world’s most powerful players while the rest of humanity suffers behind the veneer of an invisible war.

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One Response to “The Top Three Politically Charged Games of Yesteryear”

  1. crazybjörn on August 17th, 2007 3:27 am

    Even without being politically charged (which can be both good and bad), all three are very excellent games on their own as well.

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