VIDEO GAMES

 

THE REAL CALL OF DUTY

games and propaganda and fun

by Drew Acosta

 

Starting from the very beginning of human history, humanity has found a crazy number of ways to entertain itself. And so, it shouldn't be surprising that games have evolved over the centuries, and that in the last moment of the 20th century and the very beginning of the 21st century, we’re seeing a true revolution in what a game can be. Of course, the revolution begins with the arcade, as a public space for people to gather and play. Then the next evolution comes in the form of gaming consoles, like the perfectly named Game Boy. These two moments reinvented the gaming world, solidifying the importance of socializing, the need for community, and a place for players to play.

With the ending of the first quarter of the 21st century, gaming has evolved again; this time around gaming has became more private and a matter of taste. A lot of the games were politically charged, and others were just reformatted versions of the games that were once played at arcades. Games became social, but strained. The internet allowed for multiplayer gaming, but only from afar. As long as you had Internet access, you no longer needed to stand by a machine or sit beside a friend to play. And the best part was, you could play for however long you wanted and with anyone in the world.

I was 7 years old when I learned about video games from watching my uncle play on a janky PS2 that he got off of eBay for cheap, so cheap that it could only run an early Dragon Ball game reliably. A little later, I listened to my classmates talk avidly about a series called Call of Duty and how “cool” and “manly” it was. Little did I know how Call of Duty would ingrain itself into American culture.

A janky PS2

The series centers around the idea of patriotism and that America is a grand and great country with an army unrivaled by any other nation. The characters are typically male, super masculine, super white, and fighting for Western interests, even when they were not American. The terrorists run the gamut from Middle Eastern Dictators to South American drug lords, and at least for now ultra-wealthy Russian and Soviet sympathizers. The evolution of these games, the way they play with history to creative narrative logic and momentum, is fascinating. While at a glance Call of Duty could be labeled as just another hyper-masculine first-person shooter (FPS) game, the narrative strategies are surprisingly malleable. Of course, the game producers are interested in catching changes in the culture, so that they can continue to capture the white male audience that they are continually courting. We know that history is subjective, and so is the marketing and content for the games that use and abuse history for corporate ends.

So, Call of Duty is an extensive series that has lasted and whose purpose in many different forms has been to educate, even though what it teaches is quite controversial and, most importantly, changes. But what's fascinating is that we can look at various iterations of the game and understand what was going on in the world and what the pro-American response was. Things change, and so does the game's notion of what is best for America for over two decades. So, here are some versions over the years that show how intertwined these games and American culture are.

Call of Duty: The Series

More than a trend

2008

Call of Duty: World at War attempts to create an accurate depiction of the real-world events of WWII. The game presents the war as both brutal and eerie. Most of the moments in the game consist of silence and loud noises at a distance. Critics and gamers praised it for its unusual depiction of what we might consider a well-known war. Still, it wasn’t without controversy. The game faced immense backlash due to the depiction of Polish soldiers. Oddly, the game blames the Poles for the outbreak of WWII by depicting them as drunk and stupid. Some countries banned the game outright, and others censored parts due to its use of Nazi symbolism. Critics also questioned the depiction of violence, which, although accurate, was quite brutal. It wouldn't be the last time the line between historical accuracy and entertainment would be raised in the series.

2009

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. “No Russian” puts the player in the position of a terrorist at a Russian airport. The mission depicts the mass murder of innocent people with the intention of framing the United States and inciting a war with Russia. Many people, both American and Russian, felt that its depiction of violence and portrayal of Russian extremism was too extreme; and that marketing the game to a male audience was inappropriate during a period of great financial and political unrest. Many countries censored the mission, some ended up completely removing it, and others forced Activision to add a skip option for the mission. Due to the backlash, Activision considered making similar games, because their typical response to these types of controversies is always to dismiss or blatantly disregard the concerns of critics. At times, their bottom line is as blunt as the games themselves.

2012

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 jumps ahead in time to the year 2025. This version of the game appeared right in the middle of Obama’s two terms and explores the themes of governmental control, technology in warfare, and the desperation of nations to obtain power visa vis military adventures. Relatives of Manuel Noriega and Jonas Savimbi sued Activision for how they were depicted. Absurdly, their relatives demanded greater context, as if more footnotes would make Noriega or Savimbi look more sympathetic. But what it does show is how the Call of Duty game almost can't help but get caught up in competing notions of reality. As the years have passed, this version has become increasingly relevant, as the so-called fictional world of the game has become more and more factual. It’s funny(?), tragic(?), or ironic(?) how quickly a game can become our reality.

2019

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 1 chronicles a mission titled “Highway of Death.” Inspired by the real-life Gulf War incident that occurred in February 1991 in Iraq, American and allied forces bomb thousands of fleeing vehicles. In the game this somehow becomes Russian forces bombing the fictional country of Urzikstan. Many Russian players were deeply upset by the transposition of reality in which Russians are the sole perpetrators of violence, especially since it was based on an action that the US had ordered and carried out. Well, so much for accuracy.

2020

Call of Duty: Black Ops/Cold War revolves around aspects of the Cold War, specifically MKUltra, which was a massive mind control operation conducted by the CIA in the 60’s and 70’s. The game takes place in the early 80's, but the backlash was because of the Vietnam setting and its depictions of then President Ronald Regan. The majority of critiques were concerned with the way the game depicted characters working for American interests. It felt like a huge whitewashing of actual history. In many ways, the game feels pro-carnage and seems to revel in the ends justifying the means, no matter how bad the means are.

So, what should we think?

Video games as a whole come with conditions, and with these conditions come the actions you will take to complete the conditions presented to you. As a brand, Call of Duty is well known for its deep military roots, its connections to the military industrial complex, its promotion of “America First” values, and its controversial game missions. While many argue that video games are just a distraction from the real world and shouldn't be taken all that seriously, we should never ignore the fact that game companies have agendas. If your beliefs tend towards hyper-masculine, ultra-Western values, well, maybe the Call of Duty series isn’t so bad, but whatever the case this series is anything but a benign player in our culture.

©The CCA Arts Review and Drew Acosta