SIMULATING SOCIETAL FLUX: DESIGNING AFFECTIVE GAMES AMID TECHNOLOGICAL ACCELERATION

Abstract

We Become What We Behold (2016) by Nicky Case is an online, indie game that explores the interconnected structure of digital media interactions, focusing on news media dynamics. The game simulates contemporary communication challenges and their consequences in five minutes playing time. Players navigate a first-person perspective, capturing NPCs through point-and-click interactions. However, the game warns against capturing mundane scenes, encouraging players to seek more engaging content namely, vicious content, for the sake of clickbait. This prompts players to acknowledge the negative consequences of conforming to mass behaviors. The game is self-referential, critical, and affective allowing players to encode and decode messages through photographic choices. Thus, the game mobilizes concerns about the lack of control over technology and potential biases in machine vision. The game’s affective narrative structure involves players in shaping the direction of the game, reflecting the unpredictable consequences of accelerating technology. By playing the game, players are immersed in an exploration of digital media interactions, encouraging them to think critically about the power structures dictating message decoding. © 2024 25th International Conference on Intelligent Games and Simulation, GAME-ON 2024. All rights reserved.