Nut surprising considering how useful a platform they've been for attacking, the problem was someone tried to turn games into a scapegoat, and the Politicians, for the main part, loved that idea, it allowed them to get on a soapbox and preach without actually having to commit to anything. It also gave them something to point at for some of the problems in their local constituencies, which is a lot easier than actually doing something about things like drugs, parental abuse and a host of other real-life problems that have been around long before the advent of Video Games.

see i just dont get it...

It just shows how out of touch he is.. i mean really... every candidate having a game on ps3... wtf? (why ps3 particularly anyway, doesnt he mean general video game release? probably doesnt understand)

do you REALLY expect a political game to reach number one in the sales charts? in fact do you really expect a political game to sell enough copies to warrant a publisher putting funds behind it? :s just my two cents, i mean im sure there are some people who would enjoy it, but i REALLY dont expect it to be a huge majority of the Gaming demographic.

Oh and how can we have been on one hand predicted to lap up political games (showing gamers as intelligent politcally aware somewhat responsible, probably more adult individuals) yet, when the ratings argument pops up we are all adolescent males under the age of 15? *sigh* . I mean what is it, we are either all violent kids, or we arent, not just depending on what day of the week it is. GRR this really annoys me.


"In Bogost’s view, online social networks and YouTube have surpassed game tech as a means to connect candidates and supporters. "

No sh*t sherlock. you think perhaps a free video hosing site, available to anyone with internet is better than putting your message in a piece of software that needs to take (approx) 18 months development to stand any chance of competing with other games, that only users of that system can see, and that they have to shell out £40 for....? Gee free video .. or a £40 per sale game available to less people with a huge cost to develop... hmmm

Its like saying oh free online social networks and YouTube have surpassed George Foreman grills as a means to connect candidates and supporters.

really.. dya think...?

"divined, every major candidate will have their own PlayStation 3 game."

What?! They don't even have their own movies, in fact there are a lot of former presidents who don't have their own movies (unless you count documentaries).

@Skyler, NovaBlack
The point of my self-citation was precisely to underscore how absurd it sounds for major candidates to have console games, but four years ago that was a reasonable hope, albeit perhaps not a prediction.

@Spartan
The Political Machine is an interesting game about electioneering. There have been a lot of these games, games about the mechanics of the electoral college. But it's not about *policy*, which is a point Tom also makes. I've argued before that these election games just reinforce the idea that all politics is politicking.

@Tom
I agree with you about skinning and discussed that matter at some considerable length in my book _Persuasive Games_. Sorry to point you to that, but the blog is just a small point really, there's a more substantial argument in the book.

@ Skyler

I understand what you're saying about the time investment in making games but as technology advances the lead-in time to build the basic backbone of a game is being reduced substantially. The development of art assets could be time consuming but with the active support of the political candidates involved I imagine it could be reduced substantially. The real challenge would be in developing gameplay elements that actually incorporate political and policy ideas in a meaningful way.

With some creative people working at a steady pace and given the support of the candidate I imagine that a high-quality political game could be produced quickly enough to be a valid aspect of a campaign. Consider how long Hillary's been campaigning for President and assume that she was probably gearing up for that run privately before she announced her exploratory committee - if a game had been in development from day 1 then it could have been ready for release before primary season commenced.

I do hope 'Hail to The Chimp' turns out to be a good game. I'm not especially endeared towards Gamecock, however I have a HUGE amount of respect for Wideload Games - Alexander Seropian, for me, has been one of the most influential industry figures and Matt Soell is probably the finest Community Liaisons to have ever lived (he invented the role, IMHO). Seropian's games always been imbued with a subversive sense of humour and level of intellectualism - I ju hope that trend continues.

I also hope they do a bloody Marathon sequel ;)

Ian-

I agree completely. Who's to say that game design students can't pick up the reigns? Why does it have to be a major gaming company? Sure they have money but game design students have assets available to them to use, and the best way to get into the industry is to work on something. Not to mention that the youth vote has gone up drastically so the young are listening.