6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Crimes)

Our thoughts about the famous Cracked.com.

6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Crimes)

Postby archaeologydalek » Sun Sep 27, 2015 1:23 pm

REDACTED
  • 25

Last edited by archaeologydalek on Wed Apr 13, 2016 11:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
archaeologydalek
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
 
Posts: 220
Joined: Mon Nov 25, 2013 1:36 pm
Show rep

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby sunglasses » Sun Sep 27, 2015 1:41 pm

at least you know your audience.


Edit: in all seriousness as soon as I saw it was based on games such a Battlefield my eyes glazed over. Sorry FPS fans, it just ain't my bag, baby.
  • 8

TCS Etiquette Guide

Rules and FAQs

Zevran wrote:Magic can kill. Knives can kill. Even small children launched at great speeds can kill.
User avatar
sunglasses
TCS Moderator
TCS Moderator
 
Posts: 11541
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 2:52 pm
Show rep
Title: The Speaker of Horrors.

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby Askias » Sun Sep 27, 2015 2:34 pm

Tangibly related story:

Spoiler: show
When I was young (like, 12 or the like) I read some books (as youngers occationally do). It was a book-trilogy, Kinderen van Moeder Aarde/Het Helse paradijs/Het Gouden Vlies van Thule. They were never translated outside the Netherlands, but the titles mean Children of Mother Eath/The Paradise from Hell/Het Golden Fleece of Thule. They were utopian novels about a post-WWIII society which achieved perfection by excluding men from all decision-making. Yes, it's a feminist novel, shuttit it was well written.

The main crux was that the (women-governed) utopia of Thule was discovered (Columbus-style, except Thule wasn't nearly as primitive) by the (male-governed, militaristic, warhungry, distopian, sexist, conquering) Badeners. The Thulians or whatever they're called don't want the expidition warship to return, because they're slightly smarter than that.

At the end of the first book, this is accomplished by using children as human shields. When the ship wants to depart, a chain of ships blocks their exit. To prevent the steel-plated warship from either blasting them to bits or just ramming straight through, they man the decks with children (who it is made clear do not understand what's being done). The Badeners, despite their military background, decide against destroying them, and the Thulians win in the end. This is presented as a cunning strategy rather than a crime of the highest order. It's not the first time the Thulians showed some major protagonist-centered morality, and it was actually not the most glaring example.

In the second book, the Badeners (having heard nothing from their previous expidition) send a bigger party. The Thulians meet them on the open sea and, without warning, lure one ship on the rocks, causing it to sink resulting in loss of life for the Badeners as a means of saying ''Get out'' with premeditated murder. The Badeners do arrive and clear out (invade) part of the harbor to secure their surroundings, this without any mentioned loss of life.

The Thulians respond by sending in girls, described as 'no older than six', with poison stings containing sleeping agents. Again unwilling to massacre kids on sight, the Badeners fall for it and lose their food supply. Both sides treat this as a clever strategy. Now, the Badeners are dicks of the highest order, and would not have much regard for the laws of war, but even my young self wondered how this wouldn't result in the Badeners killing all children on sight after they were deliberately attacked by them using hidding weapons. If I knew every child could have a thorn the size of a nail between their fingers that is poisonous, I'd get rather trigger-happy about kids getting near me.

The Badeners are in the next chapter called evil because they're willing to execute civilians, after the Thulians just proved their small children were used as combatants. And that, kids, is why we don't let writers draft the Law of War.


Oh yes, the article. I read it (I've stopped visiting Cracked, so I hadn't read it yet). I liked it a lot. I like law and law of war in general, and although I won't varify anything (I'm digging through enough laws as it is at the moment), it seems you had a good grasp on the subject. You were specific enough to cover the subject correctly, and did it without being boring. An excellent article, and a standard to aspire to.
  • 15

Last edited by Askias on Mon Sep 28, 2015 3:21 am, edited 1 time in total.
If there be here lesson or moral, it lies beyond the competence of him who wrote this post.
(Jack Vance, Emphyrio)
User avatar
Askias
TCS Camper
TCS Camper
 
Posts: 759
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2015 2:40 pm
Location: Under the Sea
Show rep
Title: Night Owl

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby Marcuse » Sun Sep 27, 2015 3:07 pm

Oh wow, an article about video games on the internet that doesn't suck. What a novel experience.

Seriously though, this was a good read, well done.
  • 19

User avatar
Marcuse
TCS Sithlord
TCS Sithlord
 
Posts: 6592
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 8:00 pm
Show rep

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby Deathclaw_Puncher » Sun Sep 27, 2015 3:47 pm

Oh yeah, well, Sgt. James Heller; your argument is invalid!
Spoiler: show
Image
  • 5

Image
User avatar
Deathclaw_Puncher
Knight Writer
Knight Writer
 
Posts: 12452
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:42 pm
Location: Fair Oaks, CA
Show rep
Title: Queen of the Furrets

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby AboveGL » Sun Sep 27, 2015 7:34 pm

Dalek, that was fantastic. Your choice of GIF for #1 made me laugh out loud, something I haven't done for a long time on cracked. Informative and funny. I love this loads!
  • 6

Last edited by AboveGL on Sun Sep 27, 2015 10:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
AboveGL
TCS Sithlord
TCS Sithlord
 
Posts: 1797
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 4:37 pm
Show rep

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby NathanLoiselle » Sun Sep 27, 2015 8:03 pm

It's not a war crime if you're not at war! It's a peace crime! :)
  • 10

User avatar
NathanLoiselle
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 4484
Joined: Wed Jul 09, 2014 3:49 am
Location: You'll Never Know!
Show rep

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby ShuaiGuy » Sun Sep 27, 2015 8:23 pm

<Redacted>
  • 15

Last edited by ShuaiGuy on Tue Mar 29, 2016 1:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
ShuaiGuy
Time Waster
Time Waster
 
Posts: 1565
Joined: Sun Mar 01, 2015 9:38 am
Show rep

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby Paradox » Sun Sep 27, 2015 11:36 pm

I actually thought the article was really good. I read it thinking "wow, a Cracked article on videogames that makes me feel compelled to read past the topic titles? that happens once in a lifetime."
  • 19

[Signature removed for nonpayment.]

The artist once again known as Dox.
User avatar
Paradox
Resident Dickhead
Resident Dickhead
 
Posts: 2243
Joined: Wed May 27, 2015 6:56 pm
Location: Dunbar, WV
Show rep
Title: True Neutral

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby Keato1 » Tue Sep 29, 2015 7:32 am

I liked the article quite a lot. Reminded me of the articles that made me fall in love with Cracked in the first place. War seems like a weird thing to try and impose rules on, especially since most of them end up getting broken.

That being said, Splinter Cell is probably my favourite series, since I can go through the entire game without killing people and it actually makes it harder. So whenever people talk about it I'm happy.
  • 13

Keato1
Commenter
Commenter
 
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Sep 29, 2015 7:24 am
Location: Winnipeg
Show rep
Title: Whatshisface

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby EstebanColberto » Wed Sep 30, 2015 1:59 am

I don't have much to add that hasn't already been said. I just wanted to let you know I thought it was really good too. I always liked the articles that debunk things we learn about the real world from movies. I don't think most people ever treated video games as being factual as much as we do with movies, but with video games becoming more cinematic and drawing from the same tropes that movies do, but I can imagine some of the ones grounded in real life, as opposed to some fantasy world with dragons, having similar affects on public perception in the same way we have the CSI Effect.
  • 3

User avatar
EstebanColberto
Time Waster
Time Waster
 
Posts: 1142
Joined: Tue Feb 03, 2015 10:33 pm
Show rep

Re: 6 Common Video Game Mechanics (That Are Actually War Cri

Postby LegionofShrooms » Sun Oct 04, 2015 5:20 pm

Keato1 wrote:I liked the article quite a lot. Reminded me of the articles that made me fall in love with Cracked in the first place. War seems like a weird thing to try and impose rules on, especially since most of them end up getting broken.

That being said, Splinter Cell is probably my favourite series, since I can go through the entire game without killing people and it actually makes it harder. So whenever people talk about it I'm happy.

Most of dalek's stuff has an "old school" vibe to it. I always make a point of clicking on his stuff.

If you want another comparatively newer author that's been just bloody hitting it out of the park on most of his articles, check out Zachery Frey.
  • 9

Tell your momma, tell your poppa, tell your sisters and your brothers, tell your lovers, tell your children, tell your dominatrix:

The Writing Workshop is where all the cool kids hang out.
LegionofShrooms
TCS Irregular
TCS Irregular
 
Posts: 547
Joined: Sun Feb 08, 2015 11:23 pm
Location: Oh you know... Around...
Show rep
Title: Mastermind of Fungi Based Evil


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 7 guests