Moral Combat: Why do liberals play computer games like conservatives?
Whether prohibiting the sale of violent video games to minors violates the First Amendment is the subject of a Supreme Court case this term. But if anyone who wanted to promote “traditional family values” actually played a game like The Sims, they would love it. There are plenty of other games of which conservatives should approve as well. Sim City, which preceded The Sims, has players create a virtual metropolis instead of a virtual family. As a Sim City expert, I can tell you that things function much more smoothly if taxes are low and city government caters to corporate interests. In the most recent version of the game, low-income housing is associated with higher crime rates, which necessitate more police stations. Low-income housing, however, packs in more workers per block, and I need all those workers in order to generate more revenue. To keep them productive—if employees are unhappy, they go rogue, which, in the game’s terms, means striking and shutting down their textile factories or meatpacking plants—I have to lull them into complacency with plenty of movie theaters, bowling allies, and pizza shops where they can “blow off steam.”
Via @hellbox. Excellent stuff. I recall trying to play a true-to-my-teen-values game within Sim City 2000. After a in-game day or two of tedium, I succumbed to a cheat-code that gave me $1M upon typing (if I remember right) porntipsguzzardo.
