Video Games Take on the Challenge of Propaganda

Over three years have passed since the initial release of Not For Broadcast, a satirical game published by TinyBuild. The game is now receiving a DLC pack called Live and Spooky, as well as a VR version, both of which are set to arrive by the end of March. Not For Broadcast is a unique game that successfully balances humor with difficult political questions, allowing players to laugh while also engaging with complex issues. The game is set in a 1980s British TV newsroom, where an extremist government is in power, and players must edit and censor news clips to boost ratings and shape the outside world. Players can create a narrative that supports the government's populist policies, effectively acting as a tool for spreading propaganda. They can also spin content to alter the meaning and context of interviews. The early access release of Not For Broadcast received positive reviews from critics in early 2020, but the COVID outbreak disrupted the developer's release plan. As an FMV game, the cast of actors was unable to work remotely, and filming new episodes was delayed until after lockdown. Despite this, the new updates feel timely, especially in light of recent revelations about Fox News' disinformation campaign following the last US presidential election. This is also a time when more games are tackling disinformation, often through satire and media manipulation. Last year, Tilt Games released Cat Park, a game sponsored by the US Department of State that teaches players about disinformation and how to spot fake news. Tilt's previous game, Harmony Square, was a narrative game where players sought to sow disunity and chaos through lies, and a Cambridge University study found that players were better able to identify fake news in the real world after playing the game. A forthcoming seminar for military cadets will feature the board game Lizards and Lies, where players try to dominate social media spaces by spreading conspiracy theories or fact-checking them. Games are becoming more effective at simulating dissimulation. According to Alex Nichiporchik, CEO of TinyBuild, "We put players in the shoes of powerful news people and ask them to make morally questionable choices. The most important thing for us is that the game is fun, but players come away understanding how news media manipulates cuts and edits to fit an agenda." Not For Broadcast's charm lies in its ability to reveal the inner workings of the TV news business. Nichiporchik believes that players are interested in learning how things work in the world and enjoy engaging with that process. The game is designed to give players difficult moral choices, with censorship and propaganda serving as a useful canvas. Other games, such as Cat Park, are more focused on educating players about disinformation, particularly when it is used as a recruitment tool for extremist organizations. Players take on the role of a resident who becomes embroiled in a campaign against a cat park, meeting other campaigners who use disinformation tools such as emotive language, image manipulation, and memes. As players hone their skills and help the campaign, they begin to understand that their cause may be manipulated by nefarious forces. The purpose of Cat Park is to increase media literacy, according to Lisa Poot, senior project manager at Tilt Games. "We're not trying to say what is true and what is not true – only to show how misinformation works, how disinformation spreads, and how it can have harmful consequences." Tilt's games are based on inoculation theory, which states that people's minds can be inoculated against disinformation, just like their bodies. Games are discreet experiences that work like vaccines, and when players are exposed to disinformation tactics, they become more able to recognize them in real life. Scott DeJong, creator of Lizards and Lies, has published a study on games that tackle disinformation, highlighting the importance of using games to fight conspiracy theories, particularly since conspiracy recruitment often uses gamification techniques. "Disinformation and conspiracy theory processes are often like puzzles," he says. "They draw people in by seeming to ask questions, while really directing the target towards a specific answer." DeJong believes that games about disinformation can improve players' ability to process conspiracy theories in real life. "Games are great tools for asking questions. It's fine to try to tell people to seek out the source material behind the stories they read online, but the average person doesn't do that. Games about disinformation create spaces where there is a heavy focus on being critical about social media, and a reward for demonstrating an understanding of how disinformation works."