This essay is a piece of coursework I wrote for my Media A Level when I was 17/18. I thought GAF might enjoy it.
Am I watching a film or playing a video game? is what I found myself asking while playing through Kojima Productions blockbuster hit Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, for the Sony Playstation 3 video game console, which has sold 4.46 million copies worldwide since its 12th June 2008 release. I asked this question because over 10 hours of the game is spent watching the story unfold through cut scenes, rather than through actual game play. As one critic put it the director Hideo Kojima immerses players in a cinematic experience.
Hideo Kojima, the head of the studio and director of the game, is the self proclaimed God of the Metal Gear series. The fusion of the gaming and film mediums is no doubt related to Kojimas childhood dream of becoming a film director. As it turned out Kojima became a game designer and planner at publisher Konami in 1986. His first game was released in 1987 for the MSX system entitled Metal Gear and a sequel Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake was released in 1990. Both games were released in Japan however the West only saw the former. The 2D games revolved around Solid Snake, a Special Forces operative, who in both games was tasked with averting the construction of a bipedal nuclear tank known as Metal Gear.
However it was Metal Gear Solid, the third game in the series, released for the Sony Playstation in 1999, which brought cosmic innovation to the gaming industry. The game title had Solid added to it, to reflect the step up to solid 3D graphics. The ability of the Playstation to process 3D graphics and the vast space allowed via use of the CD-ROM medium allowed Kojima to create a game which focused as much on the storyline as on the game play mechanics, bringing film like emotion to Snakes story. The result was a highly successful media text which sold 5.59 million copies. Further sequel Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2002) and series prequel Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2005), both for the Sony Playstation 2, sold a combination of over 9 million copies , using improved hardware to produce more realistic visuals, than the blocky character models of Metal Gear Solid.
It was inevitable that the series would continue on the new Sony Playstation 3 hardware. The power of this latest system is conveyed by the blurb on the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots cover, with visuals described as Hollywood like CGI. The cut scenes of the game total up to be approximately 580 minutes long and 860 minutes of game play , giving the developers a wide scope with which to express their values and ideologies. I will be investigating how and what values are promoted by the development team through Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.
The game was in development from 2005-2008 , and it has been influenced by real world affairs from this time period. In particular the first act of the game, set in the Middle East, is evocative of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the game the battles between the local militia and the occupying PMC (Private Military Corporation) force is a clear allegory of the battles between Iraqi and Afghan rebels against the American occupation of their countries. Props demonstrate this, as the PMC troops wear sophisticated military clothing and sport an arsenal including tanks, bipedal robots and helicopters, whereas the militia have ragged clothing and the faux luxury of trucks rather than tanks.
Interestingly the first section of the Middle East act is called Ground Zero, the same name used to describe the space where the World Trade Centre used to stand on in New York. I believe the developers have named the section as such because they are implying that as many innocent Middle Easterners have died in the War on Terror as did victims of the 9/11 attacks. So a new ground zero has been formed in the Middle East. Also it could be a warning that by occupying the Middle East, the USA has set itself as a target for another ground zero to form.
Snake, the main and playable character in the game, is sent into this war zone wearing militia clothing, allowing you to side with the militia forces. There is no way to side with the PMC forces which portray the developers political views, support for the Afghans and Iraqis and the view that American forces should withdraw from the Middle East. Further weight is added to this argument when we look at the acts of brutality dished out by the PMC troops. One scene early on has the player crawl through a vent to get outside of a building and just before crawling outside we see a close-up of a militia soldier, cowering on the floor. He is executed from point blank range with an array of bullets from a PMC soldiers Mk.17 assault rifle, alluding to allegations of war crimes perpetuated by American forces in the Middle East. Even more callous are the Gekko robots, as tall as double-decker buses, which are deployed to wipe an area clear of militia troops by the PMC forces via the crushing or spraying militia troops with bullets. The Gekko theme song accompanies their appearance, a high tempo non-diagetic sound produced via violins, expressing the anxiety the militia forces must feel at viewing this unstoppable enemy. In addition when the game play of this scene begins you are instructed to simply run and not attempt to destroy them, further reinforcing the dominating nature of the Gekko, as does the low camera angle focus on them in the cut scenes. Again this hits home the developers opinions that America is oppressing rather than liberating the Middle East.
Females are empowered in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots representing the zeitgeist of today, which has been influenced by the 1960s wave of feminism and movements such as girl power, promoted by the Spice Girls in the 1990s. Every single female character in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots has a strong and intelligent representation. Firstly there is Meryl, who is the commander of a squad of soldiers, with the other 4 members being men. In the palace in the Middle East action of the game she leads the way forward for her team as well as Snake (the player), demonstrating that the developers see women as equals to men, evidenced by their performance in roles usually reserved for men. The game play in this section restricts the player, as they may only progress through each part of the building once Meryl has given the all clear, which is a unique way of conveying the message that Meryl is in command directly to the player.
If Meryl is the tough girl then Naomi and young Sunny are the intellectual girls. Naomi is a genetic scientist, demonstrating how women can become professionals and educated in the modern world. She has demonstrated her power in previous title Metal Gear Solid, when a plot twist revealed that she had injected Snake with a virus called FoxDie, which was supposed to kill him, her way of revenge as she thought Snake had killed her brother. The fact the life of the main character was in the hands of a female was a very pro-feministic approach. This is taken a step further in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots as Sunny, who is only 7 years old, creates the computer virus, aptly named FoxAlive, which destroys the Patriot AIs that control the world, and one could truthfully say she is the main hero. Finally there is Mei Ling who commands the navy training vessel the USS Missouri, which is vital in transporting Snake to the ship containing the Patriot AIs, where he inserts the FoxAlive virus. The developers wanted to illustrate that women are vital to society and that within the game Snake couldnt have gotten very far without the help of female characters. Furthermore Snake must face off against the 4 members of the Beauty & Beast unit throughout his journey, showing that women can hinder as well as help the mission.
Karl Marxs theory of capitalism is another ideology prevalent. The capitalist system Marx talked about in his works is allegorically portrayed as the war economy in the game. Millions of people across the world depend on this economy for survival, however for the economy to function there must be a perpetual warfare across the globe, thus these people were exploited, forced to fight to survive. Similarly in Marxist thought the workers are said to be exploited under the capitalist economy, putting the most effort in, but yielding the least of the profits, which went to the business owners who hardly worked at all. Further weight is added to the Marxist argument when we look at the Sons of the Patriots (SOP) system in the game, which is a hyperbolic allegory of the Marxist theory of the capitalist system. Under the SOP system soldiers worldwide are linked to a central AI, via Nan machines in their body, which serves three functions, the first of which is to allow members of a unit to see each others senses, ensuring greater battlefield unity and a tactical edge over those not a part of the system. Secondly the chemical balances of soldiers are read by the system and the release of endorphins and adrenaline is controlled, to ensure a combat high, elevating the accuracy and senses of every soldier. Emotions and pain are suppressed to ensure soldiers stick to their goals and not let their personal judgements nor do injuries affect their collective efforts to the war economy. The nutritional information of soldiers are also analysed by the system and thus the flow of a battlefield and requirements of soldiers can be assessed to near perfection. Finally the system monitors the use of weapons. Soldiers can only use guns that match their ID and furthermore this part of the system disables soldiers from shooting their allies or committing atrocities, as the guns will only fire on the enemy soldiers. The main function of this is to ensure PMC soldiers do not fire on the clients that hired them. 1999 blockbuster The Matrix presents a similar link to Marxist theory via the comparison of an AI system subduing the human race, to the capitalist system subduing the human race.
In addition to the main ideas of Marxism being prevalent in the game, there is also evidence of Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramscis idea of cultural hegemony. In cultural hegemony the ruling and oppressive class ideology is presented as being the norm through the mass media, forwarded via the Patriots system in Metal Gear Solid 4. Gramsci talked of a culture war whereby capitalist and anti-capitalist voices would fight to get their voices heard through the mass media. However under the Patriots system all of the worlds media are under control, so no dissenting opinion has a chance of being published or mediated. All mediums will therefore praise the War Economy and encourage people to become soldiers aligned to the SOP system.
The game also has another economic context present in the form of references to the credit crunch. When Snake is briefed about the Gekkos in the Middle East he comments that soon enough the will have put living breathing soldiers out of work. I believe that the Kojima Productions team have been influenced by the sensationalism generated worldwide by the mass media due to the credit crunch. Therefore fear of job losses are portrayed in the game. Act 4 is a clear example of this. Set in a base on an Alaskan island called Shadow Moses where the first Metal Gear Solid game was set, it is the only of the five acts where Snake has to dodge mechanical enemies, rather than living ones, bringing his earlier comment to reality. One can also compare the difference between Shadow Moses in the first Metal Gear Solid game where it was thriving with soldiers and electricity, to the eerily silent, dark and dilapidated state it is in during Metal Gear Solid 4. It is a representation of the hustling and bustling dot com bubble of 1998-2000 (coincidentally the original Metal Gear Solid was released in 1999) versus the post 2007 climate of unemployment which has influenced Metal Gear Solid 4.
Liberalist individualism is a massive value promoted through the game. The general idea of individualism is that people should be allowed to live their lives how they want and without external interference upon them. So far I have mentioned the support of rebels in the Middle East, the opposition to the imperialists (America), the support of freedom for women to be in roles traditionally reserved for males and the toppling of a dystopian AI system that encroaches on peoples freedom, all symbolic codes for the support of individualism. However the developers also break the fourth wall and express their individualist yearnings directly to the player. When the player has control of Snake they are free to play the game how they want. You can go around killing PMC soldiers without restraint, or in fact even ally militia soldiers. Tranquilizer guns are available for those who would rather subdue than eliminate the enemy. Finally the purest method of all, and the original style of the Metal Gear games of the 80s, simply sneaking around and not engaging with the enemy. One can also choose to use camouflage, customise their arsenal to perfection and play the game in first or third person. However the biggest example of individualist idea is how the player can choose whether to advance by killing the enemies or not. This is one of the games strongest points and an example of the video game medium breaking the boundaries. When the game is completed and a screen pops up with various statistics, the most striking is the number of kills. The choice is in the players hands.
In addition to the Middle East act of the game being a representation of the developers support for individualism, the South American and Eastern European acts are also examples of explicit support for rebels fighting against the state. This binary opposition is set against the backdrop of locations where such battles have taken place in modern history. The conflict between the rebels of South America and the PMC in the game is a reference to the dirty war (1976-1983) in Argentina when left wing guerrillas fought against the right wing state. The Eastern European act where Snake follows a resistance member through the military patrolled streets at night is an allegory of those operating against the Soviet Union having to sneak around and meet up with fellow revolutionaries during the cold war.
Hideo Kojima and his Kojima Productions development team have produced a game that is full of liberal individualist thought. Through both the cinematic segments of the game and the game play itself the idea of individual freedom is promoted, answering my earlier pondering of whether one is playing a game or watching a film, as both mediums are full to bursting point with intellectual thought. It is through the game play that the most striking examples of support for individualism are expressed as the player is limited to support the rebels against the oppressive PMC forces, as well as the player being free to play the game violently or silently by not engaging the enemy in combat. Because this is directly in the players hands the message is meticulously reinforced The storyline promotes individualism, the culmination of events within the game lead up to the oppressive Patriots AI system being deleted, with the media and soldiers, once slaves to the system, becoming free. Gender role breaking female characters also characterise the individualist argument, as the females in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots are not confined to traditional female stereotypes and finally Marxist leanings via the allegory of the capitalist system to the Sons of the patriots system also imbue a support for freedom.
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is not just a form of escapism via game play and cut scenes, it is also a philosophical media text that promotes liberal individualist values and ideologies.
Am I watching a film or playing a video game? is what I found myself asking while playing through Kojima Productions blockbuster hit Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, for the Sony Playstation 3 video game console, which has sold 4.46 million copies worldwide since its 12th June 2008 release. I asked this question because over 10 hours of the game is spent watching the story unfold through cut scenes, rather than through actual game play. As one critic put it the director Hideo Kojima immerses players in a cinematic experience.
Hideo Kojima, the head of the studio and director of the game, is the self proclaimed God of the Metal Gear series. The fusion of the gaming and film mediums is no doubt related to Kojimas childhood dream of becoming a film director. As it turned out Kojima became a game designer and planner at publisher Konami in 1986. His first game was released in 1987 for the MSX system entitled Metal Gear and a sequel Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake was released in 1990. Both games were released in Japan however the West only saw the former. The 2D games revolved around Solid Snake, a Special Forces operative, who in both games was tasked with averting the construction of a bipedal nuclear tank known as Metal Gear.
However it was Metal Gear Solid, the third game in the series, released for the Sony Playstation in 1999, which brought cosmic innovation to the gaming industry. The game title had Solid added to it, to reflect the step up to solid 3D graphics. The ability of the Playstation to process 3D graphics and the vast space allowed via use of the CD-ROM medium allowed Kojima to create a game which focused as much on the storyline as on the game play mechanics, bringing film like emotion to Snakes story. The result was a highly successful media text which sold 5.59 million copies. Further sequel Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (2002) and series prequel Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (2005), both for the Sony Playstation 2, sold a combination of over 9 million copies , using improved hardware to produce more realistic visuals, than the blocky character models of Metal Gear Solid.
It was inevitable that the series would continue on the new Sony Playstation 3 hardware. The power of this latest system is conveyed by the blurb on the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots cover, with visuals described as Hollywood like CGI. The cut scenes of the game total up to be approximately 580 minutes long and 860 minutes of game play , giving the developers a wide scope with which to express their values and ideologies. I will be investigating how and what values are promoted by the development team through Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.
The game was in development from 2005-2008 , and it has been influenced by real world affairs from this time period. In particular the first act of the game, set in the Middle East, is evocative of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the game the battles between the local militia and the occupying PMC (Private Military Corporation) force is a clear allegory of the battles between Iraqi and Afghan rebels against the American occupation of their countries. Props demonstrate this, as the PMC troops wear sophisticated military clothing and sport an arsenal including tanks, bipedal robots and helicopters, whereas the militia have ragged clothing and the faux luxury of trucks rather than tanks.
Interestingly the first section of the Middle East act is called Ground Zero, the same name used to describe the space where the World Trade Centre used to stand on in New York. I believe the developers have named the section as such because they are implying that as many innocent Middle Easterners have died in the War on Terror as did victims of the 9/11 attacks. So a new ground zero has been formed in the Middle East. Also it could be a warning that by occupying the Middle East, the USA has set itself as a target for another ground zero to form.
Snake, the main and playable character in the game, is sent into this war zone wearing militia clothing, allowing you to side with the militia forces. There is no way to side with the PMC forces which portray the developers political views, support for the Afghans and Iraqis and the view that American forces should withdraw from the Middle East. Further weight is added to this argument when we look at the acts of brutality dished out by the PMC troops. One scene early on has the player crawl through a vent to get outside of a building and just before crawling outside we see a close-up of a militia soldier, cowering on the floor. He is executed from point blank range with an array of bullets from a PMC soldiers Mk.17 assault rifle, alluding to allegations of war crimes perpetuated by American forces in the Middle East. Even more callous are the Gekko robots, as tall as double-decker buses, which are deployed to wipe an area clear of militia troops by the PMC forces via the crushing or spraying militia troops with bullets. The Gekko theme song accompanies their appearance, a high tempo non-diagetic sound produced via violins, expressing the anxiety the militia forces must feel at viewing this unstoppable enemy. In addition when the game play of this scene begins you are instructed to simply run and not attempt to destroy them, further reinforcing the dominating nature of the Gekko, as does the low camera angle focus on them in the cut scenes. Again this hits home the developers opinions that America is oppressing rather than liberating the Middle East.
Females are empowered in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots representing the zeitgeist of today, which has been influenced by the 1960s wave of feminism and movements such as girl power, promoted by the Spice Girls in the 1990s. Every single female character in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots has a strong and intelligent representation. Firstly there is Meryl, who is the commander of a squad of soldiers, with the other 4 members being men. In the palace in the Middle East action of the game she leads the way forward for her team as well as Snake (the player), demonstrating that the developers see women as equals to men, evidenced by their performance in roles usually reserved for men. The game play in this section restricts the player, as they may only progress through each part of the building once Meryl has given the all clear, which is a unique way of conveying the message that Meryl is in command directly to the player.
If Meryl is the tough girl then Naomi and young Sunny are the intellectual girls. Naomi is a genetic scientist, demonstrating how women can become professionals and educated in the modern world. She has demonstrated her power in previous title Metal Gear Solid, when a plot twist revealed that she had injected Snake with a virus called FoxDie, which was supposed to kill him, her way of revenge as she thought Snake had killed her brother. The fact the life of the main character was in the hands of a female was a very pro-feministic approach. This is taken a step further in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots as Sunny, who is only 7 years old, creates the computer virus, aptly named FoxAlive, which destroys the Patriot AIs that control the world, and one could truthfully say she is the main hero. Finally there is Mei Ling who commands the navy training vessel the USS Missouri, which is vital in transporting Snake to the ship containing the Patriot AIs, where he inserts the FoxAlive virus. The developers wanted to illustrate that women are vital to society and that within the game Snake couldnt have gotten very far without the help of female characters. Furthermore Snake must face off against the 4 members of the Beauty & Beast unit throughout his journey, showing that women can hinder as well as help the mission.
Karl Marxs theory of capitalism is another ideology prevalent. The capitalist system Marx talked about in his works is allegorically portrayed as the war economy in the game. Millions of people across the world depend on this economy for survival, however for the economy to function there must be a perpetual warfare across the globe, thus these people were exploited, forced to fight to survive. Similarly in Marxist thought the workers are said to be exploited under the capitalist economy, putting the most effort in, but yielding the least of the profits, which went to the business owners who hardly worked at all. Further weight is added to the Marxist argument when we look at the Sons of the Patriots (SOP) system in the game, which is a hyperbolic allegory of the Marxist theory of the capitalist system. Under the SOP system soldiers worldwide are linked to a central AI, via Nan machines in their body, which serves three functions, the first of which is to allow members of a unit to see each others senses, ensuring greater battlefield unity and a tactical edge over those not a part of the system. Secondly the chemical balances of soldiers are read by the system and the release of endorphins and adrenaline is controlled, to ensure a combat high, elevating the accuracy and senses of every soldier. Emotions and pain are suppressed to ensure soldiers stick to their goals and not let their personal judgements nor do injuries affect their collective efforts to the war economy. The nutritional information of soldiers are also analysed by the system and thus the flow of a battlefield and requirements of soldiers can be assessed to near perfection. Finally the system monitors the use of weapons. Soldiers can only use guns that match their ID and furthermore this part of the system disables soldiers from shooting their allies or committing atrocities, as the guns will only fire on the enemy soldiers. The main function of this is to ensure PMC soldiers do not fire on the clients that hired them. 1999 blockbuster The Matrix presents a similar link to Marxist theory via the comparison of an AI system subduing the human race, to the capitalist system subduing the human race.
In addition to the main ideas of Marxism being prevalent in the game, there is also evidence of Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramscis idea of cultural hegemony. In cultural hegemony the ruling and oppressive class ideology is presented as being the norm through the mass media, forwarded via the Patriots system in Metal Gear Solid 4. Gramsci talked of a culture war whereby capitalist and anti-capitalist voices would fight to get their voices heard through the mass media. However under the Patriots system all of the worlds media are under control, so no dissenting opinion has a chance of being published or mediated. All mediums will therefore praise the War Economy and encourage people to become soldiers aligned to the SOP system.
The game also has another economic context present in the form of references to the credit crunch. When Snake is briefed about the Gekkos in the Middle East he comments that soon enough the will have put living breathing soldiers out of work. I believe that the Kojima Productions team have been influenced by the sensationalism generated worldwide by the mass media due to the credit crunch. Therefore fear of job losses are portrayed in the game. Act 4 is a clear example of this. Set in a base on an Alaskan island called Shadow Moses where the first Metal Gear Solid game was set, it is the only of the five acts where Snake has to dodge mechanical enemies, rather than living ones, bringing his earlier comment to reality. One can also compare the difference between Shadow Moses in the first Metal Gear Solid game where it was thriving with soldiers and electricity, to the eerily silent, dark and dilapidated state it is in during Metal Gear Solid 4. It is a representation of the hustling and bustling dot com bubble of 1998-2000 (coincidentally the original Metal Gear Solid was released in 1999) versus the post 2007 climate of unemployment which has influenced Metal Gear Solid 4.
Liberalist individualism is a massive value promoted through the game. The general idea of individualism is that people should be allowed to live their lives how they want and without external interference upon them. So far I have mentioned the support of rebels in the Middle East, the opposition to the imperialists (America), the support of freedom for women to be in roles traditionally reserved for males and the toppling of a dystopian AI system that encroaches on peoples freedom, all symbolic codes for the support of individualism. However the developers also break the fourth wall and express their individualist yearnings directly to the player. When the player has control of Snake they are free to play the game how they want. You can go around killing PMC soldiers without restraint, or in fact even ally militia soldiers. Tranquilizer guns are available for those who would rather subdue than eliminate the enemy. Finally the purest method of all, and the original style of the Metal Gear games of the 80s, simply sneaking around and not engaging with the enemy. One can also choose to use camouflage, customise their arsenal to perfection and play the game in first or third person. However the biggest example of individualist idea is how the player can choose whether to advance by killing the enemies or not. This is one of the games strongest points and an example of the video game medium breaking the boundaries. When the game is completed and a screen pops up with various statistics, the most striking is the number of kills. The choice is in the players hands.
In addition to the Middle East act of the game being a representation of the developers support for individualism, the South American and Eastern European acts are also examples of explicit support for rebels fighting against the state. This binary opposition is set against the backdrop of locations where such battles have taken place in modern history. The conflict between the rebels of South America and the PMC in the game is a reference to the dirty war (1976-1983) in Argentina when left wing guerrillas fought against the right wing state. The Eastern European act where Snake follows a resistance member through the military patrolled streets at night is an allegory of those operating against the Soviet Union having to sneak around and meet up with fellow revolutionaries during the cold war.
Hideo Kojima and his Kojima Productions development team have produced a game that is full of liberal individualist thought. Through both the cinematic segments of the game and the game play itself the idea of individual freedom is promoted, answering my earlier pondering of whether one is playing a game or watching a film, as both mediums are full to bursting point with intellectual thought. It is through the game play that the most striking examples of support for individualism are expressed as the player is limited to support the rebels against the oppressive PMC forces, as well as the player being free to play the game violently or silently by not engaging the enemy in combat. Because this is directly in the players hands the message is meticulously reinforced The storyline promotes individualism, the culmination of events within the game lead up to the oppressive Patriots AI system being deleted, with the media and soldiers, once slaves to the system, becoming free. Gender role breaking female characters also characterise the individualist argument, as the females in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots are not confined to traditional female stereotypes and finally Marxist leanings via the allegory of the capitalist system to the Sons of the patriots system also imbue a support for freedom.
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is not just a form of escapism via game play and cut scenes, it is also a philosophical media text that promotes liberal individualist values and ideologies.
